Manly ferry services (numbered F1) operate on
Sydney Harbour connecting the Sydney suburb of
Manly with
Circular Quay
Circular Quay is a harbour, former working port and now international passenger shipping port, public piazza and tourism precinct, heritage area, and transport node located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia on the northern edge of the Syd ...
in the CBD a journey of seven nautical miles.
History
![Sydney paddle steamer Ferry PHANTOM at Manly Wharf ca 1870s](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cb/Sydney_paddle_steamer_Ferry_PHANTOM_at_Manly_Wharf_ca_1870s.jpg)
In 1853,
Henry Gilbert Smith
Henry Gilbert Smith (1802 – 1 April 1886) was an English-born Australian businessman, banker and politician, known as the "Father of Manly". He was the founder and developer of the Sydney suburb of Manly, where he built Fairlight House fa ...
chartered the wooden paddle wheeler ''
Brothers
A brother is a man or boy who shares one or more parents with another; a male sibling. The female counterpart is a sister. Although the term typically refers to a familial relationship, it is sometimes used endearingly to refer to non-familia ...
'' to bring people to the Manly area and thus boost the value of the subdivision of his land holdings near the Corso. The Manly area with its beaches and bays became a popular weekend destination and more ferries were chartered including by a local hotel owner. By 1855, the paddle steamer ''Emu'' (I) provided two daily weekday trips. ''Emu'' was followed by ''Black Swan'' and ''Pelican''.
In 1859, the first double-ended ferry, ''
Phantom
Phantom may refer to:
* Spirit (animating force), the vital principle or animating force within all living things
** Ghost, the soul or spirit of a dead person or animal that can appear to the living
Aircraft
* Boeing Phantom Ray, a stealthy un ...
'' commenced the service. She was a success, and the double-ended configuration remains the standard on the Manly route through to the present-day. Weekends and holidays were even busier than week days, and extra boats and tugs were put into service often as charters, including ''Goolwa'', ''Breadalbane'', ''Cobra'', ''Royal Alfred'', and ''Manly'' (I). A new company, the Port Jackson Steamboat Company was formed in 1876, and within a few years it was running British-built ''
Fairlight'' and ''Commodore'' to Manly. In 1881, the company was reformed into the
Port Jackson & Manly Steamship Company
The Port Jackson and Manly Steamship Company (PJ&MSC) was a publicly listed company that operated the Manly ferries in Sydney, Australia. After being taken over by Brambles Industries, the ferry service was eventually taken over by the State ...
, and the biggest paddle steamer ferry to ever operate on the harbour, the opulent ''
Brighton'', was commissioned by the company in 1883.
With fares at one shilling for a single, in 1892 the Port Jackson Steamship Company announced a fare increase. In response, some Manly residents formed their own competing company, The Manly Co-operative Steam Ferry Company, which ran chartered steamers at sixpence a single. The Port Jackson company dropped their fares to threepence which was match by the Cop-op. Neither company was profitable at this price, so in 1896 they amalgamated to form the Port Jackson Co-operative Steamship Company. Renowned naval architect,
Walter Reeks
Walter Reeks (1861-1925) was one of the earliest naval architects in Australia and is known for designing yachts, ferries and coastal ships.,
He was born in Christchurch, England and migrated to Australia in 1885.
Reeks apprenticed with Alex ...
, designed two new ferries for the service, that would be archetypes for all Manly ferries through to the current Freshwater class. ''
Manly'' (II) (1896) was the first double-ended screw ferry on the run, and ''
Kuring-gai'' (1901) was steel, double-ended screw steamer that in its appearance, size and capacity, was the first of the familiar Manly ferries of the twentieth century.
![Sydney Ferry NORTH HEAD and Hydrofoil approaching Manly Wharf 18 January 1981](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bc/Sydney_Ferry_NORTH_HEAD_and_Hydrofoil_approaching_Manly_Wharf_18_January_1981.jpg)
To meet the expanding demand, the company commissioned six similar double-ended screw steamers: ''
Binngarra
''Binngarra'' was a ferry operated by Port Jackson & Manly Steamship Company on the Manly service. Launched in 1905, she was the first of six similar vessels built for the company–the ''Binngarra'' class—the success of which saw three of her ...
