Show & Tell Time for Ferries

Over the past 18 months the San Francisco Bay Area Water Transit Authority (WTA) has studied the many ways to operate Bay Area ferries—using biodiesel and other alternative fuel sources, on routes which might include places like Antioch or Redwood City, into terminals where passengers can transfer quickly to other ferries or ground transit, while minimizing impacts on shorelines and wildlife. Potential ferry riders have been characterized and quantified. The most desirable vessel sizes and types have been identified. The studies have been compiled, the tests have been run, and now the draft Implementation and Operations Plan (IOP) and the draft Programmatic Environmental Impact Report (EIR) are ready for "prime time".

The IOP contains information on ridership, system and cost effectiveness, terminal and intermodal access, vessel design and air emissions; the EIR evaluates the environmental impacts of the recommendations in the IOP. According to WTA's authorizing legislation, both must be sent to the Legislature by December 31, 2002.

The IOP has the answers for some of the questions which have dogged ferry proponents since before the WTA's creation: Which new routes would be most cost-effective? Can ferries attract new riders instead of siphoning passengers from other transit? Is a new agency needed, or should existing ferry services just expand on their own? The EIR answers other questions: What kinds of fuels are least polluting? How can wake impacts be minimized? Will new ferry terminals create new traffic jams?

From the extensive studies it is possible to glean some indications of what the answers will be. Yes, air pollution can be minimized in new ferries and even in older onesWTA's Heidi Machen says the agency is doing "first time ever in-service emissions testing [and] the results, even for ferries run on diesel, will be pleasantly surprising!" Yes, there are some potential ferry passengers who aren't using transit now. And no, even with parking fees and substantial fares, significant expansions in ferry service aren't likely unless a new funding source is found, such as increased bridge tolls.

The two August meetings of the WTA Board, on August 8 and 22, will consider the Draft IOP and Draft Programmatic EIR. The public comment period on the draft EIR will run from the scheduled release of the two documents on August 26 until Oct. 31, with public hearings scheduled in Oakland on September 10 and San Francisco on September 17. The draft IOP will be considered by the Metropolitan Transportation Commission in September and public hearings will be held in each Bay Area county.

For more information: Heidi Machen, WTA, 415-291-3377; http://www.watertransit.org