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  #1  
Old Posted Feb 20, 2014, 9:08 PM
HalifaxRetales HalifaxRetales is offline
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Water Taxi?

it works in Asia and Vancouver

why not here?


Last edited by HalifaxRetales; Feb 25, 2014 at 12:40 AM. Reason: more forum friendly size
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  #2  
Old Posted Feb 21, 2014, 3:12 AM
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curnhalio curnhalio is offline
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We don't have the population base to maintain those low fares. You would have to charge a premium rate and almost treat it like a regular taxi. I figure this would have to be a private-for-profit type of offering. I'm sure there are a million logistical, bureaucratic reasons we don't have water taxis here.
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  #3  
Old Posted Feb 21, 2014, 3:28 AM
IanWatson IanWatson is offline
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I was pretty impressed with the one in Vancouver, but I couldn't for the life of me figure out how it is viable. We *do* have a water taxi of sorts (well, a motor boat) that follows your future route ABC, and it's $20/person. So either he's making out like a bandit, or that's a more realistic indication of the rates you need to charge to make one of these things worth it.
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  #4  
Old Posted Feb 21, 2014, 11:39 AM
bornagainbiking bornagainbiking is offline
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row row row your boat

Winnipeg has one!
Maybe combine it with the harbour tours.
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  #5  
Old Posted Feb 21, 2014, 1:49 PM
HalifaxRetales HalifaxRetales is offline
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Ok probably more realistic implementation


Last edited by HalifaxRetales; Feb 22, 2014 at 8:05 PM.
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  #6  
Old Posted Feb 21, 2014, 2:31 PM
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Chicago

Works well here - more like a water jitney.


My building (and others) get free passes and it is very popular with the heavy rail commuters going a mile or 2 from the stations to the offices down the river.

Also great as a cheap tour boat ;-)
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  #7  
Old Posted Feb 21, 2014, 9:29 PM
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Hopefully, the seamanship of Kipperbus is better than their spelling.
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  #8  
Old Posted Feb 21, 2014, 9:45 PM
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The Vancouver water taxi costs more like $3-5, and I assume it caters to tourists who tend to buy packages like day passes for $10+. It also serves the False Creek area, which is similar to the Northwest Arm in scale rather than Halifax Harbour, but is much more built up.

I could see a service from downtown Halifax to the harbour islands working well in the summer months though. It's kind of sad how hard it is to visit the islands. McNab's could be a great park.
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  #9  
Old Posted Feb 22, 2014, 1:45 AM
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I thought water taxis were initially talked about when Kings Wharf was launching and found this from last year....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8WcqoY2D8B8
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  #10  
Old Posted Feb 23, 2014, 2:01 AM
hfx_chris hfx_chris is offline
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I shudder to think what will happen if and when they make it easier to get to McNabs and Georges islands. Can't wait to volunteer to clean up after everything is vandalized and trashed.
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  #11  
Old Posted Feb 23, 2014, 11:11 PM
halifaxboyns halifaxboyns is offline
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I think a water taxi is interesting - but I have some concerns and questions.

1) In the case of the Vancouver Water Taxi - it seems to me that no water taxis operate from Vancouver to North Vancouver where the sea bus operates. I'd suggest you'd likely get little support from HRM (which would be likely be the licensing authority) since this might undermine ferry passenger numbers (even though it appears to be going to King's Wharf).

2) Is the concept to use the same boats as Vancouver/Victoria? If so - I'd be a little concerned. Unlike Vancouver/Victoria, their harbours are pretty protected and so when the winds kick up, they may get choppy, but not too bad. But with Halifax, the harbour isn't well protected and so the waves can get quite choppy. A different type of boat might be necessary.
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Old Posted Jul 4, 2015, 9:49 PM
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  #13  
Old Posted Jul 4, 2015, 10:50 PM
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Here is a good picture of them from Global News Halifax



Source Image source:https://shawglobalnews.files.wordpre...water-taxi.jpg
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  #14  
Old Posted Jul 5, 2015, 8:00 PM
Colin May Colin May is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by halifaxboyns View Post
I'd suggest you'd likely get little support from HRM (which would be likely be the licensing authority) since this might undermine ferry passenger numbers (even though it appears to be going to King's Wharf).
HRM has no authority in the harbour. As long as the boats meet federal requirements as set out in Canada Shipping Act 2001, and regulations, they will be free to operate from and to any property that is not owned/controlled/leased by HRM.

