Bristol Ferry Boats is a brand of water bus services operating around Bristol Harbour in the centre of the English city of Bristol, using a fleet of distinctive yellow-and-blue painted ferry boats. The services were formerly owned by the Bristol Ferry Boat Company, but are now the responsibility of Bristol Community Ferry Boats, a community interest company that acquired the fleet of the previous company. [1] [2]
The company operates scheduled ferry services, along with educational and public boat cruises and private hire of boats. Scheduled services operate on two routes linking Bristol city centre to Temple Meads railway station and Hotwells, serving 17 landing stages throughout the length of the harbour, including one at Brunel's famous SS Great Britain. Services are provided on a commercial basis without subsidy and are subject to competition. [1] [2]
City Docks Ventures, a non-profit making conservation group in Bristol, started the initiative in 1977, with the purchase of the ferry boat Margaret, to be skippered by Ian Bungard. In 1978, Ian Bungard bought Margaret and started to build up the business. In 1980 Margaret was joined by Independence. The ferry service offered all year round leisure, sightseeing, and commuting, as well as private hire, and typified the transformation of Bristol's Floating Harbour from cargo trading vessels to leisure. In 1984 Royal Mail chose an image of Margaret to feature on one of its special edition 'Urban Renewal' stamps; the yellow and blue painted boats had become a well known brand. [3] [4] [5]
In 1992, the company acquired Emily, their first enclosed launch. In 1997 this was joined by Matilda, another enclosed launch and the first vessel purpose built for Bristol Ferry Boats. [4]
In 2002 Ian Bungard sold the business to Rob and Jane Salvidge. From 2002, the company operated additional commuter services to Hotwells and Bristol Temple Meads that were subsidised by, and under contract to, Bristol City Council. In 2004, a cross-harbour shuttle ferry was introduced between SS Great Britain and Capricorn Quay was introduced on the same basis. In 2006, the launch Brigantia joined the fleet, to a design based on that of Matilda. However, in 2007, the contract for the subsidised services was lost to Number Seven Boat Trips, who operated the commuter service until it ceased in 2011 and continue to operate the cross-harbour ferry. Bristol Ferry Boats continued to operate their main commercial services. [2] [4]
In November 2012, the Bristol Ferry Boat Company went into liquidation, with debts of over £10,000 owed to Bristol City Council for navigation and mooring fees, and for office rent. Supporters of the company, including Ian Bungard (the original owner), bought back the fleet at the receivers' auction. In 2013, the campaign to transform the company into community ownership was well oversubscribed. Bristol Community Ferry Boats Limited is the result, now owned by its 871 shareholders from all around Bristol. [2] [3] [6] [7]
Bristol Ferry Boats operate 364 days a year, with a single through route linking Temple Meads railway station and Hotwells via Bristol city centre. Services operate every 40 minutes. The following landing stages are served: [8] [9]
# | Landing stage | For |
---|---|---|
1 | City Centre | The Centre, Watershed Arts Centre, Bristol Cathedral, College Green and City Hall |
2 | Cannons Marsh | Millennium Square and At-Bristol |
3 | Harbour Inlet | |
4 | Mardyke | |
5 | Hotwells-Pumphouse | Hotwells and Clifton Suspension Bridge (20 mins uphill walk) |
6 | Hotwells-The Nova Scotia | Cumberland Basin and Underfall Yard |
7 | Hotwells-The Cottage | |
8 | Marina | Bristol Marina |
9 | Great Britain | Preserved Brunel steamship Great Britain |
10 | Wapping Wharf | |
11 | Prince Street Bridge | Arnolfini Art Gallery, Queen Square, M Shed and Bristol Harbour Railway |
12 | Bathurst Basin | Bathurst Basin |
13 | Welsh Back | Welsh Back, Bristol Bridge, Llandoger Trow and St Nicholas Market |
14 | Redcliffe Back | |
15 | Castle Park | Castle Park and Broadmead shopping district (with Cabot Circus and Galleries malls) |
16 | Temple Bridge | Cheese Lane Shot Tower |
17 | Temple Quay | Bristol Temple Meads railway station |
The fleet of the Bristol Ferry Boats comprises the following vessels: [4]
Name | Built | Acquired | Passenger Capacity | Notes | Image |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Brigantia | 2006 | 2006 | 50 | Steel-hulled enclosed launch. Purpose-built for Bristol Ferry, based on the design for Matilda but equipped with a retractable wheelhouse and a wheelchair lift. | |
Emily | 1927 | 1992 | 48 | Wooden-hulled enclosed launch. Built in Bideford, and previously used at Scarborough and in Gloucester Docks. | |
Independence | 1927 | 1980 | 46 | Wooden-hulled open launch. Previously used on the Severn and Wye, and on the Erewash Canal. | |
Margaret | 1952 | 1977 | 28 | Wooden-hulled open launch. Built in Appledore for service in Lynmouth to replace a vessel wrecked in the flood of 1952, and later used as a ferry across the Avon between Shirehampton and Pill. | |
Matilda | 1997 | 1997 | 50 | Steel-hulled enclosed launch, with a length of 14.02 m (46.0 ft) and a beam of 4.61 m (15.1 ft). Purpose-built for Bristol Ferry | |
The Matilda and Brigantia are licensed to operate on the tidal Avon downstream from Bristol through the Avon Gorge to Avonmouth, as well as throughout Bristol Harbour and on the Avon upstream to the city of Bath. The other vessels are restricted to Bristol Harbour and the upstream Avon. [4] Margret is the original yellow and blue ferry boat operating since 1977. She is a true west country survivor.
