Uh-Oh: Ferries To SF Jammed, Parking A Problem During Doyle Closure

Ferry ridership from Larkspur to San Francisco tripled to 1,000 passengers and this morning was up 400 riders compared to a typical Tuesday, the busiest day of the week, because of the Doyle Drive construction closure south of the Golden Gate Bridge.

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Golden Gate Ferry added an extra ferry from Larkspur to San Francisco this morning that carried 300 people, Golden Gate Bridge Highway and Transportation District spokeswoman Priya Clemens said.

“The ferries were on-schedule and have been full,” Clemens said. “The 8:30 a.m. ferry was the last one with a big crush.”

The 1,888 spaces in the Larkspur Ferry parking lot were filled by 8 a.m., and riders parked along the road or took the ferry shuttle bus, Clemens said.

The first boat left Larkspur today at 5:45 a.m. and it carried 285 passengers compared to the normal 128-passenger Friday ridership, Clemens said. There may be an additional ferry from San Francisco to Larkspur for the evening commute, Clemens said.

“We’ll have to borrow a ferry from Sausalito,” Clemens said.

Two Larkspur ferries are in dry dock, she said. Figures for the normally less-crowded Sausalito run into San Francisco were not immediately available, Clemens said. There will be two additional ferries leaving San Francisco to Larkspur until midnight tonight and Saturday night, Clemens said.

Ferry service out of Larkspur is expected to triple on Saturday and Sunday, Clemens said.

Doyle Drive was closed at 10 p.m. Thursday and is scheduled to reopen 5 a.m. Monday.

--Bay City News/Image via Golden Gate Ferry on Facebook