It is something Kurnell resident Allison Casey has called the "$78 million question".
Since early last year, two grand ferry wharves have sat on picturesque pieces of headland in Sydney's Kamay Botany Bay National Park ready to welcome boats.
But after a cost blowout of tens of millions of dollars, and two failed attempts to attract a private operator, passengers are still waiting.
It has prompted calls for the NSW government to offer a financial sweetener to any company willing to run a ferry service there.
"What a lot of the community is asking for is a government-subsidised, or a government-supported ferry, like the one that runs in Bundeena to the Royal National Park … they [the government] haven't offered that support," Ms Casey said.
"I think that's one of the main reasons why we've got wharves that go to nowhere, essentially."
The Kamay Ferry Wharves officially opened in February 2025 at La Perouse in the city's east and Kurnell in the south — areas of cultural significance to the Kamaygal and Gweagal people.
Kurnell Wharf sits metres from Captain Cook's landing place, and both sides of Kamay/Botany Bay hold history of Europeans' early contact with Aboriginal Australians.
If an operator is found, a ferry trip between the two wharves would take about 20 minutes.
NSW Transport Minister John Graham said the government's latest call for expressions of interest (EOI), which opened earlier this year, had not been a success.
"We got some good information from the market, but we haven't been able to find something that works as a commercial service," he said.
The latest effort followed an earlier failed EOI attempt in 2024.
Exploding costs and promises made
Ferries ran between Kurnell and La Perouse for more than 80 years, but that service was brought to a halt in 1974 when severe storms damaged the original wharves.
Ms Casey said bringing back a ferry connection would make a difference for local tourism.
"It really is the missing piece of the puzzle."
The plan to rebuild the wharves was first announced by the NSW Coalition government in 2018, at a forecast cost of $18 million.
Liberal member for Cronulla, Mark Speakman, said by the time final planning approval was granted in 2023, that figure had grown to $78 million.
"During COVID, costs exploded, including material costs and the engineering costs of building something that would stand rough seas at Kurnell," he said.
"But by that time, we had made the promise to build the wharves."
Ruth Griffiths, a longtime resident of La Perouse's neighbouring Little Bay, was among those who wrote a submission against the wharves in their planning stages.
"There's no reason to go over to the other side from either the north or the south really, other than just for a picnic," she said.
Ms Griffiths said despite recreational vessels also being allowed to use the wharves, she was yet to see anyone taking advantage at La Perouse.
"They say it's great for fishing, but I've never heard anyone say anything else good about it.
"A lot of people aren't against it, but they don't really see any use."
'Beautiful wharves without a concrete plan'
Almost all of the project's value had been locked into contracts by the time Labor unseated the Coalition in the 2023 state election.
With the estimated cost of cancelling at least $46 million, the new government said it had been "left with no option" but to proceed with construction.
"They're remarkable wharves, but it really was beautiful wharves without a concrete plan as we came into government," Mr Graham said.
Action for Public Transport spokesperson Graeme Taylor said he was not surprised the government had been struggling to find an operator.
"It's in a part of Sydney that's not terribly visible for tourists and day trippers, so you would need to promote it heavily," he said.
"The types of fares that a private company would need to charge … might be upwards of eight or nine dollars in each direction, and those sorts of fare levels do discourage patronage."
According to the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal, all private ferry operators in NSW receive some form of subsidy from the state government.
Most are reimbursed the difference if they charge discounted fares for locals, pensioners or students.
Three operators had also recently received a "viability payment", which is designed to keep them figuratively, and literally, afloat.
Mr Taylor noted that buying new ferries to service the Kamay Wharves would likely be out of reach for most companies.
"If you look at the older ferries, they were very simple boats.
"You're not allowed to build like that anymore … the regulations are much stricter around safety, everything has to be alarmed now, [and] you have to have CCTV everywhere," he said.
"It just adds up to an eye-watering cost."
Government needs to step in
The Coalition's original plan had only budgeted for the cost of building the wharves themselves.
But Mr Speakman said the state government now needed to step in.
"There's this massive piece of infrastructure sitting there not being used," he said.
"When $78 million has been spent building the wharves, the quantum of government subsidy to have ferries operating is pretty small."
Ms Casey said despite the lack of ferries for now, the Kamay Wharves had been a "positive addition".
"I know a lot of the community was a bit divided about it, but I love the wharf.
"Having that ferry service run and connecting the sacred Gweagal people, the traditional owners, so the national park can be joined again, would be something that I look forward to seeing."
