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Water-Related News

Ferry expanding service to five days a week, Wed.-Sun.

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MANATEE COUNTY – The Gulf Islands Ferry service continues to make waves in the Bradenton Area. Starting March 20, Wednesdays will be added to the weekly schedule. The service will run five days per week from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., barring any inclement weather.

“Adding Wednesdays helps further our goal of taking cars off the road and getting people into the restaurants and shops in downtown Bradenton and Anna Maria Island by utilizing our incredible water asset, the Manatee River,” said Elliott Falcione, Executive Director of the Bradenton Area Convention & Visitors Bureau.

Since the maiden voyage of Miss Anna Maria and Downtown Duchess, the service has hosted an average of 360 riders per day, which means there are about 150 fewer cars on our roadways.

“The ferry is a great alternative to sitting in traffic,” said Manatee County District 3 Commissioner Kevin Van Ostenbridge. “This form of multi-modal transportation not only can get you to the island but also alleviates the need to find a parking space.”

Potential passengers can now track the location of the two catamarans using the Manatee My Stop App. GPS-backed updates allow ferry riders to not only see where the ferry is but also track other Manatee County Area Transit services like buses and the Anna Maria Island Trolley.

For up-to-date information on run times, tickets and scheduling, riders can call customer service at 941-357-2587. For text messages to customer service, riders can send messages to 727-200-6487. Up-to-date run times and scheduling can still be found at gulfislandsferry.com.