Report says River Derwent ferry funding must rise

There is only enough money to fund one route on a River Derwent ferry service, a Metro study has found.

THE State Government will need to significantly increase funding to deliver the River Derwent ferry service it has promised to build.

Only a peak-hour service between Sullivans Cove and Bellerive would be possible from the current budget allocation, according to a report commissioned by Metro to investigate passenger ferry options.

But the $105,000 study, released to the Mercury under Right to Information laws, detailed four service options, including “Option 4”, a comprehensive everyday timetable understood to be favoured by the Government.

$2 MILLION FOR STUDY INTO DERWENT FERRY SERVICE

That option would involve hourly ferries in each direction from 6am to 9pm, seven days a week, with an increased frequency of every 30 minutes during weekday peaks. It also provided for the potential for additional runs on Friday and Saturday nights.

“Patronage is expected to be highest under Option 4,” noted the 102-page document prepared by Melbourne-based firm MRCagney.

“Service frequency is a key influence on customer satisfaction and use, with limited frequency of historic services run on the Bellerive-Hobart route cited as a contributing factor for not using the ferry.”

An artist’s impression of a ferry on the Bellerive to Hobart route across the River Derwent.

The report said weekend services also made Option 4 more attractive for visitor and recreational patronage, along with use for sporting events at Blundstone Arena.

The estimated cost of delivering each option was redacted from the document under Section 35 (internal deliberative information), and Section 38 (information relating to business affairs of public authority), of the Right to Information Act.

The report forecast peak-hour demand would range from 80-110 passengers a day, with a maximum estimate of 140. Across the day, patronage was estimated to range from 250-350, with maximum predictions of 400-550.

The current funding level promised would limit the service to just one route in peak hours, the report warned.

The report said the current Government funding of $500,000 a year would limit the service to one-vessel on morning and evening peak hour runs, with no ferries during the middle of the day.

“We consider that such a service offering is unlikely to attract high levels of patronage or contribute meaningfully to the range of potential benefits from an effective service,” the report said.

“Under this scenario, we consider the funding would be better invested in providing bus network enhancements for the benefit of the wider community.”

The report considered a comprehensive service would be the “minimum viable product”.

In his 2019 State of the State address in March, Premier Will Hodgman said the Government was focused on delivering a seven-day-a-week ferry service supported by investments in park-and-ride facilities and with linkages to bus services, cycleways and walking paths.