Testing out Sydney’s new on-demand Fish Market to Barangaroo ferry
Sydney has a new ‘on-demand’ ferry connecting Barangaroo to the Fish Market. So how does it stack up? Reporter Heath Parkes-Hupton jumped onboard to find out. SEE THE VIDEO.
Central Sydney
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- ‘Australia’s first’ on-demand ferries coming to Sydney
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Sydney’s got a new ferry service that promises to deliver on-demand rides between Pyrmont’s iconic fish market and employment hotspot Barangaroo.
The six-month trial service promises to provide “personalised, versatile” services in the Bays Precinct with stops at Sydney Fish Market, Blackwattle Bay, Pirrama Park and Barangaroo wharf.
One-way trips for adults cost $7.60 and $3.80 for concession tickets, which can be booked on the Tranzer app, at electronic kiosks stationed at each stop or over the phone.
Reporter Heath Parkes-Hupton tested out the scenic service on Friday morning, taking a return trip on the Me-Mel mini-cat.
After getting a bum steer from a cafe worker who told him the ferry “was cancelled years ago”, Heath found the Fish Market wharf about 9.30am.
Commuters have experienced some “teething issues” ordering through the Tranzer app, according to staff, and that was the case for Heath — who was met with the message “We could not find any journeys”.
“It turns out you need to enter the specific wharves you want to leave from or go to in the app for it to work,” Heath said.
“Being a new service the app hasn’t yet caught up to using your phone’s GPS to bring up the ferry as your most convenient trip, but I’m told Transdev is working on that.”
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Heath instead took to the kiosk to order his ferry at 9.34am and within 21 minutes the Me-Mel was pulling up right in front of him at 9.55am.
No one else was on board, which was understandable as peak hour had passed, but two passengers jumped on at the popular Blackwattle Bay stop.
One of them, Glebe resident Joe Agius said he usually cycled to work in the city but had been keen to try out the new service.
“It’s a fantastic way of getting to work,” the architect said.
“I think applying on-demand technology to a ferry service, particularly in this area, should work.
“You have the commuters going in to the city and also the tourists coming the other way to the market.”
Ferry driver master Brett Derwin said the service’s popularity was “picking up slowly” but Blackwattle Bay was by far the busiest stop.
“We haven’t stopped since 7am this morning, with people on board all the time,” he said.
About 18 minutes after the ferry set off, it arrived at Barangaroo at 10.14am, having stopped just once at Glebe.
“The trip was really smooth and the view is pretty hard to beat,” Heath said.
“All in all, it was easy to book and probably quicker than catching the bus. It’s not a bad way to get to work.”
However, Heath said the cost of $7.60 one-way for an adult could put off some commuters.
The service runs from 7am to 10pm weekdays and 8.30am to 7.30pm on weekends.
A spokesman for operators Transdev said there were more than 150 customer trips in the first four days of the trial, which began on Monday, October 14.
“Transdev Sydney Ferries has already received great feedback from customers and will be making some changes and updates to the app to make it easier for customers to book a ferry on demand,” he said.
