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Ferries will start stopping at Sydney’s Walsh Bay late this summer after a major wharf upgrade, bolstering public transport links to the flagship cultural precinct near the southern end of the Harbour Bridge.
Following a campaign by the arts community and locals, a pontoon on the eastern side of pier two at Walsh Bay will be turned into a ferry wharf at a cost of almost $5 million over the next six months.
Once completed, ferries on the F3 Parramatta River route will stop at Walsh Bay during peak periods, while it will be incorporated into the F8 Cockatoo route during off-peak periods and weekends.
The work on the pontoon at the heritage-listed precinct will comprise electricity upgrades, installation of passenger information displays, Opal ticketing equipment and other infrastructure. It will determine a date for the start of ferry services late this summer.
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An alliance of Millers Point residents, arts and business groups has long argued the precinct was disconnected from the city’s transport network as ferries regularly passed by within metres. A metro train station on the $30 billion M1 line at Barangaroo was regarded as too far away for those less mobile.
Oscar-winning actor Cate Blanchett and husband Andrew Upton championed a permanent ferry stop at Walsh Bay almost two decades ago when they ran the Sydney Theatre Company.
Transport and Arts Minister John Graham said it was time to match Sydney’s most iconic transport mode with the “world’s most picturesque” performing arts precinct.
“Riding the ferry to Manly and Taronga Zoo is a bucket list experience for tourists all around the world. Now they can add Walsh Bay to the list,” he said.
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Action for Public Transport ferry expert Graeme Taylor said it was a terrific idea to have a stop at Walsh Bay, but he was concerned that the ferry fleet was struggling with high demand, carrying 1.5 million passengers in July alone.
“A ferry wharf at Walsh Bay is crucial for tourism and would become a must-do experience for visitors,” he said. “But the whole ferry network will be stressed this summer. It will place additional pressure on capacity, and it highlights the need to grow the size of the ferry fleet.”
The prospect of a serviced wharf at Walsh Bay comes as ferry workers stopped work for five hours on Wednesday amid a pay dispute with Transdev, the operator of the state government-owned fleet.
Sydneysiders and tourists are also having to wait until next year before ferry services to the new $836 million fish market in Blackwattle Bay begin because a wharf has yet to be built. Transport for NSW has said it was aiming for the $30 million wharf to be opened in the second quarter of 2027.
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A $370 million redevelopment at Walsh Bay was completed in 2022, cementing the area as the city’s major arts precinct. It is home to about nine arts companies including the Sydney Theatre Company and Bangarra Dance Theatre.
Sydney Theatre Company executive director Anne Dunn said Walsh Bay was one of the city’s hidden gems, and the new ferry stop would be “right on the doorstep” of the arts precinct.
“It’s going to bring people to the precinct who maybe haven’t been here, as well as people who already have it on their destination card,” she said.
Walsh Bay Ferry Alliance chair Yasmina Bonnet said reconnecting the area via ferry to other locations across Sydney would be transformational for the precinct. “A waterfront arrival to Sydney’s waterfront arts precinct will be absolutely fabulous,” she said.
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Sydney MP Alex Greenwich, who had also lobbied the government for a ferry stop, said it would provide a much-needed public transport connection via the harbour to the important arts and cultural precinct for residents, workers, tourists and performers.
“The Walsh Bay ferry stop will be the third ‘ghost’ ferry stop reactivated by the NSW Labor government, following the successful reopening of stops in Balmain and Pyrmont last year,” he said.
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Matt O’Sullivan is transport and infrastructure editor at The Sydney Morning Herald.Connect via X or email.AdvertisementAdvertisement