Auckland Transport figures show that more Hobsonville residents are catching the ferry mid-week, with patronage growing by 30 per cent from the previous year.
Ferry patronage has climbed from 103,080 to 134,215 passenger boardings in the 2020/2021 period. Equally impressive is the 14,092 weekday boardings figure for July which is 50 per cent higher than July 2020.
Upper Harbour Local Board chairwoman Lisa Whyte says that timetable improvements suggested by ferry passengers are driving the strong growth.
“We know that demand is always strong during commuter peak times, and this continues to be the case.
“What is promising is the growth of weekday services outside of the peak times. It is very encouraging to see the amazing support for the afternoon and late-night sailings. Both are new services introduced this year after community feedback, and already they are well-supported.”
Weekend use has dropped off with 7,986 fewer passenger boardings in the 2020/2021 period. But boardings rose again in July with 2457 boardings which is 2 per cent higher than July 2020.
Better landside facilities like the city pier, CCTV for security, a ticket machine and real time information at the wharf are all helping to improve the customer experience.
An ageing fleet and driver availability do impact the service at times which is something that Auckland Transport and Fullers are working on.
Future improvements include better bus and ferry connections with changes to bus timetables likely from next March.
