I embarked at the West End and disembarked at South Bank.Orleigh Park on the banks of the Brisbane River, with the ferry terminal just ahead on the right. Run, Forrest, run! I told myself. I was good that I did, because they closed the boarding gate just a minute after I had embarked.The ferries are branded CityCat (Cat for catamaran?). There are 23 of these plying the waters of the Brisbane river, and 5 smaller vessels called KittyCats. This one arrived at the West End ferry terminal just as we were departing from there.The CityCat ferries are constructed locally, in Brisbane. This vessel was launched in August 2020. Length is 27.2 m (89 ft), beam 7.95 m (26 ft).Here’s the Merivale Railway Bridge with a double track. It opened in Nov. 1978, 43 years ago. This rail crossing is the only one across the Brisbane River, and a bottleneck for rail transport in the metro area. The massive Cross River Rail project, underway since 2019, is a new 10.2 km (6.3 mi) rail line from Dutton Park to Bowen Hills, which includes 5.9 km (3.6 mi) of twin tunnels under the Brisbane River. The first services are expected to start operating by late 2025.The William Jolly Bridge— named after William Jolly, the first Lord Mayor of the Greater Brisbane City Council during the construction of the bridge from 1928 to 1932. (So no, not named after Willem/ William the Jolly Ferry Rider! ).As bridges over the Brisbane River go, this one is new: the Kurilpa Bridge is a pedestrian and bicycle bridge that opened in 2009.Here’s the end of my jolly ride, at the South Bank ferry terminal, with the Queens Wharf construction project across the river.
The sun was out in full force today, here in Brisbane in Australia’s Sunshine State
(30 °C/ 86 °F).
I was in the West End where I spotted the ferry at the terminal there. I made a run for it and hopped on.
