Parramatta River ferry service

Parramatta River

Shane Gould in June 2014
Waterway	Sydney Harbour, Parramatta River
Owner	Sydney Ferries
Operator	Transdev Sydney Ferries
System length	17 wharves, 27 km (17 mi)
Sydney Ferries services Manly Taronga Zoo Parramatta River Pyrmont Bay Neutral Bay Mosman Bay Double Bay Cockatoo Island Watsons Bay Blackwattle Bay v t e

The Parramatta River ferry service connects suburbs along the Parramatta River in Sydney with Circular Quay by commuter ferry. The service is numbered F3 and forms part of the Sydney Ferries network.

History

Regular ferry services between Sydney and Parramatta began 2 June 1831, with the first steam ferry named Surprise. ^[1] Early ferry services between Sydney Cove and Parramatta used paddle steamers. ^[2]

Due to silting and pollution of the river, Sydney Ferries services on the Parramatta River ceased to serve the wharves west of Meadowbank in 1928. ^[3] Meanwhile, changes in the design of ferries meant that the deep-hulled vessels were unable to go further upstream than the Meadowbank bridge. However, following dredging work and the introduction of the RiverCat catamarans, the State Transit Authority was able to resume services to Rydalmere and Parramatta in December 1993. ^{[4] [5] [6] [7]}

At one time, the New South Wales Government was keen to make extensive use of ferry transport to Sydney Olympic Park for the 2000 Summer Olympics. Although the Sydney Olympic Park ferry wharf was built and opened on 22 September 1997, at the western tip of Homebush Bay, its distance from the Olympic facilities meant that Olympic spectators were largely encouraged to use buses and trains.

All wharves along the F3 are fully accessible.

Wharves

Name	Waterway	Suburbs served	Connections	Information on Wharf	Photo of Wharf
Circular Quay ferry wharf	Sydney Cove	Sydney CBD The Rocks	F1 F2 F4 F5 F6 F7 F8 F9	Circular Quay is a major transport hub in Sydney, situated on Sydney Cove. It features a large wharf complex, a train station, a light rail stop, and bus connections on Alfred St. Sydney Cove was the site of the initial landing of the First Fleet in Port Jackson. Circular Quay was originally mainly used for shipping and slowly developed into a transport, leisure and recreational centre, and as Sydney's main tourist attraction point. Sydney Ferries services use wharves 2, 3, 4 and 5 at Circular Quay. Each wharf has ticket vending machines, ticket barriers, is staffed and is wheelchair-accessible.
Barangaroo ferry wharf	Darling Harbour	Darling Harbour	F4 F10	Barangaroo ferry wharf serves Darling Harbour and the Barangaroo precinct, with a pedestrian link to Wynyard train station and light rail stop. The Barangaroo Metro station is also a short walk away. Barangaroo features two large wharves (with two berths on each side) - namely Wharf 1 and Wharf 2 - and F3 services typically use Wharf 1.
Cockatoo Island ferry wharf	Parramatta River	Cockatoo Island	F8	Cockatoo Island ferry wharf serves Cockatoo Island. Connections to other F8 wharves of Woolwich, Greenwich Point, Birchgrove and Balmain can be made here. Cockatoo Island features two berths.
Drummoyne ferry wharf		Drummoyne	No connections	Drummoyne ferry wharf serves the suburb of Drummoyne and is located on Wolseley Street, Drummoyne.
Huntleys Point ferry wharf		Huntleys Point		Huntleys Point ferry wharf serves the suburb of Huntleys Point and is located on Huntleys Point Road, Huntleys Point.
Chiswick		Chiswick		Chiswick ferry wharf serves the suburb of Chiswick and is located on Bortfield Drive, Chiswick. Bus connections that are a short walk away are 415 and 504.
Abbotsford ferry wharf		Abbotsford		Abbotsford ferry wharf serves the suburb of Abbotsford and is located on Great North Road, Abbotsford. A bus connection that is a short walk away is 438X/438N.
Cabarita ferry wharf		Cabarita		Cabarita ferry wharf serves the suburbs of Cabarita and Breakfast Point, and is located in Cabarita Park. A bus connection is 502, and 466 only a short walk away. Cabarita features two berths.
Kissing Point ferry wharf		Kissing Point		Kissing Point ferry wharf serves the suburb of Putney and is located in Kissing Point Park.
Meadowbank ferry wharf		Meadowbank		Meadowbank ferry wharf was the westernmost point in the Sydney ferry network until 1992. The wharf serves the suburb of Meadowbank and is located on Bowden Street, Meadowbank. A bus connection is 518.
Sydney Olympic Park ferry wharf		Wentworth Point		Sydney Olympic Park ferry wharf serves the suburbs of Sydney Olympic Park and Wentworth Point, and is located on Hill Rd, Sydney Olympic Park. The wharf was built in 1998 for the purpose of serving passengers for the Sydney 2000 Olympics, and served the RiverCat service which brought the Olympic Torch to the Olympic Stadium for the Opening Ceremony. It now serves residents of Wentworth Point and the neighbouring Rhodes. A bus connection is 526. The wharf features two berths and the majority of ferry services terminate here.
Rydalmere ferry wharf		Rydalmere		Rydalmere ferry wharf opened in 1992, and serves the suburb of Rydalmere and is located on John Street, Rydalmere. A bus connection a short walk away is 524.
Parramatta ferry wharf		Parramatta		Parramatta ferry wharf opened in 1992, and wharf serves the city of Parramatta and is located on the corner of Phillip and Charles Street, Parramatta. The wharf was upgraded in 2019 and surrounding precinct of Charles Street Square was given an upgrade in 2023. The free 900 shuttle bus to the CBD also depart from Phillip St at this wharf. Services between Rydalmere and Parramatta are replaced by buses during extreme low tides. [8]

