RiverCity Ferries is a public transport company which commenced operating ferry services in

Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...

on 4 November 2020. It is a subsidiary of the Kelsian Group. RiverCity Ferries operates 36 vessels serving 22 wharves on the Brisbane River under a ten-year contract (with an optional five-year extension) with the Brisbane City Council.Ferry operators to keep their jobs in new council contract
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Brisbane Times ''Brisbane Times'' is an online newspaper for Brisbane and Queensland, Australia. It is owned and run by Nine Publishing, publishers of ''The Age'', ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' and other mastheads. As of 2024, the editor is Sean Parnell. H ...

'' 29 June 2020 The company won the contract from the previous operator,

Transdev Brisbane Ferries Transdev Brisbane Ferries, formerly Metrolink Queensland and TransdevTSL Brisbane Ferries, was the operator of the CityCat, CityHopper, and Cross River ferry networks on the Brisbane River in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia from November 2003 ...

Services

CityCat

CityCat services began operating in November 1996 with a fleet of six high-speed catamarans. The service proved very popular with more than five million trips taken by 2004. CityCat services operate from UQ St Lucia to Northshore Hamilton calling at West End, Guyatt Park,

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, Milton, North Quay, South Bank, QUT Gardens Point, Riverside, Howard Smith Wharves, Sydney Street, Mowbray Park, New Farm Park, Hawthorne, Bulimba, Teneriffe, Bretts Wharf and Apollo Road. Not all CityCat services stop all stops, with some peak time express services operating.

KiityCat

KittyCat services operate cross-river between the following locations. * Bulimba Teneriffe * Sydney Street Dockside * Holman Street Riverside * Maritime Museum QUT Gardens Point

Fleet

RiverCity Ferries's fleet consists of 27 CityCats and 9 KittyCats.Fast Facts
Transdev Brisbane Ferries The CityCats are owned by Brisbane City Council. The KittyCats are leased from Captain Cook Cruises.

CityCats

The CityCat vessels are catamarans, and named after the Aboriginal place names for various parts of the Brisbane River and adjacent areas (with the exception of the 19th CityCat, the ''Spirit of Brisbane'', which honours the 2011 flood recovery volunteers). All CityCats are operated by a crew of three - a master, a deck hand and a ticket seller.

First generation

First generation CityCats have a capacity of 149 passengers. These are to be replaced by additional fourth generation vessels.

Second generation

Second generation CityCats have a capacity of 162 passengers.

Third generation

Third generation CityCats have a capacity of 162 passengers.

Fourth generation

Seven fourth generation CityCats are being delivered from late 2019. They have a capacity of 170 passengers, including 20 on an open upper deck, plus more space for wheelchairs and bicycles than earlier generations. The vessels which each cost $3.7 million, are being constructed at Murarrie b
Aus Ships Group
In December 2019, Brisbane City Council awarded Aus Ships Group a contract for an additional six fourth generation CityCats to replace the first generation vessels at a cost of $3.73 million each. AU-Q-Brisbane-KittyKat-Victoria-docked-2021

AU-Q-Brisbane-KittyKat-Victoria-docked-2021

KittyCats

Nine catamarans, nicknamed KittyCats, have been leased from RiverCity Ferries sister company Captain Cook Cruises in Sydney since November 2020 to operate the cross river services after the monohulled ferries were withdrawn. The first, MV ''Cockle Bay'', arrived in Brisbane in September 2020. They have a capacity of 60 passengers (36 seated, 24 standing) and are operated by a crew of one. They are powered by 2 x Cummins QSB engines with an economical normal service speed of and a maximum speed of . Residents have expressed concerns with the noise of the new vessels, since they came into service. In May 2021, Council ordered SeaLink to fit mufflers to the vessels to reduce noise concerns.

EVCats

A prototype electric ferry, to be called the EVCat, was announced by Brisbane Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner on 14 June 2023. Development would be funded by Brisbane City Council and developed jointly with River City Ferries and Aus Ships. The proposed prototype would be long and carry 50 passengers, larger than the KittyCats but smaller than the CityCats.

Former fleet

Monohull ferries

The monohulled ferries worked the inner city CityHopper and cross-river CityFerry services. All units were suspended from service in July 2020 following the discovery of rotten wood in their hulls and later replaced by KittyCats.Council scuttles two Brisbane River ferry services permanently
''Brisbane Times'' 23 October 2020 Restoration of these ferries was mooted but later abandoned due to cost and their 30+ year age; they were auctioned off in August 2022.

CityHopper

These were powered by

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engines, with a maximum speed of and were operated by a crew of one.

CityFerry

These were powered by Perkins engines, with a maximum speed of and were operated by a crew of one.

Network

The wharves are listed in geographical order, heading upstream along the Brisbane River.

References

{{Navbox TransLink (SEQ) ferry network Companies based in Brisbane Ferry companies of Queensland Public transport in Brisbane Translink (Queensland) Transport companies established in 2020 2020 establishments in Australia