Nicholls builds WTA ferries

The San Francisco Bay Area Water Transit Authority (SFBAWTA) has issued a Letter of Intent to award a contract to Nichols Brothers Boat Builders for the construction of two new 149 passenger vessels. Construction will start this summer, and the first vessel will be delivered by 2007.

These two newbuildings are the first of 10 new ferries that the SFBAWTA expects to build over the next 10 years. Mary Frances Culnane, the Authority?s Manager of Marine Engineering, will manage the construction contract for the Authority. “These boats have the potential to alter the course of the entire ferry industry in a technically feasible, economically practical and environmentally responsible fashion”, says Culnane. “We are developing the most stringent emission standard for ferryboats anywhere in the world. The propulsion systems used will be 10 times cleaner than current vessels. In addition the boats will be built to the highest level of reliability, passenger comfort, safety, and low wake impact.”