The Auckland Ferry Terminal, also called the Downtown Ferry Terminal, is the hub of the
Auckland
Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...
ferry network, which connects the
Auckland CBD
The Auckland Central Business District (CBD), or Auckland city centre, is the geographical and economic heart of the Auckland metropolitan area. It is the area in which Auckland was established in 1840, by William Hobson. It is New Zealand's lea ...
with suburbs in
North Shore,
West Auckland, and
South Auckland
South Auckland is an imprecisely defined urban area of Auckland, New Zealand, with a young population, a relatively large Polynesian and Māori demographic, and lower incomes than other parts of Auckland. The name ''South Auckland'', though not ...
, and islands in the
Hauraki Gulf
The Hauraki Gulf / Tīkapa Moana is a coastal feature of the North Island of New Zealand. It has an area of 4000 km2,[Auckland waterfront
The Auckland waterfront (rarely the Auckland harbourfront) is a city-side stretch of the southern Waitematā Harbour coastline in Auckland, New Zealand. Previously mostly dominated by Ports of Auckland uses, from the 2000s on it is becoming i ...](_blank)
, at the north end of
Queen Street, across
Quay Street
Quay Street is a street in the city centre of Manchester, England. The street, designated the A34, continues Peter Street westwards towards the River Irwell and Salford. It is the northern boundary of Spinningfields, the city's business dist ...
from the
Britomart Transport Centre
Britomart Transport Centre, also known as Britomart railway station, is the public transport hub in the central business district of Auckland and the northern terminus of the North Island Main Trunk railway line. It combines a railway station ...
, which is the hub for local buses and trains.
The ferry terminal is composed of two main elements, a yellow
Edwardian Baroque
Edwardian architecture is a Neo-Baroque architectural style that was popular in the British Empire during the Edwardian era (1901–1910). Architecture up to the year 1914 may also be included in this style.
Description
Edwardian architecture is ...
building facing Queen Street and the CBD, and newer wharves and a waiting area building (the actual ferry terminal of today) facing the
Waitematā Harbour
Waitematā Harbour is the main access by sea to Auckland, New Zealand. For this reason it is often referred to as Auckland Harbour, despite the fact that it is one of two harbours adjoining the city. The harbour forms the northern and easter ...
.
Facilities
Edwardian building
By the early 20th century, the
Auckland Harbour Board
The Auckland Harbour Board was a public body that operated the ports of both Auckland and Onehunga from 1871 to 1988 and was dissolved in 1989. Its successor organisation is Ports of Auckland, which assumed the possessions and responsibilities of ...
recognised the need for a dedicated ferry building in Auckland.
Original plans were for a five-storey structure, but after public outrage at the height, a design of four storeys and a clock tower was proposed.
The plan was similar to that of the
San Francisco Ferry Building
The San Francisco Ferry Building is a terminal for ferries that travel across the San Francisco Bay, a food hall and an office building. It is located on The Embarcadero in San Francisco, California and is served by Golden Gate Ferry and San ...
.
The building was designed by Alex Wiseman, and erected by Philcox and Sons. It was completed in 1912, of sandstone and brick with a base of
Coromandel granite, on
reclaimed land
Land reclamation, usually known as reclamation, and also known as land fill (not to be confused with a waste landfill), is the process of creating new land from oceans, seas, riverbeds or lake beds. The land reclaimed is known as reclamati ...
. It cost £67,944, a large sum for the day,
[The Auckland Ferry Building](_blank)
(from the 'roadworks.co.nz' Queen Street website. Retrieved 2007-12-05.) equivalent to NZ$10.9 million in 2016.
A new ferry building was built next to it in 1982
and a report released that year said that extensive renovations were needed to bring the Edwardian building up to earthquake and fire code standards. The Harbour Board were divided over whether to keep the building, but following strong public opinion decided to renovate it.
It has had a Category I classification with the
New Zealand Historic Places Trust
Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga (initially the National Historic Places Trust and then, from 1963 to 2014, the New Zealand Historic Places Trust) ( mi, Pouhere Taonga) is a Crown entity with a membership of around 20,000 people that advocate ...
(now Heritage New Zealand) since 1982. It was extensively restored from 1986
and reopened by the Governor General on 5 November 1988.
It now contains shops and cafes on the lower level, with most ferry operations moved to the new building.
New building
The more contemporary ferry piers and waiting area were constructed mostly as an open-sided structure with a curved seagull/sail-roof, which together with ornamental "smokestack" turrets is designed to evoke ships berthed behind the original building. It also needed to be of a low profile to retain building views, and was designed by architect
Murray Day to be easily maintainable and expandable.
Major remedial work
Between 2009 and 2010,
Auckland Regional Transport Authority
The Auckland Regional Transport Authority (ARTA) was the central co-ordinating agency for transport (especially but not only public transport) in the Auckland Region of New Zealand from 2004 to 2010. In this role, ARTA provided public transport ...
carried out major remedial work on the wharf structure, which had not had such work done since construction. The initial works found some parts of the structure in worse shape than expected, as saltwater had slowly infiltrated the reinforced concrete. Initial urgent works were expected to finish in 2009.
Arta Newsletter, January 2009 - Issue #8
(from the ARTA website. Accessed 2009-02-01.)
References
External links
Photographs of the Auckland Ferry Terminal
held in Auckland Libraries' heritage collections.
{{coord, -36.843, 174.767, type:landmark_region:NZ, display=title
Buildings and structures in Auckland
Ferry Terminal
A passenger terminal is a structure in a port which services passengers boarding and leaving water vessels such as ferries, cruise ships and ocean liners. Depending on the types of vessels serviced by the terminal, it may be named (for example) ...
Public transport in Auckland
Transport infrastructure completed in 1912
Ferry terminals
1912 establishments in New Zealand
1910s architecture in New Zealand
Transport buildings and structures in the Auckland Region
Auckland CBD
Auckland waterfront
Waitematā Harbour