> Golden Gate ferry will replace their boats with modern high speed ones

I really like the Spaulding boats. They are a nice ride and, once updated, are comfortable.

When I first moved here, several ferries still had ashtrays and a 60's lounge layout. Since then the interiors
have all been redone and are pretty good and clean.

https://www.marinij.com/2025/12/06/gold … expansion/

Last month, the board governing Golden Gate Ferry approved spending more than $118 million to begin replacing the agency’s aging fleet.

The expenditure includes a $92.4 million base contract with Mavrik Marine Inc. of Washington state to construct the first two of the new high-speed vessels.

“Our passengers, they’ll notice some more reliable service, more modern boats,” said Michael Hoffman, deputy general manager of the Golden Gate Bridge, Highway and Transportation District’s ferry division. “They’ll be designed with today’s passenger expectations in mind, with comfortable seating, good accessibility, efficient boarding and disembarking.”

Golden Gate Ferry has seven vessels: four high-speed catamarans constructed in the late 1990s and early 2000s, and three Spaulding class boats built in the 1970s.

While the Spauldings have a greater passenger capacity of 650 to 700, they only travel at 20 knots, so they’re not suitable to serve Larkspur Landing, the busiest Marin port. Trips to and from San Francisco would take those boats nearly an hour. That’s compared to the 30- to 35-minute trips provided by the catamarans, which travel at 36 knots and carry 400 to 450 passengers.

Of the catamarans, only two are able to serve Tiburon and Sausalito because of the way they are designed, Hoffman said.

The new vessels will all be built the same, setting a standardization of equipment and systems, “which really helps us keep our boats more available and on schedule,” Hoffman said.

It will take about 24 months to construct the first one. It will seat 500 passengers and will be named the “Liwa,” expanding the district’s fleet from seven to eight.