A COMMUTER ferry service from Werribee to the CBD could be fraught with the same logistical hurdles identified by a study four years ago, Transport Department documents reveal.
Internal correspondence obtained under freedom of information shows advice on the feasibility of a ferry service will be based on a 2008 study that concluded it was not financially or practically viable. A department briefing lists slow travel times, choppy conditions, low demand, cost blowouts and the need for government subsidy as the biggest obstacles.
But Planning Minister Matthew Guy said the scope of the new study was different and the state government expected another outcome.
“The Baillieu government’s study of ferries for the western suburbs to Docklands has never been examined before and we will be keen to see under what circumstances it may work, and what pressures it may take off the commute to the city for residents of the outer west,” he said.
In May, Mr Guy announced the government would investigate the possibility of a Sydney-style commuter ferry for the western suburbs. He said the service would be run by a private company, with ferries stopping at Werribee South, Point Cook, Altona and Williamstown. Boats would ferry into the Docklands or a terminal near Flinders Street station.
Under the $300,000 study’s terms of reference, the service would only be viable if trips took less than an hour, had reasonable ticket prices and could attract enough passengers. The 2008 study conducted by Maunsell AECOM for the Transport Department investigated the possibility of a ferry from Geelong to the Docklands, with a stop at Werribee South. It found a direct trip from Geelong would take 48 minutes longer than rail and revenue would barely cover a third of operating costs. Demand for a ferry service was also low.
An internal email from Transport Department head of policy Michael Hopkins stated many issues raised in the report into a Geelong-Melbourne ferry also applied to shorter services. It said interest in ferries was usually from tourism operators rather than public transport providers.
Tarneit Labor MP Tim Pallas said the previous study proved a ferry service would not work and the current study was a waste of money. Mr Guy accused the opposition of adopting a “negative and visionless attitude”.
A draft report is expected to be presented to State Parliament by December.
