Manly ferry: Emerald class vessel quietly rolled out

The ferry, named after the popular local beach Fairlight, began taking passengers on Friday and is the first of three Emerald class vessels that will be joining the route.

Minister for Transport Rob Stokes' office sent out a media release just before close of business on Friday to say the ferry was now in operation.

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It followed protests to keep the original and iconic Freshwater class ferries on the route full time, and concerns that the smaller Emerald class would not be as adequate in large swell. The Freshwaters can carry about 1100 passengers, compared with the 400-capacity Emerald-class.

Only two Freshwaters were saved, the Freshwater and the Collaroy. The Queenscliff was retired in October and retirement plans for the Narrabeen are still being finalised.

In his statement on Friday Mr Stokes said the new vessel had met strict safety standards, completing many hours of successful on water testing ahead of its introduction to service.

"The Generation 2 Emerald Class ferries are purpose built to operate in heavy swells, are fully accessible, have significantly reduced carbon emissions and are cheaper to run than our older vessels," he said.

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"The new Emerald Class ferries, along with 10 new River Class vessels, were built by Australian shipbuilder Birdon, with all design work undertaken in Australia.

"Throughout the design and build of these ferries there's been a strong focus on Aussie involvement, with 70 per cent of the total program of work benefitting local suppliers and creating local jobs."

Manly MP James Griffin said the remaining two Emerald Class ferries would be introduced progressively over the coming weeks, and are named after the popular Sydney Harbour beaches Clontarf and Balmoral.

"The introduction of the new Emerald Class ferries will allow for more weekly services to be added to the busy F1 route and will ensure there's plenty of capacity to meet demand, particularly over Manly's busy summer months," he said.

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"More frequent services between Manly and Circular Quay will be a welcome boost for our visitor economy as domestic and international travel resumes this summer."

The MV Freshwater and MV Collaroy will continue to operate alongside the new Generation 2 Emerald Class ferries on weekends and public holidays.

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