Peak only/late night wharves

Name	Waterway	Suburbs served	Connections	Information on wharf	Photo of Wharf
Milsons Point	Lavender Bay	Milsons Point	F4	(Morning Peak services to Circular quay) (Evening Peak services to Chiswick via Balmain) (Evening Peak services to Sydney Olympic Park and Rydalmere running express between Mcmahons Point and Abbotsford
McMahons Point		McMahons Point
Balmain	Mort Bay	Balmain	F8	(Morning Peak services to Circular Quay via Milsons Point) (Evening Peak services to Chiswick)
Balmain East	Darling Harbour	Balmain East	F4	(Late-night 7 day a week services to Circular Quay from Sydney Olympic Park ferry)

Wharves served by the F3 ferry

Patronage

The following table shows the patronage of Sydney Ferries network for the year ending 30 June 2022.

2023–24 Sydney Ferries patronage by line ^{[n.b. 1] [9]}

F1	6,915,357
F2	1,502,244
F3	2,570,368
F4	2,724,066
F5	533,148
F6	697,896
F7	158,487
F8	522,468
F9	1,646,248

1. Figures based on Opal tap on and tap off data

Fleet

As of March 2025, there are 3 RiverCats, 10 River class and 4 Parramatta River class ferries operating the F3 Parramatta River service.

• 
  RiverCat class ferry
• 
  River-class ferry
• 
  Parramatta River-class ferry

References

1. Matthews, H.H. (December 1958), The Parramatta Wharf Tramway, Australian Railway Historical Society Bulletin, pp. 181–199
2. Explore Parramatta:Harris Park Heritage Walk Parramatta City Council
3. Parramatta ferry service celebrates 20 years Archived 24 September 2015 at the Wayback Machine Parramatta City Council 9 December 2013
4. Parramatta RiverCat Ferry Services New South Wales Legislative Assembly Hansard 25 February 1992
5. Steel, Reg, A ferry to Parramatta : return of the Parramatta ferries. State Transit Authority: Sydney, 1993.
6. By ferry to Parramatta Archived 5 January 2019 at the Wayback Machine Afloat Magazine May 2007
7. Rivercat Wharf Parramatta Archived 17 March 2015 at the Wayback Machine Parramatta Heritage Centre 7 October 2014
8. Transport for NSW, Customer Experience Division. "Ferries at low tide and replacement buses". transportnsw.info. Retrieved 5 December 2024.
9. "Ferry Patronage – Monthly Comparison". Transport for NSW. Retrieved 30 October 2024.

External links

• F3 Parramatta River at Transport for New South Wales
• F8 Cockatoo Island at Transport for New South Wales