Ferries to trial commuter run
Workers urged to get on board
A TWO-DAY pilot of ferries between Geelong and Melbourne will run in late July after local businesses brokered an agreement with Port Philip Ferries.
Dates and times of the ferries between the Geelong waterfront and Victoria Harbour are yet to be locked in, but the 100-minute service will be aimed at getting commuters to work in Melbourne well before 9am.
Committee for Geelong chief executive Rebecca Casson said commuters could access the pilot with a goldcoin donation.
“The agreement has been possible with the support of local businesses. We’ve been the ones that have organised it and put the money on the table,” Ms Casson said. “We are contributing (to the running cost).”
More than 17,000 Geelong commuters travel to Melbourne every day — more than 12,000 by road and about 5000 choosing the train, according to the Committee for Geelong.
Ms Casson said the pilot would include an afternoon ferry from Melbourne, and encouraged employers to allow their employees to clock on when they boarded the ferry in Geelong.
“What a fantastic and flexible way to work,” she said.
“We think this initiative is so important that we want to put some money on the table and prove to Port Phillip Ferries that there’s interest in it.”
Ms Casson, who would not reveal the cost of the pilot, said a long-term service would have to attract about 130 passengers each way to be viable.
“We believe Geelong commuters will definitely welcome and embrace this new way of travelling to work and benefit from the on-board facilities such as free Wi-Fi, charging stations for electronic devices, meeting tables, fold-down tables on the back of seats and refreshments from the licensed cafe on board.”
A ferry taking passengers on a tour of Corio Bay will also run on the second day of the pilot.
Earlier this week Port Phillip Ferries chief Murray Rance said: “We are certainly very interested in looking at (the Geelong to Melbourne ferry) as a viable commuter service.”
The pilot comes after four footy ferries running since March have averaged about 100 passengers each.
Bookings for the pilot will be taken via the Port Phillip Ferries website in coming weeks.