Bristol Temple Meads is the oldest and largest railway station in Bristol, England. It is located 118 miles 31 chains away from London Paddington. It is an important transport hub for public transport in the city; there are bus services to many parts of the city and surrounding districts, with a ferry to the city centre. Bristol's other major station, Bristol Parkway, is a more recent station on the northern outskirts of the conurbation. It is the busiest station in South West England.
Caledonian MacBrayne, in short form CalMac, is the trade name of CalMac Ferries Ltd, the major operator of passenger and vehicle ferries to the west coast of Scotland, serving ports on the mainland and 22 of the major islands. It is a subsidiary of holding company David MacBrayne, which is owned by the Scottish Government.
Bristol Harbour is the harbour in the city of Bristol, England. The harbour covers an area of 70 acres. It is the former natural tidal river Avon through the city but was made into its current form in 1809 when the tide was prevented from going out permanently. A tidal by-pass was dug for 2 miles through the fields of Bedminster for the river, known as the "River Avon New Cut", "New Cut", or simply "The Cut". It is often called the Floating Harbour as the water level remains constant and it is not affected by the state of the tide on the river in the Avon Gorge, The New Cut or the natural river southeast of Temple Meads to its source.
The Severn Beach line is a local railway line in Bristol and Gloucestershire, England, which runs from Bristol Temple Meads to Severn Beach, and used to extend to Pilning. The first sections of the line were opened in 1863 as part of the Bristol Port Railway and Pier; the section through Bristol was opened in 1875 as the Clifton Extension Railway.
Filton Abbey Wood railway station serves the town of Filton in South Gloucestershire, England; it is located 4.4 miles (7.1 km) from Bristol Temple Meads. There are four platforms but minimal facilities. The station is managed by Great Western Railway that operates all services that call here. The general service level is nine trains per hour: two to Cardiff Central, two towards Gloucester, one towards Taunton, two towards Westbury and two to Bristol Temple Meads.
The Avonmouth Docks are part of the Port of Bristol, in England. They are situated on the northern side of the mouth of the River Avon, opposite the Royal Portbury Dock on the southern side, where the river joins the Severn estuary, within Avonmouth.
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Bristol is a city in south west England, near the Bristol Channel coast, approximately 106 miles (170 km) west of London. Several factors have influenced the development of its transport network. It is a major centre of employment, retail, culture and higher education, has many historic areas, and has a history of maritime industry. The city has a population of 450,000, with a metropolitan area of 650,000, and lies at the centre of the former County of Avon, which includes many dormitory towns, and has a population of one million.
Hotwells is a district of the English port city of Bristol. It is located to the south of and below the high ground of Clifton, and directly to the north of the Floating Harbour. The southern entrance to the Avon Gorge, which connects the docks to the sea, lies at the western end of Hotwells. The eastern end of the area is at the roundabout where Jacobs Well Road meets Hotwell Road. Hotwells is split between the city wards of Clifton, and Hotwells and Harbourside.
The Bristol Port Railway and Pier was a railway in Bristol, England.
The majority of public transport users in the Bristol Urban Area are transported by bus, although rail has experienced growth and does play an important part, particularly in peak hours. There were plans for a light rail system, however this has now been dropped although it remains in the long-term local transport plan.
The Cumberland Basin is the main entrance to the docks of the city of Bristol, England. It separates the areas of Hotwells from the tip of Spike Island.
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Bathurst Basin is a small triangular basin adjoining the main harbour of the city of Bristol, England. The basin takes its name from Charles Bathurst, who was a Bristol MP in the early 19th century.
Hotwells railway station, was a railway station situated in the suburb of Hotwells in Bristol, England. It was the original southern terminus of the Bristol Port Railway and Pier which ran to a station and pier at Avonmouth. The station opened in 1865, originally named Clifton station, and was situated in the Avon Gorge almost underneath the Clifton Suspension Bridge, near the Clifton Rocks Railway, the Hotwells terminus of Bristol Tramways, the Rownham ferry and landing stages used by passenger steamers.
The New Cut is an artificial waterway which was constructed between 1804 and 1809 to divert the tidal river Avon through south and east Bristol, England. This was part of the process of constructing Bristol's Floating Harbour, under the supervision of engineer William Jessop. The cut runs from Totterdown Basin at the eastern end of St Phillip's Marsh, near Temple Meads, to the Underfall sluices at Rownham in Hotwells and rejoining the original course of the tidal Avon.
Tower Belle is a passenger boat based in Bristol Harbour in England. The vessel is operated by the Bristol Packet Boat Trips company on pleasure and educational trips in the City Docks, on the River Avon to the Chequers Inn at Hanham Lock and Beese's Tea Gardens at Conham. Tower Belle was built in 1920 in Newcastle upon Tyne by Armstrong Whitworth, originally known as Wincomblee. In the 1950s and 1960s she worked in London, finally coming to Bristol in 1976.
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