The purpose of the grant is to award $1972861 in FY25 fhwa ferry boat program funds.funding for all projects included in this grant application is provided by the following amounts and the account…

The Federal Transit Administration awarded San Francisco Bay Area Water Emergency Transportation Authority $2.466 million on August 14, 2026, under the Highway Planning and Construction program (CFDA 20.205) to purchase one terminal float for vessel landing infrastructure and enhance regional emergency response capability.

The terminal float will enable additional berthing and vessel maintenance while providing operational redundancy during terminal or float maintenance elsewhere in the system. WETA operates under a legislative mandate to coordinate emergency water transit when regional transportation systems are disrupted by disaster or other events; the float strengthens that capacity. The recipient obligated $2.466 million in total eligible cost, comprised of $1.972 million in federal FHWA Ferry Boat Program funds (80% share) and $493,216 in non-federal match (20% share). The grant splits the float purchase across three underlying projects: $1.151 million, $64,557, and $756,742, funded through separate FHWA FBP account codes.

Period of performance runs through June 30, 2029. Place of performance is California. No sub-recipients are involved. The award follows a 12-month period (November 2024–2025) in which SF Bay Ferry transported 2.9 million passengers; projections indicate ridership will exceed 4 million passengers annually within five to ten years.

Activities

The grant will fund the purchase of one terminal float for vessel landing and enhance regional emergency response. The float will allow for an additional berthing and vessel maintenance. This infrastructure also provides operational redundancy during terminal or float maintenance elsewhere in the system.

Expected outcomes

In the past 12 months (NOV 2024-2025) 2.9 million total passengers utilized SF BAY ferry for travel to/from SAN francisco. Projections for future ridership in the next 5-10 years have the service reaching over 4 million passengers annually.

Intended beneficiaries

SF BAY ferry has a legislative mandate to operate and coordinate emergency water transit when regional transportation systems are disrupted due to disaster or other events. This provides an additional float in the event of float repairs and for emergency response purposes. This allows for an additional berthing for storage charging or vessel maintenance capabilities.