The original CBC story quoted a 12 passenger boat.
For people who need to quickly get to downtown Halifax or Dartmouth this is a good option at the price and probably quicker than an auto taxi.
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  #15  
Old Posted Jul 5, 2015, 8:19 PM
Hali87 Hali87 is offline
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Unfortunately there have been a few misquotes in the media. Having been on one of their boats, I can say that Harbour's would seat 6 very comfortably, but I'm not sure about 12. It could be that they meant they had 12 seats total (6 in each boat) or they might be licensed to carry up to 12/boat. Didn't occur to me to ask.

Chebucto is currently just running one boat which can take up to 6 passengers.
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  #16  
Old Posted Jul 15, 2015, 1:21 PM
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I Just got back from Vancouver.

Quote:
Originally Posted by halifaxboyns View Post
I think a water taxi is interesting - but I have some concerns and questions.

1) In the case of the Vancouver Water Taxi - it seems to me that no water taxis operate from Vancouver to North Vancouver where the sea bus operates. I'd suggest you'd likely get little support from HRM (which would be likely be the licensing authority) since this might undermine ferry passenger numbers (even though it appears to be going to King's Wharf).
Correct. Why the sea bus doesn't have an outdoor upper deck is beyond me. the area it operates is similar in conditions to Halifax Harbor.

Quote:
Originally Posted by halifaxboyns View Post
2) Is the concept to use the same boats as Vancouver/Victoria? If so - I'd be a little concerned. Unlike Vancouver/Victoria, their harbours are pretty protected and so when the winds kick up, they may get choppy, but not too bad. But with Halifax, the harbour isn't well protected and so the waves can get quite choppy. A different type of boat might be necessary.
The False Creek ferry boats could operate in Halifax Harbour, our normal conditions and swell are well within what the boats can handle, though in Vancouver the boats only operate within false creek. This keeps the legs short. a full round trip of all the stops is ~45 minutes.
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  #17  
Old Posted Oct 2, 2015, 6:49 PM
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The harbour taxi has been running a couple months now. Has anyone here taken it? I really want to visit McNabs and Lawlor islands because I've never been to either so I'll report back if I end up using it.
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  #18  
Old Posted Oct 2, 2015, 7:20 PM
IanWatson IanWatson is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Nouvellecosse View Post
The harbour taxi has been running a couple months now. Has anyone here taken it? I really want to visit McNabs and Lawlor islands because I've never been to either so I'll report back if I end up using it.
I took it once this summer coming back from a gathering in Dartmouth. We dawdled a bit so we just missed the last MT ferry. Then I remembered that the Harbour Taxi went late so we called it up. We ended being pleasantly pleased that we had missed the MT ferry. The Taxi is comfortable, cosy (maybe seat 6?), super fast, and they dropped us off much closer to home. It is definitely not barrier-free (accessible) though...
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  #19  
Old Posted Oct 2, 2015, 7:49 PM
Hali87 Hali87 is offline
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I actually run Chebucto Water Taxi (will be ending the inaugural season in a couple weeks).

I took Harbour Water Taxi when they first opened and it's quite nice. It's basically like being in a large sedan on the water. Very fast and quiet. They seem to be focusing primarily on McNab's now, although it began as a King's Wharf-Maritime Museum service.

We use zodiacs (just one this year, but planning for 2 or 3 next year) so it's completely open to the elements, which some people prefer and others do not. Because they're not enclosed they're a bit more flexible for things like bicycles, and because they're flat-bottomed they can land on beaches, which none of the other water taxi/charter boats can do, as far as I'm aware. They're also much more fuel efficient than heavier boats so they're quite cheap to operate.

I don't think Lawlor's island is open to the public - in any case there's no dock. However, you can basically just walk over from Eastern Passage at low tide - the Passage gets insanely shallow and Lawlor's is very close.
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  #20  
Old Posted Oct 2, 2015, 8:05 PM
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Jonovision Jonovision is offline
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I also took the Harbour Water Taxi earlier in the summer just for the hell of it and was very pleasantly surprised. Well worth the extra couple of dollars over the ferry. Especially if you are running late, it is a very speedy and comfortable ride.

They seem to be doing some end of season promotion as I just got a free ride coupon in the mail today.
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