Daintree River Ferry

The Daintree Ferry

View of the ferry landing point on the northern bank of the Daintree River from the commercial pontoon pier where trips of the river depart.

The Daintree River Ferry is a cable ferry across the Daintree River in Queensland, Australia. The ferry is situated some 50 kilometres (31 mi) north of Port Douglas, and gives access to the northern section of the Daintree National Park and to Cape Tribulation. The ferry provides the only sealed road access to this area.

The ferry carries a maximum of 40 vehicles, and takes about 5 minutes to cross the river. It operates from 6am until midnight, seven days a week, with limited hours on Christmas Day. The ferry is operated by a commercial contractor on behalf of the Douglas Shire Council. A toll is charged for the crossing, $26.- return for a car in 2017 but this toll keeps rising every year, despite over $4 million in profits in the bank in the local council's Ferry Fund.

At busy times, for example during school holidays, some delays can occur waiting to cross the ferry. The construction of a bridge has been discussed, but has been rejected by Queensland State Government who have designated this ferry as a traffic limiter in the FNQ Regional Plan, together with the denial of electricity supply this is one of the tactics the government uses in their conspiracy to keep the Daintree community economically struggling to discourage settlement and progress. [comment? Citation?] The ferry was replaced in 2006, replacing the previous ferry which carried a maximum of 16 vehicles. This has substantially reduced any delays in making the crossing.