New ferry trial announced

Palm Beach Ferries has announced the trial of a new ferry service to Woy Woy.

The new service will operate from December 26 from Palm Beach, calling at Wagstaffe, Hardys Bay and on to Woy Woy.

The service will initially operate four trips per day, every two hours beginning at Palm Beach at 10.30am and Woy Woy at 11.30am.

The fare for the journey will be $10 for adults and $5 for children and concessions, each way.

The service will operate for the duration of the summer State school holidays.

However, if as hoped the service proves to be a success, the trial period will be extended, as will the number of services per day.

The main purpose of the trial is to ascertain whether a better integration of public transport modes will alleviate persistent parking problems at both Palm Beach and Ettalong.

Palm Beach Ferries managing director, Mr Peter Verrills said: "The trial of the service is primarily to assess whether patronage between Palm Beach and the Central Coast would increase, given the benefit of having a direct rail-ferry link."

As a side benefit, the service would connect the increasingly popular Killcare and Hardys Bay area with both Palm Beach and Woy Woy.

The initial timetable is constructed to allow passengers to connect with the Newcastle Flyer and regular CityRail services both northbound and southbound at Woy Woy.

For Palm Beach connections, the timetable is constructed to coincide with limited stop L90 bus services to and from the City and Central station.

"With the ever increasing patronage of the Ettalong service, and parking at both Ettalong and Palm Beach inadequate, we are hoping that better integration of public transport modes will help alleviate some of this problem."

Mr Verrills said: "We are hoping that the service proves a success, and with our recent $5 million new vessel acquisition program recently completed, we certainly have the capacity to increase services substantially and quickly should the need arise.

"In the interests of encouraging the service, and further public transport use, the fare increase over the Ettalong service is only 30 per cent for a journey of almost 50 per cent longer duration."

"This service follows the success of the Ettalong - Palm Beach ferry service, which commenced just over four years ago," Mr Verrills said.

Press release, December 10