Road, rail woe boosts 1000-seat Port ferry

Jessica Benton
Rising fuel prices and crowded trains have lifted hopes for a Portarlington ferry, according to a group investigating a commuter service to Melbourne.
Bellarine Ferry Group secretary John Rae said growing pressures on road and rail travel to Melbourne were enhancing the viability of the service.
“With higher fuel costs the trains are becoming more and more packed, so we need another alternative,” he said.
“The more we use our bays (for commuting) the better. The ferry can move large volumes of people efficiently and will get rid of a lot of cars and pollution.
“It’ll also be a very pleasant way to travel to work.”
Mr Rae said the ferry could appeal to commuters as far away as Geelong and the western suburbs of Melbourne.
The group is investigating potential to run a ferry for up to 1000 passengers between Portarlington and Melbourne six times a day under plans to establish the service on the Bellarine Peninsula.
The ferry would run three trips in the morning and three in the evening, Mr Rae said.
The target travel time of 42 minutes would be around half the time of road travel to Melbourne from Portarlington during peak hours.
The Portarlington service would terminate in Melbourne at Station Pier.
Developers plan to run a separate ferry service opposite Portarlington from Werribee to Melbourne, according to newspaper reports.
Melbourne’s Star newspapers reported last month that the developers of a harbour-side estate at Werribee South were investigating a high-speed ferry to either Station Pier or Docklands.
Wyndam Harbour developer Prudentia Investments was considering four catamaran ferries capable of reaching 30 knots with up to 200 passengers, Star reported.
Wyndam’s mayor said his council was “keen” to work with Prudentia on the ferries plan.
Bellarine Ferry Group is investigating interstate services in Brisbane and Sydney to determine the best model for a peninsula service.
The group is also surveying residents to establish demand.
The Independent revealed in May that Parks Victoria had allocated space for a ferry berth in plans to redevelop Portarlington’s harbour.