Water taxi
A water taxi or a water bus is a boat used to provide public or private transport, usually, but not always, in an urban environment.[1] Service may be scheduled with multiple stops, operating in a similar manner to a bus, or on demand to many locations, operating in a similar manner to a taxi. A boat service shuttling between two points would normally be described as a ferry rather than a water bus or taxi.
The term water taxi is usually confined to a boat operating on demand, and water bus to a boat operating on a schedule. In North American usage, the terms are roughly synonymous.
The earliest water taxi service was recorded as operating around the area that became Manchester, England.[citation needed]
Locations
[edit]Cities and other places operating water buses and/or taxis include:
- Alapuzha Water Taxi[2][3]
- Alexandria, Virginia
- Amsterdam
- Annapolis, Maryland
- Antwerp
- Auckland[4]
- Bahrain
- Baltimore
- Bangkok
- Berlin (see: de:Fährverkehr in Berlin)
- Bordeaux
- Boats BatCub[6]
- Boston[7]
- Bremen
- Brisbane
- Bristol
- Brussels
- Brunei
- Bucharest
- Budapest
- Buenos Aires, Tigre
- Bydgoszcz, Poland
- Cardiff
- Cap-Haïtien, Haiti (at Labadee beach)
- Cape Town
- Caye Caulker
- Charleston[8]
- Chicago
- Copenhagen
- Davao City
- Davao water taxi service
- Dhaka
- Buriganga River water bus
- Hatirjheel water taxi
- Dubai
- Erie, Pennsylvania
- Fort Lauderdale
- Galápagos Islands
- Gdańsk
- Geneva
- Gothenburg
- Älvsnabben ferry
- Paddan[9]
- Guangzhou, China
- Halifax Regional Municipality
- Hamburg
- Helsinki
- Hertford
- Ho Chi Minh City
- Hong Kong
- Cheung Chau, Chi Ma Wan, Peng Chau, Silvermine Bay
- Sun Ferry
- Sha Lo Wan, Tai O, Tuen Mun, Tung Chung (Urmston Road, Hong Kong)
- Istanbul[10]
- Jacksonville, Florida
- Karachi
- Kobe
- Kochi
- Kragerø and surrounding area, Norway
- Kristiansund, Norway
- Lake Ozark, Missouri[11]
- Laughlin, Nevada and Bullhead City, Arizona
- Leeds
- Lisbon
- London
- Long Beach, California
- Lorient
- Malta
- Manila
- Marseille
- Moscow (River tram[citation needed]
- Mumbai (Catamarans and ferries)
- Nantes
- National Harbor, Maryland
- New York City
- New Orleans - Baton Rouge, Louisiana: Mississippi River from mouth to Baton Rouge, Louisiana; Belle Chasse Marine, Port Ship Service, Crescent Ship Service and Weber Marine.
- New Zealand[12]
- Niigata
- Nur-Sultan
- Oklahoma City[13]
- Orlando, Florida
- Osaka
- Oslo
- Panama
- Paris
- Potsdam, Germany[15]
- Quad Cities, Illinois/Iowa[16]
- Rotterdam/Dordrecht[17]
- Sacramento
- San Francisco
- San Martín de los Andes[18]
- Saint Petersburg
- Aquabus[citation needed]
- Seattle
- Seoul[19]
- Shizuoka
- Singapore (Singapore River)
- Spalding (River Welland)
- Stockholm[20]
- Sydney
- Tallinn[21]
- Tampa[22]
- Timișoara
- Tokyo
- Toronto
- Trinidad
- Water Taxi Service, Port of Spain to San Fernando – service implemented in December 2008
- Trogir
- Pittsburgh
- Plymouth
- Portland, Maine
- Victoria, British Columbia
- Vancouver
- Venice
- Walt Disney World[24]
- Wellington
- Winnipeg
- Xochimilco, Mexico City
- Yokohama
On demand water taxis are also commonly found in marinas, harbours and cottage areas, providing access to boats and waterfront properties that are not directly accessible by land.
Incidents
[edit]On March 6, 2004, a water taxi on the Seaport Taxi service operated by the Living Classrooms Foundation capsized during a storm on the Patapsco River, near Baltimore's Inner Harbor. A total of five passengers died in the accident, which the National Transportation Safety Board determined was caused by insufficient stability when the small pontoon-style vessel encountered strong winds and waves. The company no longer operates water taxi vessels in Baltimore harbor.[25]
See also
[edit]- Duffy-Herreshoff watertaxi
- Ferry, including hydrofoil, catamaran and hovercraft
- Klotok
- Moskvitch-class motorship - Soviet "water tramway"
- Pleasure barge
- Rower woman
- Ship's tender
References
[edit]- ^ "Water Taxi (noun)". Webster's Dictionary. Merriam-Webster. 2021. Retrieved 16 Feb 2021.
- ^ Outlook India (October 23, 2020). "Water Taxi Launched in Kerala Backwaters". OutlookIndia.
- ^ "Now, enjoy first-ever water taxi service in Kerala backwaters". LiveMint. October 18, 2020.
- ^ "Auckland Water Taxis". destination-nz.com. Retrieved July 1, 2008.
- ^ "Ed Kane's Water Taxi". Ed Kane's Water Taxi. Retrieved May 13, 2009.
- ^ "Boats BatCub". Retrieved 21 July 2022.
- ^ "City Water Taxi". Retrieved July 1, 2008.
- ^ "Charleston Water Taxi". Charleston Water Taxi. Retrieved 28 June 2018.
- ^ "Hop-On Hop-Off by Paddan". Strömma Turism & Sjöfart. Retrieved 11 April 2014.
- ^ "Deniz Taksi 0850 222 44 98 (Sea Taxi, Istanbul 0850 222 44 98)". www.deniztaksi.com.tr. Archived from the original on 21 November 2012. Retrieved 10 April 2018.
- ^ "Water Excursions/Charters/Water Taxi". Lake of the Ozarks Convention & Visitor Bureau. 2012. Retrieved January 20, 2014.
- ^ "New Zealand Ferries, Water Taxis & Cruises". destination-nz.com. Retrieved July 1, 2008.
- ^ "Bricktown Water Taxi". Retrieved October 14, 2009.
- ^ Ruter (2008-03-07). "Båt" (in Norwegian). Archived from the original on 2011-02-10. Retrieved 2008-07-08.
- ^ "Potsdamer Wassertaxi" (in German). Retrieved July 1, 2008.
- ^ "The Channel Cat Water Taxi". Archived from the original on February 4, 2011. Retrieved August 22, 2009.
- ^ "Waterbus Rotterdam/Dordrecht" (in Dutch). Retrieved September 9, 2007.
- ^ "Mari Mari en el Lago Lácar" (in Spanish).
- ^ "Han River Water Taxi". Archived from the original on July 30, 2012. Retrieved April 6, 2010.
- ^ "Local boat transport". Stockholm Visitors Board. Retrieved 2012-07-24.
- ^ "Purjetamine Tallinna Lahel - Sailing.ee - Naissaar, Pärnu ja muu". Sailing.ee. Retrieved 10 April 2018.
- ^ http://www2.tbo.com/content/2008/nov/14/na-tampa-river-taxi-prepares-to-sail/news-breaking/ [dead link]
- ^ "Victoria Harbour Ferry". Retrieved 2010-01-31.
- ^ "Water Transportation". Walt Disney World. Retrieved 11 April 2014.
- ^ "Insufficient Stability Caused Passenger Vessel to Capsize". MarineLink.com. Archived from the original on September 28, 2007. Retrieved July 26, 2007.
External links
[edit]- Media related to Water taxis at Wikimedia Commons