Post by Jody on Nov 12, 2010 19:13:40 GMT -8
Today I dedicated a small block of time to checking out the ferry offerings on the Mississippi River in New Orleans. There are three ferry routes in the area, all operated by the Louisiana Department of Transportation & Development (DOTD). I had time to check out two of the three routes today, and ride one. And I must say, the effect of being spoiled in Washington (and paying a premium to be so) is becoming clearer and clearer.
The three routes operated (from upstream to downstream, and in this case west to east across the city) are: Gretna to Canal Street, Algiers to Canal Street, and Lower Algiers to Chalmette. The closest bridge crossing to all three ferries is the Pontchartrain Expressway toll bridge, to toll of which goes toward maintaining the ferries, among other things.
Also, the Gretna ferry used to operate to its own Jackson Street on the north side of the river, but now uses the Canal Street terminal in the French Quarter instead. Why, I'm not sure.
The ferry service is underutilized, and it's a shame. I stole away early in the day to take the couple of block hike from my hotel down to the Canal Street terminal. At that point, I wasn't aware that ferries departing from there might go to either Gretna or Algiers. When I walked down to the terminal, there was a small ferry getting ready to depart. A few minutes later, it cruised away from the dock with a single passenger and no cars, and headed upriver toward Gretna, much to my surprise. (I have since learned that the route carries no cars southbound, for whatever reason.)
Thinking I wasn't going to see any further action for a while, I ventured back down Canal to shoot photos of the streetcars, then went back to the hotel. If I get a chance tomorrow before I leave, I may try to go to Algiers and see what I can see.
Later in the day, I was able to take a quick joyride on the Lower Algiers route. The boat on this route was significantly larger than the one for the Gretna run. When I was at the Canal Street dock, I noted a similarly sized boat across the river at Algiers, along with another copy of the Gretna boat. I haven't been able to find specs on either type, but you'll see by photos that the capacities of the larger boats is significantly higher than the smaller ones. I'm guessing the tiny Gretna run ferry to be in the 24-30 car capacity range, while the larger boats are about 75 cars or so. Again, that's 100% PURE speculation on my part.
One thing that threw me off at both terminals is that the ferries dock sideways in the slips, and unload off of the side of the boat rather than off of the ends. In the case of the Lower Algiers boats, that meant driving onboard at the bow and doing a quick loop around the boat before exiting on the opposite side of the bow.
This route is a fair distance farther away from the bridge than the others, and is in a more industrial setting. As such, the boats were running full when I rode right around 4:45. One thing I did note is that there doesn't seem to be any kind of schedule for the runs. They just load, go, unload, and do it all over again.
The boats have a very utilitarian, not very aggressively maintained appearance to them. Certainly not the "Hyak needs paint" look, but not glamour puss either. And according to an article I found today, their maintenance future is in doubt, despite a recent grant announcement: www.wwltv.com/news/Ferries-get-grant-for-repairs-but-still-uncertain-about-permanent-funding-105485523.html
and for the grant info: www.neworleans.com/news/local-news/520926.html
Another disappointment - despite the seemingly luxurious passenger cabin on the Lower Algiers boat, we weren't allowed off of the car deck. Perhaps it's because of the short duration of the trip, but the signage indicating that the upper sections were off limits was pretty permanent looking and well worn.
Here's a couple of photos from today's outing. Not perfect conditions, but fun never the less, and hopefully informative. I hope you enjoy.
Jody
First photo, a quick shot of the Gretna ferry "St. John" leaving Canal Street dock.
Next, a quickie of a St. Charles line streetcar waiting to turn onto its namesake avenue while a Canal Street line streetcar darts past on its way from the ferry terminal (so it's not totally off topic, I hope...)
Last of this set is a pic of the Capt. Neville Levy making the crossing from Lower Algiers to Chalmette with one of the extra ferries in the background. The Lower Algiers landing is between the ferry and the tug in the background.
One more set of photos coming...
The three routes operated (from upstream to downstream, and in this case west to east across the city) are: Gretna to Canal Street, Algiers to Canal Street, and Lower Algiers to Chalmette. The closest bridge crossing to all three ferries is the Pontchartrain Expressway toll bridge, to toll of which goes toward maintaining the ferries, among other things.
Also, the Gretna ferry used to operate to its own Jackson Street on the north side of the river, but now uses the Canal Street terminal in the French Quarter instead. Why, I'm not sure.
The ferry service is underutilized, and it's a shame. I stole away early in the day to take the couple of block hike from my hotel down to the Canal Street terminal. At that point, I wasn't aware that ferries departing from there might go to either Gretna or Algiers. When I walked down to the terminal, there was a small ferry getting ready to depart. A few minutes later, it cruised away from the dock with a single passenger and no cars, and headed upriver toward Gretna, much to my surprise. (I have since learned that the route carries no cars southbound, for whatever reason.)
Thinking I wasn't going to see any further action for a while, I ventured back down Canal to shoot photos of the streetcars, then went back to the hotel. If I get a chance tomorrow before I leave, I may try to go to Algiers and see what I can see.
Later in the day, I was able to take a quick joyride on the Lower Algiers route. The boat on this route was significantly larger than the one for the Gretna run. When I was at the Canal Street dock, I noted a similarly sized boat across the river at Algiers, along with another copy of the Gretna boat. I haven't been able to find specs on either type, but you'll see by photos that the capacities of the larger boats is significantly higher than the smaller ones. I'm guessing the tiny Gretna run ferry to be in the 24-30 car capacity range, while the larger boats are about 75 cars or so. Again, that's 100% PURE speculation on my part.
One thing that threw me off at both terminals is that the ferries dock sideways in the slips, and unload off of the side of the boat rather than off of the ends. In the case of the Lower Algiers boats, that meant driving onboard at the bow and doing a quick loop around the boat before exiting on the opposite side of the bow.
This route is a fair distance farther away from the bridge than the others, and is in a more industrial setting. As such, the boats were running full when I rode right around 4:45. One thing I did note is that there doesn't seem to be any kind of schedule for the runs. They just load, go, unload, and do it all over again.
The boats have a very utilitarian, not very aggressively maintained appearance to them. Certainly not the "Hyak needs paint" look, but not glamour puss either. And according to an article I found today, their maintenance future is in doubt, despite a recent grant announcement: www.wwltv.com/news/Ferries-get-grant-for-repairs-but-still-uncertain-about-permanent-funding-105485523.html
and for the grant info: www.neworleans.com/news/local-news/520926.html
Another disappointment - despite the seemingly luxurious passenger cabin on the Lower Algiers boat, we weren't allowed off of the car deck. Perhaps it's because of the short duration of the trip, but the signage indicating that the upper sections were off limits was pretty permanent looking and well worn.
Here's a couple of photos from today's outing. Not perfect conditions, but fun never the less, and hopefully informative. I hope you enjoy.
Jody
First photo, a quick shot of the Gretna ferry "St. John" leaving Canal Street dock.
Next, a quickie of a St. Charles line streetcar waiting to turn onto its namesake avenue while a Canal Street line streetcar darts past on its way from the ferry terminal (so it's not totally off topic, I hope...)
Last of this set is a pic of the Capt. Neville Levy making the crossing from Lower Algiers to Chalmette with one of the extra ferries in the background. The Lower Algiers landing is between the ferry and the tug in the background.
One more set of photos coming...