The Jacksonville Transportation Authority has announced that the St. Johns River Ferry will be out of service beginning Feb. 5 and ending Feb. 26 due to maintenance required to the vessel.
Also included during the three-week period will be infrastructure improvements taking place along with the maintenance.
The maintenance is not due to a current issue but is preventive in nature and according to the JTA, is expected to achieve increased safety for passengers and extend the life of the vessel.
Updates throughout the project will be available on social media and the MyJTA website and at ferry.jtafla.com.
JTA took over operation of the ferry in 2016, and it offers the transport service for both vehicles and passengers from Mayport Village to Fort George Island, which allows for a direct connect between the north and south ends of Florida State Road A1A in Duval County.
The trip across the St. Johns River is less than a mile in length and travels through the Timucuan Preserve. It takes about five minutes to complete, with a trip taking place every 30 minutes.
The loading docks where the ferry finds port is at 4680 Ocean Street in Atlantic Beach (Mayport Village) and 9618 Heckscher Drive in Jacksonville (Fort George Island).
The closure will cause regular passengers to find an alternative route to get across the river, and the closest option would be traveling the Interstate-295 Beltway which loops around and can get to the other side of the river using the Dames Point Bridge if coming from the southside of the river.
However, the alternative routes will not be as quick as the ferry would have been, and there will be its share of residents that will be relieved to have the convenience of travel that it provides back into the routine of their daily lives.
