Northwest Arm ferry offers Halifax commuters a peaceful way around traffic snarl

Traffic snarl caused by closure of CN Bridge has prompted one man to start a Northwest Arm ferry service.

With all the traffic tie-ups caused by the Quinpool Road bridge closure, a Halifax entrepreneur has launched a new business venture.

The Northwest Arm ferry is now in service and the crossings are running daily on the Arm are designed to give commuters a shorter -- and more peacefull -- trip to work.

For David Backman, growing his business is all about timing.

“The closing of Quinpool Road gave us the opportunity to resurrect this once traditional ferry route,” he said.

The Northwest Arm ferry is a throwback to an old idea.

“There were three ferry routes on the Northwest Arm back in the early 1900s,” said Halifax Regional Coun. Shawn Cleary.

Now this ferry service is back, with crossings in the morning and late afternoon.

“Starting at about 6:30 in the morning we depart the north side of the Dingle Park,” said Backman. “We make trips every 15 minutes.”

Each trip takes six minutes.

Backman is hoping to grow his business to 35 customers daily.

So far he has 30 and this week, ferry customers ride for free.

“This is great for me,” said Melanie Kelly.

He hopes they'll like it and become paying customers in the near future.

“We can accommodate up to four bikes and up to ten passengers,” Backman said.

When he starts charging, it will be $4 per passenger per crossing, a price that Backman says is designed to draw repeat customers hoping to avoid a hectic commute.

“I spend more than 45 minutes on a route that normally would take 15 and most of it is just sitting in traffic,” Kelly said.

The city is not a partner, but Backman is using HRM infrastructure.

“These are public docks that are being used,” Cleary said. “Any member of the public can use them, whether they are private business, canoer, kayaker -- it doesn't matter.”

Backman does have rules to follow.

Transport Canada and the Port Authority have strict shipping and charter boat safety and insurance regulations.

“We sort of oversee the safety of the harbor, so we work with others to ensure that the vessels that use the harbour are following the rules of the harbor,” said Port of Halifax spokesman Lane Farguson.

This also applies to the Northwest Arm, where Backman hopes to grow his new ferry business.

With files from CTV Atlantic’s Paul Hollingsworth.