Rain or shine, Prince William County is testing a potential ferry service this week that would give commuters an alternative to cars, buses or trains for the trek downtown.
A coalition of public agencies, private companies and officials began a three-day study Monday morning with trips up and down the Potomac River aboard an 149-passenger catamaran to see if a ferry service could be viable.
The test is the third such study in the last decade, said Rick Canizales, Prince William County’s transportation planning manager.
In 2000, he said, the county abandoned the idea after a study found ferry service would take commuters away from existing services such as the Virginia Railway Express commuter train. Then in 2007, the county tested a boat on a one-day run.
Today, he said, the region may be ready for the only ferry of its kind locally.
“The VRE trains are packed now,” he said. “There’s people out there looking for an alternative way.”
The project, funded with a $225,000 Virginia Department of Transportation grant, is letting planners test how long it would take to make a trip directly to the District of Columbia or to make about eight stops along the way, including at Fort Belvoir, National Harbor and Alexandria’s Old Town. Officials hope to submit a feasibility report by July, comparing the ferry with the other commuting options and assessing its environmental impact.
Monday morning’s test run took an hour and a half, Canizales said, but he believes the trip could be made faster from a different starting point.
He said the Occoquan Harbor Marina has wake restrictions that force the boat to slow from its maximum speed of 32 knots to six knots.
On Wednesday, Rep. Gerry Connolly, Va., is slated to be the “first commuter” with plans to take the test ferry to the District.
The congressman lives in Fairfax County, so he wouldn’t take the ferry regularly. But, his spokesman George Burke said, “We have several employees who would love to be able to commute this way to Capitol Hill.”
Even if approved, though, Canizales said the ferry service likely wouldn’t begin for at least a couple of years.
