A Very Ferry Future for Oakland? – Streetsblog San Francisco
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Oakland Councilor and Vice Mayor Rebecca Kaplan wants direct ferry service between Oakland and North Bay locations, according to an open letter from her to the San Francisco Bay Area Water Emergency Transportation Authority, which operates Oakland ferry services.
From her letter:
The City of Oakland has a ferry terminal in Jack London Square that is home to a large and growing community that includes homes, offices and workplaces, as well as recreational, entertainment and dining destinations.
It calls for an increased frequency of ferry connections on existing routes to and from Oakland / Jack London Square and above all:
… additional new routes that would provide connections to and from Richmond, Larkspur and other areas not currently served from Oakland.
Ferries currently operate between San Francisco and Oakland, Richmond, Berkeley, Vallejo and several North Bay destinations including Larkspur. In Larkspur, travelers from San Francisco can change trains on the SMART train with stops to Sonoma Airport in the north.
But Oakland, with dense residential and condominium buildings around its own ferry terminal that’s a short walk from Amtrak, BART, and downtown, only has ferries to San Francisco, plus one rush hour ferry to Oyster Point (yes, technically Oakland / SF ferries also stop in Alameda).
“Oakland is in the heart of the region and has been a transportation hub for centuries,” continues Kaplan. “With a well-located ferry dock in a growing area, expanding ferry services to and from Oakland can help further weave our region and provide healthy access to jobs and opportunities.”
The walk from Amtrak in Oakland to the ferry terminal. Image: Google Maps
A direct ferry service between Larkspur and Oakland would have an impact on transport far beyond Oakland. Amtrak, with services to the Central Valley, San Jose and south, is a nine-minute walk from the Oakland Ferry Terminal. That said, if direct ferries from North Bay locations were coordinated with Amtrak, Marin residents would suddenly have a potential traffic-free ferry and train connection to cities across the region and the state. The ferry terminal is also just a short walk from BART with all of its regional connections.
In addition, Oakland residents would be connected to destinations served by the SMART train from the Larkspur Ferry Terminal.
“This can be an important opportunity to connect areas that are not currently served – as there is a lack of transit links between East Bay and North Bay despite an increasing number of journeys along this corridor that require a better option. We are blessed to live near the bay and public transport with ferries can help fill in the gaps by using our regional waterways to better unite our communities and reduce vehicle congestion and damage “Said Kaplan.
Kaplan also calls for better orientation, which would certainly help with Amtrak / ferry connections. Such new ferry services would stimulate the rationalization and coordination of fares and timetables in the Bay Area.
Streetsblog has contacted WETA for their response and will update this post. Meanwhile, a WETA spokesperson pointed out that they recently opened a new terminal on Sealane Lagoon in Alameda, although that route will also go to San Francisco, not Oakland.
What do you think? Would you use a Marin / Oakland ferry route, especially if it offers seamless connections to Amtrak and SMART? What about other routes like Oakland / Vallejo? Post your thoughts.
