NORFOLK, Va. — Lots of people want a way to travel between downtown Norfolk and the Peninsula without getting stuck in traffic. Some of them think the solution could be taking to the water.
Hampton Roads Transit brought the idea to Newport News city council at a work session this week. They're studying if it's feasible to put in a ferry that connects the Peninsula and Norfolk.
"A healthy metro area should have multiple transportation options, we're proud to offer already buses, express buses, the ferry, the light rail, paratransit. We have to think about how we enable people. With so much waterway why not consider sort of a high-speed sea faring vessel to bring people together?" Thomas Becher, communications manager for Hampton Roads Transit told News 3.
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The last time a ferry took a similar route was in 2002, but it was discontinued due to low ridership.
"So why would this time around be different?" asked News 3 reporter Erika Craven.
"I think a combination of a more high density population, a high density employment base, like Newport News Shipyard for example, combined that with maybe a new technology boat that's a little smaller, it could potentially work," said Becher.
News 3 caught up with folks at Norfolk's Waterside, where the ferry could someday stop, to see what they think.
"It would be good if people had another choice to go back and forth," said Reginald Lewis of Hampton.
Watch: Hampton Roads Transit offers free rides for high school students ages 13-17
Some, like Lewis, said it might help with both traffic and entertainment.
"I just come to Norfolk for events . . . but if there was a ferry I'd come here more often, take in the shops and stuff," added Lewis.
Becher said HRT is looking at commuters to see what they'd want.
"You know think of the things you could get done, much like on our express buses now. You can do your email, you can chat on the phone, you can read," said Becher.
Those commuters, HRT's Chief Planning and Development Officer Ray Amoruso said at the presentation, are pretty limited by bus routes on the HRBT and MMMBT and often find parking difficult.
Watch more: New ferry connecting Inner & Outer Banks launches this summer
To see if a ferry would be possible, the HRT study looked at job and population density and travel flow and identified four potential landing sites, to later be narrowed down. Those sites are 28th street in Newport News, 23rd street in Newport News, the Virginia Air and Space Science Center in Hampton, and Hampton Maritime Center.
HRT thinks a ferry ride between the Peninsula and Norfolk would be a roughly hour long trip on a catamaran-style fast ferry.
No decisions have been made yet.
HRT expects to have more data points available later this summer.
You can watch the full HRT presentation at the Newport News city council work session here.
