Sydney Ferries
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 Supply & Collaroy at Circular Quay in July 2013 |
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| Agency overview | |
|---|---|
| Formed | 2004 |
| Jurisdiction | New South Wales |
| Headquarters | Sydney |
| Minister responsible | |
| Agency executive |
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| Parent agency | Transport for New South Wales |
| Website | Sydney Ferries |
Sydney Ferries is the public transport ferry network serving the Australian city of Sydney, New South Wales. Services operate on Sydney Harbour and the Parramatta River. The network is controlled by the New South Wales Government's transport authority, Transport for NSW, and is part of the authority's Opal ticketing system. In 2015-16, 15.4 million passenger journeys were made on the network.
Sydney Ferries operates services on seven routes radiating from Circular Quay to:
Balmain Shipyard in Mort Bay was established about 1890 by Balmain Ferry Company as a depot, ferry wharf and ferry coaling wharf but through amalgamations and government takeovers, has become the present Sydney Ferries’ Maintenance Facility and Training base and is leased to Harbour City Ferries.
Sydney Ferries can trace its roots as far back as the arrival of the First Fleet at Sydney Cove where in 1789, the first ferry service was established from the Cove to the farming settlement of Parramatta. The first ferry, officially named the Rose Hill Packet (otherwise known as 'The Lump'), was crafted by convicts and powered by sails and oars. Trips inland from Sydney Cove to Parramatta typically took up to one week to complete. As time progressed, a series of rowboat ferrymen set up small operations to transport people from either side of Sydney Harbour.
In 1861, the North Shore Ferry Company was established which operated the very first commercial ferry service across Sydney Harbour.
In 1899, ferry services were integrated into Sydney Ferries Limited, which became the world's largest ferry operator by fleet size. After the Sydney Harbour Bridge opened in March 1932, ferry patronage dropped almost overnight, decreasing from 30 to 13 million passengers per year.
In 1951, the NSW Government intervened in response to the financial difficulty of the operator and agreed to take over Sydney Ferries Limited. From this time, services were operated by a number of government organisations, including the Public Transport Commission (1972-1980), Urban Transit Authority (1980-1989), State Transit Authority (1989-2004) and Sydney Ferries Corporation (2004-2012).
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