‘Quieter and cleaner’: Sydney to trial electric ferry after two-year delay, with new fish market route slated for 2029

Spluttering journeys across Sydney Harbour could soon be a thing of the past after a trial of the city’s first Australian-made and designed electric ferry. The New South Wales government says contracts have been signed for the new 24-metre, battery electric ferry to be trialled for 12 months from 2028 – two years later than originally planned. It is hoped it will operate on a new Sydney fish market route when it enters passenger service in 2029. The NSW minister for transport, John Graham, said the trial would inform the transition of Sydney’s entire ferry fleet from diesel propulsion, originally slated for 2035. “This Northern Beaches-designed, Australian-built ferry will provide a quieter ride and cleaner air on the harbour,” he said. In 2024, the Minns government announced plans to replace Sydney’s fleet of 40 diesel-powered ferries with Australian-made, electric or hydrogen-powered vessels by 2035, but the start date of the electric trial comes two years later than the project’s proposed start date of early 2026. Despite the target, the government says no decision has been made about investing in additional electric ferries, which will depend on the success of the trial by Transport for NSW and private ferry operator Transdev. Sign up for the Breaking News Australia email Transport for NSW coordinator general, Howard Collins, said testing would look at the vessel’s reliability and charging systems, to be installed at Barangaroo wharf, in “real-world conditions”. …