THERIDERS

Ferry Riders Choose a Traffic-Free, Stress-free Commute

Sunlight glints off the water as the aroma of fresh- brewed coffee fills the air. You sit back, read the newspaper or a novel, catch up on phone calls, prepare for a meeting, chat with fellow passengers, or just relax and enjoy the ride. While this is not the typical experience for commuters, it is the experience of thousands who choose to travel by ferry. Instead of sitting in traffic on overcrowded freeways, many Bay Area residents leave the driving to the captain

Among its objectives, the Water Transit Authority (WTA) is looking to lure single-occupancy drivers out of their cars and into the ferry, thus decreasing traffic on Bay Area roads and bridges. To create a transit system that people will want to ride, the WTA’s consultants, Cambridge Systematics, to surveyed 3,000 ferry passengers and 850 potential ferry riders to get a clear picture of how people choose among their commute options. Rather than merely focusing on time and money as traditional transit surveys have done, the WTA added in motivators that were likely to apply to ferry riders, including sensitivity to stress, environmental concerns, personal safety, and crowds.

Ferry Riders Share Their Experiences

For this article, the WTA spoke informally with some ferry riders to get a snapshot of their reasons for commuting by boat. Not surprisingly, these riders spontaneously mentioned travel time, stress reduction and protecting the environment as part of the reason they choose to commute by ferry.

“Taking the ferry to work is the most pleasant part of my day,” explained James George, a consultant living in Alameda. “I can read, socialize and be outdoors. The staff is very personable. If the ferry wasn’t available I’d have to drive into the City.” Mr. George indicated that he was disinclined to take other transit options that were available to him because they made him feel too claustrophobic.

Susan McDuffie, a manager in San Francisco, commutes from Alameda every day. Typical of many ferry riders who enjoy the space and quiet time that a ferry provides, she said “It’s convenient and the scenery is pleasant. I can stretch out, read the newspaper and have a cup of coffee - something I wouldn’t be able to do otherwise.”

Willie Ramsey is a deckhand who arranges his work schedule so that he can travel to and from work between Alameda and San Francisco on the ferry. Mr. Ramsey would have to drive to work if the ferry wasn’t available. “If I had to drive, I would be more tense and my commute time would be longer,” he explained. “And I wouldn’t be able to read the paper or take a quick nap.”

David Pauley identified “The bar, view and bathrooms,” as the three best things about the ferry. Because he has to arrive early at his job as head chef for a San Francisco restaurant, in the mornings, he takes an express bus that picks him up in front of his apartment in San Rafael. However, after a day’s work, he prefers the relaxing experience of taking the nighttime ferry from San Francisco to Larkspur. Since the Golden Gate Ferry Service operates shuttle service to complement its ferry service, he takes advantage of convenient bus connections in Larkspur to take him to downtown San Rafael, where he either walks or takes a short cab ride home. Although Mr. Pauley uses the ferry for everyday transportation, he never fails to take out-of-town visitors on the ferry ride for fun and to bask in their envy at his commute.

The WTA is working with Bay Area transportation agencies to determine how to provide reliable, easy transit connections to and from ferries, similar to those enjoyed by Golden Gate Ferry users. Of course, walking, biking, or taking transit to the terminal will help maximize the environmental benefits of commuting by ferry. The WTA is planning to provide the best terminal access to those who arrive by those modes of transit. Everyone interviewed agreed that protecting the environment is an important consideration.

Two Kinds of Good Connections

Apart from making good transit connections, the WTA discovered that good social connections are a benefit for ferry riders. For instance, Amber Jones and Gerda Frey are ferry commuter buddies who met three years ago on the ferry. They share the same morning ride on the Del Norte from Larkspur to San Francisco, but take different return boats in the afternoon. Each morning, they stake out the same table on the starboard side/front of the Del Norte’s upper deck, each gets a cup of coffee, and then they sit, chat with each other and with a couple of other regular commuter friends who sit with them.

Using a method of market research that has been proven effective for private companies in creating a product that consumers want, WTA consultant Cambridge Systematics turned its energies to the public sector to help the WTA predict the number of ferry riders it could expect from Bay Area communities. Cambridge’s market analysis of potential ferry riders was based on data collected in the fall of 2001 on random samples of people in the Bay Area, who travel between destinations currently served by ferries or that may be served by ferries in the future. Cambridge followed the steps listed below in performing its analysis.

1. Identified Traveler Attitudes – Chose preferences, such as sensitivity to environment, stress, time, need for flexibility, commute budget, and required access to terminals that could be used to group the respondents;
2. Linked Attitudes to Demographics – Used income, lifestyle, and other defining traits of groups of people to predict future ferry ridership; and
3. Grouped the Traveler Market – Gave the agency valuable insight into attitudes that sway commute choices by showing what riders would be attracted to a proposed ferry system, and features that a ferry system would have to offer to attract groups of riders.