'' (1905), ''
Burra Bra'' (1908), ''
Bellubera
Bellubera was a ferry operated by the Port Jackson & Manly Steamship Company on the Manly service. Launched in 1910, she was the third of six "Binngarra-type" vessels. Upon her 1936 conversion from steam power, she became the first diesel-elect ...
'' (1910), ''
Balgowlah
Balgowlah is a suburb of northern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Balgowlah (or Bulgowlah) said to be an Aboriginal name for "North Harbour". The area now known as Balgowlah was known to the Aboriginals as Jilling.
Balgo ...
'' (1912), ''
Barrenjoey'' (1913), and ''
Baragoola
MV ''Baragoola'' was a ferry formerly operated by the Port Jackson & Manly Steamship Company and its successors on the Manly service.
The sixth and final of the -type Manly ferries, the vessel entered service in 1922. Built with a triple-expa ...
'' (1922).
Prior to the construction of the first
Spit Bridge
Spit may refer to:
Common uses
* Spit (archaeology), a term for a unit of archaeological excavation
* Spit (landform), a section of land that extends into a body of water
* Spit or rotisserie, a rotating device used for cooking by roasting over ...
in 1928, retired passenger ferries were used as cargo carriers. In 1928, two new ferries built in Scotland, ''Curl Curl'' and ''Dee Why'' were commissioned. They were the largest and fastest ferries on the harbour until 1938 when the Company commissioned
South Steyne
The SS ''South Steyne'' is a former Manly ferry on Sydney Harbour. She was the world's largest steam-powered passenger ferry and operated on the service from 1938 to 1974. Restored in the 1980s, she served as a restaurant ship in Newcastle i ...
also built in Scotland.
The three Scottish-built steamers and most remaining "Binngarra-type" vessels were pulled out of service over the course of the 1960s and 1970s as the Manly service and its vessels declined. The Port Jackson and Manly Steamship Company operated the service until it was sold to
Brambles Industries
Brambles Limited is an Australian company that specialises in the pooling of unit-load equipment, pallets, crates and containers. It is listed on the Australian Securities Exchange.
History
Brambles traces its history to 1875, when Walter Bram ...
in April 1972 and taken over by the NSW State-government
Public Transport Commission
The Public Transport Commission (PTC) was an agency of the Government of New South Wales responsible for the provision of rail, bus and ferry services in New South Wales, Australia from October 1972 until June 1980.
Upon dissolution, responsi ...
in December 1974 along with the inner harbour services run formerly run by Sydney Ferries Ltd. In July 1980, operations came under the control of the
Urban Transit Authority
The Urban Transit Authority, a former statutory authority of the Government of New South Wales, was responsible for the operation and maintenance of buses and ferries in Sydney and Newcastle from July 1980 until January 1989.
History
The Urban ...
. ''Baragoola'' and ''Barrenjoey'' (later renamed ''North Head''), were retired in 1983 and 1985 respectively upon the introduction of the
Freshwater-class ferries
The ''Freshwater'' class is a class of ferry operating the Manly ferry service between Circular Quay and Manly on Sydney Harbour. The ferries are owned by the Government of New South Wales and operated by Transdev Sydney Ferries under the gov ...
which remain in service.
In January 1989, the service came under the control of the
State Transit Authority and in 2004
Sydney Ferries.
In the mid 1960s
hydrofoil services were introduced to complement the traditional ferries. They halved the travel time of the ferries but had significantly higher fares. The hydrofoils were replaced in 1990 by Jetcats, however, these proved unreliable and expensive and were replaced by the current Manly fast ferry service. The
Sydney JetCats high speed service, was discontinued on 31 December 2008 and replaced with a privately owned service operated by
Manly Fast Ferries. In March 2010, the government announced that that Manly Fast Ferries contract had not been renewed. Instead another private operator,
Sydney Fast Ferries
Sydney Fast Ferries operated high-speed ferry services on Port Jackson between Circular Quay and Manly from April 2010 until March 2015.
History
Since January 1965, the Port Jackson & Manly Steamship Company and its successors had operated hi ...
