Gold Coast ferry service: First ticket booth planned for popular Coast park

The first ferries of the city’s new water-based public transport system have hit the water as the location of the first ticket booth is revealed.

THE first ferries of the city’s new water-based public transport system have hit the water.

HOPO – as in ‘hop on, hop off’ — is the name for the city’s ferry service set to launch in the second week of December.

Its imminent arrival comes after nearly 20 years of failed attempts.

Mayor Tom Tate confirmed the first ferries had arrived in the city and some had already done test runs in the Broadwater.

Mayor Tom Tate. Photo by Richard Gosling

“The mood is good and people are getting excited about it,” he said.

“The ferries have actually arrived and we’ve even had some do runs in the water already.”

It comes as council’s preparations for the system’s launch continue.

A development application was filed last week for a ticketing booth and tourist kiosk in Appel Park at the riverfront end of Surfers Paradise.

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The location of the ticketing booth.

The kiosk will be under a marquee which will be erected in the park during the launch weeks of the ferry and during the school holidays period.

The Gold Coast Waterways Authority has previously predicted the city’s ferry operation would complement the work on how waterways can help ease issues with population pressure on the Gold Coast road network.

SW CruiseCo Pty Ltd, operating as CruiseCo which runs services between Sea World and Surfers Paradise, was named as the successful operator of the ferry service in July.

The tender, put out in April, required the successful bidder to deliver a system with:

* At least three vessels.

* A seven-day-a-week operation across the two-year trial.

* A minimum of five stops as defined by council.

Earlier this year councillors ticked off on ratepayers forking out $1 million to deliver disability access and facilities needed at ferry stops.