Sydney ferry changes for Mosman, Parramatta, Balmain and Double Bay
Transdev, the private operator of Sydney Ferries, has unveiled a raft of changes to ferry services across the city. Find out how it will affect you.
Mosman
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Ferry commuters will be hit with longer journey times under changes planned for the network.
The lower north shore will lose a ferry service under a proposal to merge the F6 Mosman Bay and the F2 Taronga Zoo routes.
Under the plans a new loop service will operate anticlockwise in the morning from Circular Quay direct to the zoo and change direction around midday.
This means tourists going to the zoo in the morning and coming back in the afternoon enjoy a direct trip across the harbour.
However those going from the Taronga stop in the morning to the city will have to call in at South Mosman, Mosman Bay, Old Cremorne and Cremorne Point before reaching Circular Quay.
On the return journey in the afternoon Taronga Zoo will be the final stop.
The new route is planned to start in 2021.
“They are endeavouring to favour the tourist market over the commuter market and cause a great disadvantage to local Mosman residents,” Mosman councillor Simon Menzies said.
“The big losers will be the commuters who catch the ferry from Taronga Zoo. What is currently 12 minutes will become 20 minutes.”
Transdev, the private operator of Sydney’s ferry network, has been criticised for running public consultation on the changes during the holidays.
Cr Menzies claims Mosman Council wasn’t even consulted.
“I’m always suspicious of consultations that happen during the Christmas break,” he said.
“They are not giving Mosman a fair go and they should be.
“I encourage everyone to go on the Transdev site (to give their views). If they don’t act now we will miss the boat.”
Changes for 2021 are also planned for the Cockatoo Island, Parramatta River and Double Bay routes.
The F8 Cockatoo Island route will terminate at Barangaroo instead of Circular Quay and will no longer serve Balmain Wharf.
Commuters will have to take the F3 Parramatta River route instead but Transdev has said that Balmain Wharf passengers will have more frequent services as a result.
There are a lot of changes planned for the F3 Parramatta River route, which will also no longer stop at Circular Quay. A Parramatta to Sydney Olympic Park shuttle will leave every hour during peak periods, and customers from Parramatta and Rydalmere travelling to the city can transfer at Olympic Park.
A limited stop express service is planned from Sydney Olympic Park to Barangaroo running every 10 minutes during the busiest times. An all stops service will also run from Abbotsford to Barangaroo.
The F7 Double Bay will see an increase in the off-peak frequency from 60 minutes to 40 minutes on weekdays.
There are also changes scheduled to happen this year. The F4 Cross Harbour route will be separated into an east and west route.
The F1 Manly service will result in services every 20 minutes on weekday and every 10 minutes on weekends in new Emerald Class ferries. These have capacity for 400 customers and complete the trip in 22 minutes. No decision has yet been made on the current Freshwater fleet of larger vessels.
A spokesman for Transdev said it has invited the local community to provide feedback on proposed changes across Sydney Harbour and Parramatta River as part of an extensive community consultation.
The proposed changes will aim to improve the frequency and connectivity of ferry services.
“No decisions have been made about any changes yet,” he said.
“The proposed changes are to be implemented in 2021 and community and stakeholder feedback will be thoroughly analysed and considered to ensure the revised network meets current and future customer expectations.”
The public consultation started mid-November and runs through to mid-February, after which all submissions will be considered.