, was awarded a five-year contract from 1 April 2010. However both operators continued to operate services between
Circular Quay
Circular Quay is a harbour, former working port and now international passenger shipping port, public piazza and tourism precinct, heritage area, and transport node located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia on the northern edge of the Syd ...
and Manly During 2014 Transport for NSW put out a tender for a combined service to commence during 2015 with Bass & Flinders Cruises,
SeaLink Travel Group, Sydney Fast Ferries and
Transit Systems
Transit Systems Group is an Australian-based public transport company, which also operates overseas through its subsidiary Tower Transit Group. Transit Systems Group is a subsidiary of the Kelsian Group, formerly SeaLink Travel Group.
History
...
responding. On 13 December 2014, it was announced that Manly Fast Ferries had won back the rights to operate the service, with a new contract which commenced on 1 April 2015.
In 2013, the Manly Ferry was given the designation F1 as part of a program to number all lines of the Sydney Ferries, Sydney Trains and light rail networks.
In 2019, Transport for NSW announced they would be retiring the Freshwater class as early as 2020, and replace them with three new Emerald Class ferries to provide more frequent services. The three emerald class ferries are named Clontarf, Balmoral & Fairlight as a homage to the suburbs of the northern beaches.
In November 2020, the Minister for Transport announced that when the new ferries are put into operation, the ''Collaroy'' would be retained in service until at least 2023 for weekend operation. On 14 January 2021 it was announced that the ''Freshwater'' will also be retained for future services. The ''Queenscliff'' was retired on 13 October 2021 just prior to the first
Emerald Class vessels operating. On 9 December 2021, it was announced that ''Narrabeen'' would be given new engines and an overhaul amidst rumours about the vessel having been decommissioned or scrapped.
File:Sydney ferry BRIGHTON with original open wheelhouse.jpg, '' Brighton'' (1883-1916), the largest and last paddle steamer ferry on Sydney Harbour
File:Sydney ferry BINNGARRA at Manly Wharf.jpg, ''Binngarra
''Binngarra'' was a ferry operated by Port Jackson & Manly Steamship Company on the Manly service. Launched in 1905, she was the first of six similar vessels built for the company–the ''Binngarra'' class—the success of which saw three of her ...
'' at Manly Wharf, early 20th century
File:Sydney ferry CURL CURL approaching Manly Wharf 1954.jpg, ''Curl Curl
Curl Curl is a suburb of northern Sydney in the state of New South Wales, Australia, north-east of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of Northern Beaches Council. It is part of the Northern Beaches region.
Loca ...
'' approaches Manly Wharf, 1950s
File:Sydney Ferry SOUTH STEYNE & Hydrofoil DEE WHY passing North Head 13 Jan 1970.jpg, ''South Steyne
The SS ''South Steyne'' is a former Manly ferry on Sydney Harbour. She was the world's largest steam-powered passenger ferry and operated on the service from 1938 to 1974. Restored in the 1980s, she served as a restaurant ship in Newcastle i ...
'' and hydrofoil ''Dee Why'' passing North Head, 1970
Operation
The
Sydney Ferries network is operated by
Transdev Sydney Ferries
Transdev Sydney Ferries, formerly Harbour City Ferries, is a subsidiary of Transdev Australasia, and is the operator of ferry services in the Sydney Ferries network since July 2012. It currently operates the ferry network under a contract unt ...
. Route design, timetabling and branding of the services is managed by
Transport for NSW
Transport for NSW, sometimes abbreviated to TfNSW, and pronounced as Transport for New South Wales, is an agency of the New South Wales Government established on 1 November 2011, and is the leading transport and roads agency in New South Wales, ...
. During the Summer Holidays, the Manly Ferry runs to a "Summer Timetable" which provides additional services to cater for demand from increased tourist numbers.
Freshwater class ferries
![Manlyferry123](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/07/Manlyferry123.JPG)
The former Harbour City Ferries fleet of four Manly ferries are known as the Freshwater class and comprised, in order of commissioning, the MV ''Freshwater'', MV ''Queenscliff'', MV ''Narrabeen'', and MV ''Collaroy'', which were commissioned between 1982 and 1988. They were built by the
State Dockyard
The State Dockyard was a ship building and maintenance facility operated by the Government of New South Wales in Carrington, Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia between 1942 and 1987.
History
In 1942, the State Dockyard opened on the site of ...
in
Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to:
*Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England
*Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England
*Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area in Australia, named after Newcastle ...
and
Carrington Slipways in
Tomago
Tomago is a combined industrial/semi-rural suburb of the Port Stephens local government area in the Hunter Region of New South Wales, Australia. It is located just north of the Hunter River and west of the body of water known as Fullerton Cove ...
