Commuting By Sea Proposed

On April 7, Long Beach City Manager Tom Modica recommended to the City Council a Pier-to-Pier Coastal Ferry Program, or PPCFP. It would establish a “blue highway” route with stops in Malibu, Santa Monica, Marina del Rey, Redondo Beach, San Pedro and Long Beach, at Rainbow Harbor and Belmont Pier.

The blue highway would involve the Parks, Recreation and Marine and Public Works departments, in conjunction with regional partners including L.A. Metro and the L.A. County Board of Supervisors.

Long Beach Mayor Rex Richardson said the program has the potential to complement the upcoming 2028 Olympics and have a lasting impact beyond the Games.

“For us to embrace multimodality and be a part of a regional network that can connect coastal cities by ferry, Long Beach should be a major part of this Pier-to-Pier Program discussion, particularly as we think of putting systems in place now and between 2028 that can remain in place for the people who live here well beyond the Olympics,” Richardson said.

“It’s important for Long Beach to play a big role in this effort. Ultimately this is about building a more connected, more sustainable, more resilient and more accessible coastline for Long Beach and across the entire region.”

Patricia Keeney-Maischoss, chairwoman of the LA Pier-to-Pier Initiative, said the program could begin with weekend event routes as soon as June 2026, with daily routes starting in late summer and offering scenic views by sea during transport.

The initial launch of the program would be funded by private investors, with the aim of eventually becoming a public-private partnership. It would be backed by Harbor Breeze Cruises, a local company based in Rainbow Harbor, which would be responsible for day-to-day operations.

“When we are able to use Harbor Breeze catamarans, we can run up to 40 mph, which really beats drive time,” Keeney-Maischoss said. “These are beautiful, 149-passenger catamarans, and we’d be able to travel from Malibu to Santa Monica in less than 30 minutes, which is impossible on PCH, and from Marina del Rey to Long Beach in less than an hour.”

To complement the PPCFP in Long Beach, Cabrillo Marine Aquarium has agreed to provide volunteers to educate passengers about marine life and sustainability. Keeney-Maischoss said she suggested the Cabrillo Marine Aquarium because of its large volunteer base.

Harbor Breeze founder and CEO Dan Salas encouraged the potential ferry program by highlighting its roots in Long Beach and expressing a strong commitment to move forward in advance of the Olympics.

“We’re not going anywhere,” Salas said. “We’re looking forward to the future with not only new vessels by the 2028 Olympics, but electric vessels with zero pollution.”

Despite an optimistic City Council consensus toward the new ferry program, resident Dave Shukla expressed concerns on both local and broader fronts during the public comment session.

“Rex, are you honestly pitching this without an equity lens? I just don’t know if the market is there. Is this really going to relieve congestion? It should connect to public transit,” Shukla said.

“From the perspective of an informed visitor to Long Beach, this region is pinning its hopes on tourist dollars for major events over the next couple of years – why would they come? All these investments are part of a whole economic structure that regional economic development plans and the LA Economic Development Corporation have had three straight five-year plans hoping for these events. What happens if they all go (belly) up?” Shukla said.