Cable ferry
In Germany, several river crossings were originally reaction ferries and later kept a wire rope for holding position but introduced a chain for propulsion.
In 1831 James Meadows Rendel introduced chain ferries worked by steam and in 1832 constructed one crossing the Dart at Dartmouth.
A small seasonal reaction ferry carries cars across the Rivière des Prairies from Laval, Quebec (Sainte-Dorothée neighbourhood) to Île Bizard (part of Montreal).
A suspended cable ferry for railway cars crossed the American River in Northern California.
Most of the road crossings of the Murray River in South Australia are cable ferries operated by the state government using diesel engines.
[6][7] The longest cable ferry link is MV Baynes Sound Connector south of Courtenay, British Columbia, Canada with a length of 1961.48 metres.
[8] The energy needed for operating cable ferries is in general especially small, as the crossing distances are mostly short, the speeds low, and there is almost no maneuvering.
The former cable ferry at Malgas in South Africa even carried several cars, pulled by a couple of men at a slow walking speed.
The motor ferry "Luise" on the Wannsee near Berlin, of similar tonnage, size and construction, has 290 kW installed.
Also in deep water with heavy chains or long cables not lying on the ground, large tension forces with corresponding friction are created.
The world's longest cable crossing, nearly 2 km with the 750 t MV Baynes Sound Connector uses three wire ropes pretensioned with 200 kN.
In spite of careful planning, the expected large energy savings compared to the former free ferry are not realised, also due to fouling and a speed of 8.5 knots.
In order to set off, manual work is required to initially pull the cable and also to maneuver, as described in the referenced video.
[10] Another hybrid seems to be the cable ferry at Sendelingsdrift with adjustable tethers to a high wire rope and also two outboard motors.
As they are also easy to see, the risk to other navigation is usually minimal, as is evident with the 6 or so chain ferries in southern England operating in waters with heavy shipping.
Wire ropes are lighter than chains of the same strength and may be operated under strong tension, both giving rise to shallow catenaries which may be difficult to judge or even see.
