Sydney Ferries
Sydney Ferries is the public transport ferry network serving the city of Sydney, New South Wales. Services operate on Sydney Harbour and the connecting Parramatta River. The network is controlled by the New South Wales Government's transport authority, Transport for NSW, and is part of the authority's Opal ticketing system. In 2017–18, 15.3 million passenger journeys were made on the network. Services are operated under contract by Transdev Sydney Ferries. Sydney Ferries Corporation is the state government agency that owns the ferry fleet. History Early services Sydney's ferry services can trace their general origins as far back as the arrival of the First Fleet at Sydney Cove where in 1789, a small boat provided a link between Sydney Cove and the farming settlement of Parramatta. The first vessel, officially named the Rose Hill Packet (otherwise known as 'The Lump'), was a hoy crafted by convicts and powered by sails and oars. Return trips between Sydney Cove to Parramatta could take a week to complete. The ex-convict, Billy Blue, thought to be a Jamaican, provided a cross harbour rowboat from Dawes Point to Blues Point. By 1830, he was running what is thought to be Sydney first regular ferry service. The