Navibus is a group of water bus routes in the French

France

The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

 city of Nantes

Nantes

Nantes is a city in western France, located on the Loire River, from the Atlantic coast. The city is the 6th largest in France, while its metropolitan area ranks 8th with over 800,000 inhabitants....

, operated as part of the Tan

Semitan

Semitan is the company responsible for the comprehensive public transport network of the Nantes Métropole, the urban community of the French city of Nantes. The network operated by Semitan is marketed under the name and logo of tan, and this abbreviated form is also sometimes used to refer to the...

 urban transit network that also includes bus

Bus

A bus is a road vehicle designed to carry passengers. Buses can have a capacity as high as 300 passengers. The most common type of bus is the single-decker bus, with larger loads carried by double-decker buses and articulated buses, and smaller loads carried by midibuses and minibuses; coaches are...

es and tram

Tram

A tram is a passenger rail vehicle which runs on tracks along public urban streets and also sometimes on separate rights of way. It may also run between cities and/or towns , and/or partially grade separated even in the cities...

s. Routes operate on both the River Loire

Loire

Loire is an administrative department in the east-central part of France occupying the River Loire's upper reaches.-History:Loire was created in 1793 when after just 3½ years the young Rhône-et-Loire department was split into two. This was a response to counter-Revolutionary activities in Lyon...

 and the River Erdre

Erdre

The Erdre is a river in western France, right tributary to the river Loire. Its source is in the Maine-et-Loire département, near La Pouëze. It flows through the départements Maine-et-Loire and Loire-Atlantique. It flows into the river Loire in the city Nantes...

, and accept the full range of standard Tan tickets.

The current services date back to an initial trial service on the River Loire in 2005. Historically, services were operated on the River Loire between 1887 and 1958 by a flotilla of eight steam boats known as roquios.

Navibus routes

Three routes are operated:

• The Navibus Loire that operates along the River Loire from the Gare Maritime, on the north bank close to the city centre and Tramway de Nantes
  Tramway de Nantes
  The Nantes tramway is a tramway system located around the city of Nantes, France. The first tramway in Nantes opened in 1879 and closed in 1958 due to bombing damage during World War II, while the present tramway was re-introduced to the city in 1985....
  
   line 1, to the fishing village of Trentemoult on the south bank of the river. This route is operated throughout the day by a single boat providing a 20 minute interval service, with an additional boat increasing the frequency to 10 minutes during peak periods.

• The Navibus Erdre that operates from the southern entrance to Nantes railway station
  Gare de Nantes
  The Gare de Nantes is the principal passenger railway station serving the French city of Nantes. It is a through station aligned east-west, with entrances and station facilities on both north and south sides...
  
  , through the 800m St Felix canal tunnel to a stop at St Mihiel, immediately adjacent to the stop of the same name on tram line 2, and up the River Erdre to a terminus at the Petit Port/Facultés, close to the campus of the University of Nantes
  University of Nantes
  The University of Nantes is a well-known French university, located in the city of Nantes. Currently, it is attended by approximately 34,000 students. 10% of them are international students coming from 110 countries.-History:...
  
  . This service is operated by a single hybrid diesel electric boat on a 60 minute interval.

• The Navibus Passeur de l'Erdre that crosses the River Erdre from the Petit Port/Facultés to Port Boyer on the opposite bank. This is operated by a single small boat on demand.

Navibus fleet

Five vessels operate, or have operated, on the various Navibus routes.

List of vessels

Vessel	Acquired	Dimensions	Capacity	Notes
Trentemoult	2005	length 17.5m width 4.1m draught 1.1m	80 passengers 5 bicycles	Single deck ferry now in reserve.
Chantenay	2005	length 18.7m width 5.8m draught 1.35m	92 passengers 10 bicycles	Double deck ferry used on the Navibus Loire.
Isle de Nantes	2007	length 18.7m width 5.8m draught 1.35m	92 passengers 10 bicycles	Sister ship to Chantenay also used on the Navibus Loire.
Jules Verne	2005		90 passengers 10 bicycles	Hybrid diesel electric drive single deck ferry used on the Navibus Erdre.
Mouette			12 passengers 5 bicycles	Electric drive single deck ferry used on the Navibus Passeur de l'Erdre.

External links

• Navibus page on Tan web site (in French)