The J-Mack Ferry (also called J-Mac Ferry, Steamboat Slough Ferry, or Grand Island Ferry) is a

cable ferry A cable ferry (including the terms chain ferry, swing ferry, floating bridge, or punt) is a ferry that is guided (and in many cases propelled) across a river or large body of water by cables connected to both shores. Early cable ferries often ...

that operates between

Ryde Ryde is an English seaside town and civil parish on the north-east coast of the Isle of Wight. The built-up area had a population of 23,999 according to the 2011 Census and an estimate of 24,847 in 2019. Its growth as a seaside resort came af ...

and

Ryer Island Ryer Island is an island in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta surrounded by Miner Slough and Steamboat Slough at their confluence with the Sacramento River, 6.5 miles north-northeast of Rio Vista. It is in Solano County, California, and ...

, crossing Steamboat Slough in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta in

Solano County, California Solano County () is a county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 453,491. The county seat is Fairfield. Solano County comprises the Vallejo–Fairfield, CA Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is ...

. The

California Department of Transportation The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) is an executive department of the U.S. state of California. The department is part of the cabinet-level California State Transportation Agency (CalSTA). Caltrans is headquartered in Sacrame ...

(Caltrans) operates the vehicle

roll-on/roll-off Roll-on/roll-off (RORO or ro-ro) ships are cargo ships designed to carry wheeled cargo, such as cars, motorcycles, trucks, semi-trailer trucks, buses, trailers, and railroad cars, that are driven on and off the ship on their own wheels or using ...

service, which is classified as part of

California State Route 220 State Route 220 (SR 220) is a state highway in the U.S. state of California, defined to run between State Route 84 and State Route 160 on Ryer Island in the Sacramento–San Joaquin River Delta. At the eastern end of Ryer Island, the road cros ...

. The

ferry A ferry is a ship, watercraft or amphibious vehicle used to carry passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A passenger ferry with many stops, such as in Venice, Italy, is sometimes called a water bus or water taxi ...

operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Boat operators are on duty 24 hours a day to provide service to individual passengers and motorists crossing Steamboat Slough. The ferry is served by the vessel J-Mack (or J-Mac) which is a 92-foot-long by 32-foot-wide cable drawn ferry that can carry up to six vehicles. There is a 15-ton weight limit, tractor-trailers are prohibited, and the length limit is at the discretion of the Coast Guard. Ryer Island is also connected via highway 84 on the other Caltrans delta ferry, to the southwest via the

Ryer Island Ferry The Ryer Island Ferry is a ferry that operates between Rio Vista and Ryer Island, crossing Cache Slough in the Sacramento–San Joaquin River Delta in Solano County, California. The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) operates t ...

towards Rio Vista, and north via a bridge towards

West Sacramento West Sacramento (also known as West Sac) is a city in Yolo County, California, United States. The city is separated from Sacramento by the Sacramento River, which also separates Sacramento and Yolo counties. It is a fast-growing community; the p ...

References

Ferries on the California highway system Cable ferries in the United States {{water-transport-stub