Plans for electric ferry service in Cork City unveiled
Plans for a near €80m fully electric river ferry service in and around Cork harbour have been unveiled.
Ferry company executive Aidan Coffey said he hopes to lodge the required planning and licence applications within six to 12 months for a 17-stop ferry service between over a dozen harbour communities and the city centre using four 300-passenger capacity zero emissions catamarans.
Pending the outcome of the planning process, the service could be operational by early to mid-2027, Mr Coffey said.
Mr Coffey, who played a pivotal role in launching the DFDS ferry route between Rosslare and Dunkirk in 2021 post Brexit, currently leads Hibernia Line, which aims to launch more freight and passenger ferry routes from Ireland to mainland Europe over the coming weeks.
He is also a director of Portus Greenway Ltd, trading as Harbour Link, which is behind the proposed new harbour ferry service.
He was behind a similar but smaller proposal in 2008 but despite securing planning, it was shelved when the global economic crash hit.
Mr Coffey said now that a range of local, regional, and national planning strategies have aligned, with Cork set to be one of the fastest growing city regions over the next 20 years, with major residential development earmarked for Tivoli and docklands, and with massive investment in transport projects such as BusConnects and the Cork Luas, he believes the time is right to try again.
Cork has a fantastic opportunity to develop this stylish yet sustainable mode of all electric zero emission transport, as it has the unique resource of the unencumbered natural highway of the River Lee leading directly into the city.
Harbour Link has identified up to 17 docking locations, including Crosshaven, Aghada, Spike Island, Cobh Ballast Quay and Five Foot Way, Ringaskiddy, Monkstown, Passage West, and Little Island in the lower harbour.
It has exciting proposals to stop at Blackrock Pier, at the eastern end of the upgraded Marina Promenade, and at Blackrock Castle and Observatory, which could lead to the opening up the castle's riverside arched entrance to public use for the first time in decades.
It also has proposed stops at Tivoli, at SuperValu Páirc Uí Chaoimh, and at Kennedy Quay in the south docklands, potentially at the Marina Market area, as well as at the new transport hub proposed at Kent Station.
The large capacity catamarans will be able to cope with demand at peak commuter times, high-demand requirements from tourists when cruise liners call to Cobh, and with big events at Páirc Uí Chaoimh, Live at the Marquee, or other major city events.
The commuter service has planned frequencies of 30 minutes to the city in each direction, with a 24-hour or 48-hour hop-on, hop-off pass for short-break tourists visiting harbour sites such as Blackrock Castle and Observatory or Spike Island.
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