Report: Ferries to Ease Traffic

The planned South City ferry service will remove an estimated 265 cars from Bay Area bridges during rush hour, according to an environmental impact report released last week. According to the San Francisco Examiner, the report also found that an Oakland-South City ferry route would pose mostly insignificant environmental impacts on the land surrounding the Oyster Point Yacht Club, where a ferry terminal is scheduled for construction. The South City route is geared toward attracting East Bay residents who work in the city’s growing biotech center. Though the agency has received roughly $31 million in state, federal and local dollars to buy two boats and build the terminal, some officials and residents still question whether a 35-minute ferry ride from Jack London Square to Oyster Point is the best way to spend transit dollars.A South City ferry, running once an hour, would serve an estimated 936 passengers a day, according to the report. The projected reduction in car use would be equivalent to about a quarter of a lane of traffic on the Bay Bridge. (Source: San Francisco Examiner)