New Ferry Terminal Provides a Resilient Solution for a Needed Commuter Route

San Francisco Bay Ferry–Water Emergency Transportation Authority (WETA) required a new passenger ferry terminal to connect San Francisco with the city of Richmond across San Francisco Bay. The route is essential to everyday commuter travel and emergency evacuation of San Francisco especially in the aftermath of an earthquake. WETA needed a new facility, designed for seismic resiliency as an essential facility with high potential of remaining in service following a large design earthquake event. The facility also needed to be resilient to sea level change over the facility design life of 100 years. Richmond passenger ferry terminal is one of the first resilient waterfront transportation facilities in the United States. The paper discusses the dual challenges of designing for both seismic events and higher tide levels due to climate change. The terminal is an excellent example of a public transportation agency successfully partnering with a municipality, local community, regulatory environmental and permitting agencies, and engineers and contractors to plan, design, permit, and build a modern, resilient waterfront facility that honors historic sentiment, while reducing traffic on Bay Area highways by providing daily use for commuters. The ferry terminal was opened to the public in January 2019.