The 100,000th passenger boarded the Richmond ferry on Thursday, an impressive number given weekday service to San Francisco began in January, according to the San Francisco Bay Area Water Emergency Transportation Authority (WETA).
The ferry has been so popular, far exceeding ridership projections, that weekend service is set to begin as part of a pilot program running from Aug. 3 through Nov. 3.
WETA suspects the ferry’s population has a lot to do with the desire to avoid the traffic-plagued I-80 corridor.
The majority of passengers using the ferry live in Richmond, according to a WETA survey.
“Richmond ferry service has been a resounding success, and that’s a testament to the partnership WETA has built with the Contra Costa Transportation Authority and the City of Richmond,” said Nina Rannells, WETA’s executive director. “Together, we identified Richmond as the right community for Contra Costa’s first public ferry terminal and developed a sustainable funding stream to make it happen. It looks like we all got it right.”
For more information, visit the San Francisco Bay Ferry website at www.sanfranciscobayferry.com .