. They are 70 metres (230ft) in length, 12.5 metres (41ft) wide, draught of 3.3 metres (11ft) and they displace 1,140 tonnes (1122 Imperial tons). Their passenger capacity is 1,100 and their service speed is 16 knots.
[Sydney Ferries brochure] Emissions per person‐kilometre travelled are nearly the same for private car and for ferry.
They are powered by two Daihatsu model 8DSMB-32 turbo-charged diesel engines which each develop 2238 kW at 600rpm, and have hand-controllable pitch propellers. The hull and lower cabin area are of welded steel construction and the upper cabin and two wheelhouses are aluminium.
In 2019 plans were announced to retire all 4 Freshwater class ferries and replace them with new versions of the smaller inner harbour
Emerald-class ferries fitted with wave piercing hulls. Due to large public outcry and problems with the new
Emerald-class ferries 3 of the 4
Freshwater-class ferries
The ''Freshwater'' class is a class of ferry operating the Manly ferry service between Circular Quay and Manly on Sydney Harbour. The ferries are owned by the Government of New South Wales and operated by Transdev Sydney Ferries under the gov ...
(Freshwater, Collaroy and Narrabeen) were saved from retirement. In October 2021 MV Queenscliff was retired. Currently 2 of the
Freshwater-class ferries
The ''Freshwater'' class is a class of ferry operating the Manly ferry service between Circular Quay and Manly on Sydney Harbour. The ferries are owned by the Government of New South Wales and operated by Transdev Sydney Ferries under the gov ...
only operate on weekends and public holidays however they have been seen operating when the swells are too large for the
Emerald-class ferries to operate.
Emerald Class Ferries
3
Emerald-class ferries currently operate the Manly ferry service. These vessels are named Fairlight, Balmoral and Clontarf. The
Emerald-class ferries are a second series of an inner harbour design fitted with wave peircing hulls to help them cross Sydney harbour's heads.
Wharves
,
Circular Quay
![Manly ferry at Circular Quay](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/50/Manly_ferry_at_Circular_Quay.jpg)
Sydney Ferries services use Wharf 3 at Circular Quay for services to Manly. Wharf 3 is specially designed to allow for double deck boarding and alighting, lowering dwell time for ferries.
Manly
![ManlyWharf](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5f/ManlyWharf.png)
This wharf serves the suburb of
Manly and is located opposite the harbour end of
The Corso
''The Corso'' is one of the main streets and a pedestrian mall in Manly. It connects the Manly ferry wharf to Manly Beach on the Pacific Ocean side of the Manly peninsula.
History
There has long been a track between Manly Cove and Ocean Be ...
on The Esplanade. The wharf was designed to allow for double deck boarding on the "A" side of the wharf. The "B" side is used by
Manly Fast Ferries for services to Circular Quay while
My Fast Ferry
Manly Fast Ferry (trading as My Fast Ferry) is an Australian ferry operator that services the areas of Botany Bay and Port Jackson.
History
Since January 1965, the Port Jackson & Manly Steamship Company and its successors had operated high spe ...
and
Captain Cook Cruises Harbour Explorer use the Manly Hotel wharf also known as the East Wharf, just south east of the main wharf, for Hop On/Hop off services around
Sydney Harbour with the former also operating a loop service to Darling Harbour.
[Manly Sightseeing Cruise]
My Fast Ferry
Local bus services depart from stands in front of the wharf to many
Northern Beaches
The Northern Beaches is a region within Northern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia, near the Pacific coast. This area extends south to the entrance of Port Jackson (Sydney Harbour), west to Middle Harbour and north to the en ...
Suburbs.
Region 8 bus services Effective December 2020
NSW Government Transport Retrieved 21 January 2021
Patronage
The following table shows the patronage of Sydney Ferries network for the year ending 30 June 2022.
See also
*List of Sydney Harbour ferries
Sydney Harbour's first ferries were sail and/or oar powered, but by the mid-19th century, paddle steamers were well established. Double-ended ferries became common as they did not require turning at terminating wharves in Sydney's busy but na ...
References
*
External links
F1 Manly
at Transport for New South Wales
{{Sydney public transport, state=collapsed
Ferry transport in Sydney
Manly, New South Wales