Golden Gate Ferry restarts in Sausalito

Service to S.F. resumes after repairs to landing

The Golden Gate Ferry to Sausalito reopened for weekday service Wednesday morning after a monthslong closure for repairs.

The ferry had been suspended since March 6, 2021, while the Sausalito float — the landing that passengers cross as they walk between the ferry boats and the walkway for the pier — was removed for emergency maintenance and repairs.

The transportation district that oversees the ferry did the maintenance during the pandemic, when ridership was down to about 10% of normal levels, according to a news release.

While the ferry service was closed, it was replaced by a temporary bus service on Golden Gate Transit Route 96. That service, which ran from the Ferry Building to downtown Sausalito, will be discontinued.

The float “had been in continuous and rigorous use since the mid1990s and was in need of immediate repairs,” according to the Golden Gate Transportation District and Highway’s news release. The float was removed from the pier and taken to a local shipyard, where repairs — included repainting and renewing the decking — were done.

The transit district originally expected the repairs to take about 60 days to complete. The reopening comes a little over a month later than that. In a March news release, the district estimated that the closure would affect fewer than 20 Sausalito commuters.

The Golden Gate Ferry operates on weekdays and runs to and from Larkspur, Tiburon and Sausalito.

Photos by Stephen Lam / The Chronicle Capt. Robert Barley watches passengers board a boat at the Sausalito Ferry Landing on Thursday.

Sausalito Landing had been closed since March for emergency maintenance on the float, a platform between the pier and the boat.