177:), the commute time required to board the ferry has rapidly increased (during the summer the wait can be up to two hours), which slows emergency response times (there are few emergency services, and no hospitals, on the peninsula, thus requiring trips to Galveston). Maintenance costs for the ferry crossing have risen to approximately $ 12 million per year, a 200 percent increase in the last eight years alone. The ferry is unusable in the event a tropical storm or hurricane approaches the area, thus forcing evacuating traffic onto the other two egresses from the island (
33:
213:". The later 4 vessels are all painted in a differing color scheme to honor various universities of the State. Consecutively as named above starting with the Lanier, these schemes are Orange/White for UT, Maroon/White for TAMU, Green/Gold for Baylor U., and Red/Blue for Southern Methodist U. The current fleet of ferries comprises seven vessels, the newest of which is the
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225:
In 2000, TxDOT identified immediate need for improvements to the ferry crossing, specifically a third landing site (which is under construction), and also identified that the best long-term solution was to replace the ferry with a bridge linking
Galveston and Port Bolivar. The option to make the
200:
The
Original Ferry consisted of three vessels. Traditionally, these have always been named for significant directors of the TxDOT. The first three vessels were named "Cone Johnson", "E.H. Thornton, Jr." and "R.S. Sterling". All three of these original ferry boats have been replaced with five
307:
worked with the
Houston-Galveston district and made a final plan to cancel the project. The plan was canceled in 2007. Failure to find a partner to support the project was a deciding factor for not building the bridge. The ferry systems will remain as the access point to the
201:
slightly larger vessels. The first two had fixed shaft/propeller designs as the original boats. The following three were built with the same basic hull, but steerable prop pods. The oldest of the second generation boats is named "
229:
TxDOT held meetings with the
Galveston and Port Bolivar communities to obtain input. A third ferry landing being built was considered an interim solution only; the long-term goal is a permanent fixed crossing.
138:. Its intention was to replace the Bolivar Ferry, the only direct connection for traffic from Galveston Island. In 2007, it was decided that the study would not move forward leaving everything as is.
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The preferred corridor is Route 1-3, the
Pelican Island alternative. One estimate for the cost of the bridge was $ 240 million.
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Expansion of ferry system – rejected as the system cannot be relied upon during evacuation or bad weather
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Route 1-3, using nearby
Pelican Island (immediately north of Galveston Island) as a corridor at approximately
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The final solution was to build a bridge between the communities. Four tentative corridors were identified:
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Route 2 (including alternatives 2-1, 2-2, and 2-3), using the Texas City Dike as a corridor
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and a two-lane toll bridge on the west end of the island), and projected ship traffic in
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166:. The state-operated ferry has operated since 1934, replacing earlier operations.
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Tunnel
Crossing – rejected due to high cost and vehicle/cargo restrictions
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Robert C. Lanier
Bolivar Ferry between Galveston Island and Bolivar Peninsula
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bridge a toll bridge is being considered along with other options.
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Route 1-1, using the existing State
Highway 87 corridor
330:"History Of The Galveston Island - Port Bolivar Ferry"
360:"Corrections and Updates: Galveston-Bolivar Crossing"
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Route 1-2, using the
Galveston Seawall as a corridor
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566:Sts. Constantine and Helen Serbian Orthodox Church
209:", "Dewitt C. Greer", "Ray Stoker, Jr.", and the "
1072:Cancelled bridge projects in the United States
551:Ocean Star Offshore Drilling Rig & Museum
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233:TxDOT identified the following alternatives:
217:which entered service in the spring of 2024.
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875:Galveston National Biocontainment Laboratory
412:Bolivar bridge might get Houston help (2002)
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658:Scholes International Airport at Galveston
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576:Schlitterbahn Galveston Island Waterpark
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1025:List of museums in the Texas Gulf Coast
501:Galveston Island Historic Pleasure Pier
417:State scraps Bolivar bridge plan (2007)
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303:After numerous environmental studies,
827:Texas A&M University at Galveston
196:Dewitt C. Greer Boat at Bolivar Ferry
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822:O'Connell College Preparatory School
746:Gulf, Colorado and Santa Fe Railway
623:American National Insurance Company
1077:Transportation in Galveston, Texas
900:University of Texas Medical Branch
832:University of Texas Medical Branch
362:. Houston Freeways. Archived from
160:Texas Department of Transportation
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389:. The Daily News Galveston County
122:was a proposed bridge connecting
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385:Collette, Mark (July 8, 2007).
169:Due to the rapid growth of the
162:(TxDOT) linking both halves of
890:Shriners Hospital for Children
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387:"Bolivar bridge goes nowhere"
895:Transitional Learning Center
885:Sealy & Smith Foundation
154:is currently provided via a
711:Galveston Hurricane of 1915
706:Galveston Hurricane of 1900
571:St. Mary Cathedral Basilica
506:Galveston Island State Park
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686:Second Battle of Galveston
676:Battle of Galveston Harbor
483:East End Historic District
334:galvestonferryschedule.com
18:Bridge in Galveston Island
681:First Battle of Galveston
516:Galveston Railroad Museum
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736:Strand Historic District
586:Strand Historic District
526:Galveston Island Trolley
215:Esperanza "Hope" Andrade
731:Free State of Galveston
536:Lone Star Flight Museum
312:from Galveston Island.
299:Cancellation of Project
276:29.350219°N 94.784075°W
66:29.350219°N 94.784075°W
1036:A Weekend in September
531:Grand 1894 Opera House
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281:29.350219; -94.784075
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173:area (which includes
71:29.350219; -94.784075
205:", followed by the "
187:Houston Ship Channel
880:John Sealy Hospital
643:Moody National Bank
511:Galveston Pirate SC
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62: /
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716:Galveston Movement
701:Galveston Railroad
628:Galveston Railroad
366:on October 7, 2013
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541:Moody Gardens
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391:. Retrieved
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368:. Retrieved
364:the original
337:. Retrieved
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152:Port Bolivar
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546:Moody Plaza
461:Attractions
279: /
100:Preceded by
69: /
44:Coordinates
1066:Categories
934:Television
916:Newspapers
866:Healthcare
848:Central HS
815:Central HS
616:Industries
316:References
267:94°47′03″W
264:29°21′01″N
57:94°47′03″W
54:29°21′01″N
992:VHF radio
792:Education
755:Geography
604:USS
596:USS
454:Galveston
148:Galveston
134:state of
91:Named for
974:FM radio
956:AM radio
782:West Bay
452:City of
393:June 12,
370:June 12,
221:Proposal
126:and the
108:Location
841:Defunct
810:Ball HS
668:History
606:Stewart
598:Cavalla
556:Old Red
339:July 6,
130:in the
491:(ship)
489:Elissa
82:Locale
1013:Other
1000:KHB40
909:Media
305:TxDOT
156:ferry
136:Texas
982:KOVE
964:KGBC
395:2013
372:2013
341:2024
150:and
118:The
1068::
349:^
332:.
445:e
438:t
431:v
397:.
374:.
343:.
288:.
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