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The Wymah Ferry has returned to service ahead of schedule, after the Murray River ferry link across the border from NSW to Victoria enjoyed a maintenance makeover ahead of its tenth birthday.

Minister for Regional Transport and Roads Jenny Aitchison said the Australian-built ‘Spirit of Wymah’ provides a services beloved by locals and visitors to the region.

“This picturesque Murray River service is an important link for rural communities including Wymah, Granya, Talgarno and Bowna, as well as being a popular tourist attraction,” Ms Aitchison said.

“Thank you to the community for their patience while this crucial work was carried out. I’m delighted to see her back on the water, ahead of schedule, and shining, after a makeover by the Transport for NSW team.

“While ‘Spirit of Wymah’ herself is only ten years old, the ferries connecting NSW and Victoria in this part of the Murray have been doing so for more than one hundred years.

“Wymah is one of two cable ferries which crosses the two states via the Murray River, the other being the Speewa Ferry near Swan Hill.”

Vehicular ferries on the Murray River need to be serviced every five years to ensure they meet government safety regulations and provide a safe and reliable service for passengers.

Transport’s Executive Director of Regional Network and Assets, Tom Grosskopf said a crew of skilled workers converged Wymah from across NSW to help up-lift the popular three-car ferry.

“It takes a lot of planning and teamwork to get the ferry on land, carry out the work and relaunch her back into service for the local community as quickly as possible,” Mr Grosskopf said.

“We’ve had specialist mechanics, boiler makers, and painters from across NSW on site to inspect, replace parts including the engine, clean and paint the ferry.

“Around a dozen tradespeople from Tamworth, Newcastle, Grafton, Narrandera, Newcastle and Sydney travelled to Wymah as part of the six-week project.”

Wymah Ferry supervisor Amanda Cooper said the ferry has a 30-tonne limit and can accommodate three standard vehicles, two fire trucks, or twelve people.

“Our passengers are diverse, there are commuters who cross between Victoria and NSW daily, cattle trucks, tourists and road-trippers, horses and riders. I also have a few farm dogs for who make the trip daily between farming properties, always with their masters of course.

“It can take anywhere from around one minute to five minutes to travel from one side of the Murray to the other, depending on river conditions and the river level, and it’s beautiful – especially at sunrise and sunset.

“The ferry is the preferred option for many, as the alternative road-route across the river is at either the Bethanga or Jingellic bridges which can add an hour onto the trip.”

Work on the Wymah Ferry included:

• Pressure clean, sand blast and repaint of the hull
• Install of 1.5 kilometres of wire cable
• New engine and hydraulic drive motor install
• Minor jetty repair on the Victorian side.

Wymah ferry operated between 7am-8pm during winter, with extended hours of 6am-9pm during the summer months.

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MEDIA:

Wendy Fitzgibbon | Minister Aitchison | 0408 427 540