Is It Too Late to Save MV Collaroy?
The remarkable story of Sydney Harbour's last great Freshwater-class ferry.
We all knew this day would eventually come. We just hoped it wouldn't come so soon.
When news broke that MV Collaroy was to be scrapped, most people accepted it as inevitable.
Another ferry. Another government decision. Another piece of Sydney quietly disappearing. But...
Does it really have to end this way? Or is there still time to ask one final question?
Is it too late to save MV Collaroy?
A Newcastle Birth 26 March 1988
Collaroy under construction at Carrington Slipways. Photo: Geoff Eastwood.
Long before she became part of Sydney Harbour's daily rhythm, Collaroy began life hundreds of kilometres north, at Carrington Slipways in Newcastle.
She was the last of the famous Freshwater-class ferries to be built.
By the late 1980s, Sydney already knew and loved Freshwater, Queenscliff and Narrabeen.
Collaroy would become the youngest sister.
Few realised she would also become the most technically advanced.
A Dramatic Launch
There are few moments more exciting in a ship's life than her launch.
Months of steelwork...
Thousands of hours of craftsmanship...
Hundreds of tradespeople...
All leading to one spectacular moment.
Then...
Gravity takes over.
The cradle begins to move.
Thousands watch.
Within seconds...
She meets the water for the very first time.
That moment transformed a construction project into a living vessel.
One that would carry millions of passengers over the next four decades.
The Ferry That Was Different
Every ferry enthusiast knows...
Collaroy wasn't simply another Freshwater.
She was different.
She was the only vessel in the class designed with retractable stabiliser fins, allowing her to operate more comfortably in rougher seas.
She incorporated a number of engineering improvements over her older sisters.
Some praised those innovations.
Others would later argue they became her greatest weakness.
Because those unique systems meant unique parts.
Unique maintenance.
Unique costs.
Ironically...
The very innovations that made Collaroy special may also have contributed to the decision to retire her first.
View the MV Collaroy Collection here:
More Than Steel
But here's the thing.
Nobody fell in love with Collaroy because of her stabilisers.
People loved her because she became part of their lives.
She carried generations of schoolchildren.
She carried office workers.
She carried tourists seeing Sydney for the first time.
She carried first dates.
Wedding guests.
Families heading to Manly Beach.
Children racing upstairs for the best seats.
Visitors standing on the bow with the harbour breeze in their faces.
The Freshwater ferries weren't simply transport.
They were part of Sydney's identity.
We Thought We'd Saved Them
Back in 2021, there was enormous concern about the future of the Freshwater-class ferries.
Like thousands of others, I hoped they would survive.
It was that passion that inspired me to create the very first Lost Manly Ferry Calendar.
Many of you reading this bought one.
In many ways...
That calendar became the beginning of Lost Manly.
For a while...
It felt as though we'd won.
The ferries stayed.
The memories continued.
But time has a habit of catching up with us.
Today...
Transport for NSW has already called for expressions of interest to find Collaroy another future.
Later, it issued a tender for her scrapping.
The process appears well advanced.
But...
There are still questions that remain unanswered.
Questions Worth Asking
Has the contract actually been awarded?
Has physical dismantling begun?
Where is Collaroy today?
If she is still intact...
Could the process be paused?
Could a museum save her?
Could a private operator?
Could she become...
• a floating maritime museum?
• a cultural centre?
• an education vessel?
• a permanently moored heritage attraction?
• something future generations could still climb aboard?
Transport for NSW itself invited proposals for alternative uses.
What happened to them?
Were they financially impossible?
Or were they simply not pursued?
Why This Matters
This article isn't really about a ferry.
It's about what kind of city we want to be.
Every generation inherits remarkable places.
Remarkable buildings.
Remarkable vessels.
Remarkable stories.
The question is...
What do we leave behind for the next generation?
Because once a ferry like Collaroy is cut into pieces...
There is no bringing her back.
Over to You...
I'd love to hear your memories.
Did you commute aboard Collaroy?
Work on her?
Photograph her?
Meet someone special on her?
Do you have photographs tucked away in old albums?
View the MV Collaroy Collection here:
Photo by Haig Gilchrist
Do you think it's too late to save MV Collaroy?
Or is there still one last chapter waiting to be written?
1 comment
Can you keep trying to save her? It would be nice to see her back in the harbour. I have memories of all the old Manly ferry family. I loved going across the heads when it was rough and watching the swell come over the side of them.