A San Francisco startup that launched at the 2021 Palm Beach International Boat Show has announced that it will begin ferrying Stripe employees to work on its flagship N30 six-passenger foiling electric boat from March.
Initially, Navier will make just one of its flagship boats available for the project – which will take workers on a 30-minute trip from Larkspur to the South San Francisco headquarters of the financial services and SaaS multinational, shaving about half an hour off the usual daily commute without adding any polluting fumes to the Bay Area skies.
"Today, 46% of the world's population lives in crowded coastal areas, which continue to struggle with traffic congestion, fossil fuel pollution and a lack of affordable housing options," said Navier co-founder and CEO, Sampriti Bhattacharyya. "Our pilot program demonstrates a clear path forward for these cities to reduce traffic, costs and emissions; connect business hubs with more affordable areas; and unlock the productive potential of millions of workers who would otherwise spend uncounted hours stuck in traffic.
"This pilot program will connect parts of the Bay Area where traditional ferries are not available, cutting commutes that take an hour or more to less than 30 minutes door-to-door – all with no carbon emissions."
The electric boat's dual 90-kW motors to the rear push it to a take-off speed of 16 knots, when it rises above the waves on foils for a smoother passenger experience. The maximum speed is 30 knots, and there's enough battery capacity onboard for up to 100 miles (~160 km) of per-charge range at cruising speed. An "advanced assistive autopilot" is cooked in at the moment, though full autonomous capabilities are expected to follow in future software updates.
The N30 being used for the pilot is the US$550,000 Cabin configuration, and the single boat will be subsequently joined by another five to seven vessels. The company's Mobility wing hopes to expand the ferry service to areas such as Alameda, Berkeley, Emeryville, Oakland and Sausalito in the future, and is already working on a 30-passenger model (something like Candela's P-12 perhaps) that's destined for higher-traffic routes.
"Navier envisions a future where every marina becomes a transportation hub, driving increased opportunity, real estate development and economic activity by transforming waterways into highways," said the company in a press statement.
Source: Navier