NSW Ferry Discussion until December 2017.

[Fleet Lists]

Parramatta River Ferries.
Just noticed there is a specila timetable on Transport Info for the five days from 19th to 23rd June which shows no ferries operation west of Rydalmere all day for the five days concerned.

No idea why.

And to confuse things even more the five days are Monday to Friday but the timetable also contains weekend timetables without Parramatta.

[simonl]

There's a few times when the river isn't high enough to operate west of Rydalmere. Probably, these are those times. I think it varies with the tides.

[Fleet Lists]

That is different to this - not a whole 5 days without services to Parramatta.

There is now an alert
"From 1am Monday 19 June until midnight Friday 23 June, no ferry services will stop at Parramatta Wharf, which will be temporarily closed while maintenance work takes place. Replacement buses will run between Parramatta Wharf and nearby Rydalmere Wharf."

And at this very moment there is a further problem with ferries not able to go to Parramatta because of the weir overflowing.

[simonl]

The weir overflowing stops ferries? There's no alert for that. That also happens every time it rains. Seems pretty weak.

[Fleet Lists]

There was an alert at 8am but it had gone by 10am.

[flitter]

The weir overflowing stops ferries? There's no alert for that. That also happens every time it rains. Seems pretty weak.

And they close the wharf every time it overflows... hopefully the new wharf will cope with that problem

[boronia]

There's a few times when the river isn't high enough to operate west of Rydalmere. Probably, these are those times. I think it varies with the tides.

This happens when there are extremely low tides forecast.

The timetables just say "Buses replace some ferry services between Parramatta and Rydalmere due to the natural low tides in the upper Parramatta River. Check daily tidal notices at the wharf for service details". Not sure if these are programmed into trip finder. I think this has also applied during king high tides too.

[Fleet Lists]

See page https://transportnsw.info/getting-aroun ... ment-buses which lists all such tidal interruptions.
Apparently there was only one day where buses replaced some ferry services in May and none in June.

As well there are PDF's for both months which seems a bit of a duplication

May https://transportnsw.info/document/1802 ... lendar.pdf
June https://transportnsw.info/document/1934 ... lendar.pdf

When there are such interruptions there are also Transport Info alerts but as there are none in the immediate future there are no such alerts at the moment. Next time I might see if they are programmed into the trip finder.

[Ranger82]

The 3rd of the New Sydney Ferries VICTOR CHANG is now on its way to Sydney left Incat Hobart today at 1:45pm

[gascoyne]

Here is the Fred Hollows at Barangaroo today. Are they VIPs or is it in revenue service?

[Swift]

It does have that traditional look from the outside. A bit slab sided but surprisingly traditional for something built in 2017. A nice change.

[Fleet Lists]

Probably there for the Barangaroo wharf opening this morning.

[mandonov]

Reviews of the new ferries (apparently dubbed the Emerald Class) and the new wharf on the great Sydney Ferry Blog:

http://sydneyferry.blogspot.com.au/2017 ... class.html

http://sydneyferry.blogspot.com.au/2017 ... ferry.html

Also apparently the Lady Class are on their last legs:

http://sydneyferry.blogspot.com.au/2017 ... adies.html

[boronia]

IPART review of ferry fares 2018:
https://www.ipart.nsw.gov.au/Home/Indus ... nuary-2018

[boronia]

Here is the Fred Hollows at Barangaroo today. Are they VIPs or is it in revenue service?

http://www.transport.nsw.gov.au/newsroo ... rs-service

[mandonov]

Map has been updated:
https://transportnsw.info/document/1449 ... rk-map.pdf

[mandonov]

Great time-lapse of the Barangaroo Wharf construction from Cox Architecture, the designers.

http://vimeo.com/223084224

[Roderick Smith]

Tasmanian ferry company's Sydney Harbour fleet hit with 'defect' list ahead of commissioning.
Wed.28.6 ABC.
Three ferries pass under the Sydney Harbour Bridge.
Photo The Catherine Hamlin is one of six new ferries built by Incat for Sydney Harbour service.
ABC News: Nicole Chettle
A "toilet odour" circulating in the cabin of a Tasmanian-built ferry is one of a series of defects which will need to be fixed at the manufacturer's expense before the vessel is officially allowed to enter service in Sydney Harbour.
The 35-metre-long, 400-passenger Catherine Hamlin, built by Hobart-based company Incat, was launched in December and has been undergoing trials in the harbour.
But problems with the vessel, named in honour of the pioneering obstetrician gynaecologist, have led to Transport New South Wales notifying Incat of "design flaws or manufacturing defects that require modification".
A "defect list" of items requiring repair include:
•Two stains on the blue couches and stains on a few main deck stainless steel support posts. Aluminium shards were left on the carpets and rubbish is on the vessel
•The odour from the toilet is being circulated back into the passenger cabin through the open window and doors of the wheelhouse
•Existing spray rails are not effective at certain speeds
•Calibration of the rudder angle indicators is not satisfactory
•Four passenger seats are under the required spacing by up to three centimetres
•The navigation lights are not visible (at the same time) from the front of the vessel
The department also pointed out that the contract stipulated the "builder shall guarantee each vessel against, and shall indemnify the buyer in respect of all loss in connection with design defects for a period of six years after that vessel is delivered to the buyer".
A Transport NSW spokesman said the repairs would be carried out in Sydney and it was "not unusual for adjustments to be required in the commissioning phase of a new class vessel".
Apart from the Catherine Hamlin, Incat are contracted to deliver five others ferries to NSW in a deal worth $50 million.
While the Catherine Hamlin is out of service another vessel in the fleet, the Fred Hollows, has had what Transport NSW described as "improvements" made, allowing it to begin trials in Sydney Harbour.
Transport NSW said the official launch date of the Incat fleet was "yet to be determined".
Incat have been contacted for comment.
In April, the ABC reported on unprecedented demand for ferries leading to Incat calling for apprentices to join them.
Catherine Hamlin ferry.
Photo The NSW Government said it was not unusual for adjustments to be required for newly-commissioned vessels.
Sydney’s newest ferry will be the Catherine Hamlin in honour of the renowned Australian doctor, ANZAC Peace Prize, a Nobel Peace Prize nominee and a Companion of the Order of Australia.
It’s one of the six names chosen by you during the Name Your Ferry competition. The remaining five names will be revealed in January when the Catherine Hamlin is officially launched!
http://mobile.abc.net.au/news/2017-06-2 ... ur-service

[Fleet Lists]

Transport NSW said the official launch date of the Incat fleet was "yet to be determined".

The first one the Fred Hollows was certainly used in service on the day the Bangaroo wharf was opened.

[J_Busworth]

This morning Fred Hollows was doing runs from Circular Quay to Rose Bay and return. A lot a pax were very surprised when they saw the interior, which is much nicer than that of a the SuperCats.

[Swift]

Are those front stairs unique?

[mandonov]

I believe so.

[boronia]

https://www.ipart.nsw.gov.au/Home/Indus ... -July-2017

[Fleet Lists]

On Transport Info there is a special timetable for the Eastern Suburns F7 for Saturday 8th July where no services call at Garden Island. The next day the timetable reverts to normal.

There is an alert "On Saturday 8 July, F7 Eastern Suburbs and private ferry services will not stop at Garden Island Wharf." No reason given.

Similarly there is a one day special timetable for the Captain Cook Garden Island and Manly service.

They seem to go to a lot more trouble with special timetables for ferry services than they do for buses.

[mandonov]

Must be some Navy operation restricting access.