Ferry service between Tampa and St. Petersburg is set to return by the end of the year, this time run by a private, family-owned operator with the help of a federal grant and the Pinellas Suncoast Transit Authority (PSTA).
The previous Cross-Bay Ferry stopped running in April 2025 after its operator wanted to replace its vessel with a slower model. In December, the PSTA board approved a plan to launch a new service, the Tampa Bay Ferry, with Hubbard’s Marina as the operator. Hubbard’s is a Pinellas County fishing and boating company with nearly 100 years of business.
“We’re getting close to the finish line here,” said Tara Hubbard, the company’s director of business development. She said Hubbard’s is now working with the PSTA to launch before the year ends.
A $4.8 million federal grant is funding two ferries to run simultaneously. The vessels, bought from San Francisco and Seattle, are the Bay Clipper, which holds 149 passengers, and the Bay Breeze, which holds 249. The Bay Breeze is being refitted in Tarpon Springs. Hubbard’s and the PSTA are also exploring a third vessel, which Hubbard said would allow new routes and faster service.
Hubbard’s hopes to keep the ticket price at $10, less than the prior service charged. The company says a lower fare should draw more riders, and it wants the ferry to serve commuters as well as casual trips. Hubbard said riders could avoid traffic on Interstate 275 and the Gandy Bridge and save on gas.
“Once we launch, being able to get these boats full and really build this consistency as a reputable transit opportunity. That’s what we’re focused on,” Hubbard said.
The operator’s success will depend on filling those boats. Hubbard said the company wants to “lean into the experience and the customer service” as the private partner. The company also runs a ferry from Fort DeSoto to Egmont Key and Shell Key.
Hubbard called a Tampa-to-St. Petersburg route a decades-long goal of her father and grandfather. “We want to see this waterborne transit stick,” she said.
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