DC water taxis return March 1, add service to all Nats, DC United home games

WASHINGTON — Potomac Riverboat Company’s fleet of seven water taxis, including four bright yellow high-speed water taxis added last season, will start running on the Potomac River again this year, starting March 1.

The water taxis turned out to be very popular last year.

The company says its water taxis carried almost 300,000 passengers on its routes connecting The Wharf, Navy Yard, Georgetown, National Harbor and Alexandria in 2018.

The taxis are carrying a mix of commuters, recreational locals and tourists.

The Wharf is currently the most popular destination for the water taxis, followed by National Harbor.

New plans for this year have sports fans in mind. The water taxis served some home games for the Washington Nationals with runs to Navy Yard last year. This year, there will be more.

“We have the opportunity to go to every home game, which is great. We’d had a lot of requests for that. And then Audi Field opened in the middle of 2018. We went to a few games last year. So we’ve committed to go to all home games this year at Audi Field,” Potomac Riverboar Company’s Mary Rinaldo said.

Potomac Riverboat Company was acquired by Chicago-based Entertainment Cruises in 2016, which also operates sightseeing cruise ships Odyssey II, Spirit of Washington, Spirit of Mount Vernon and private yachts National Elite and Capital Elite.

It is the nation’s largest dining cruise company, with 48 vessels operating in Chicago, Baltimore, New York, Boston, Philadelphia and Norfolk, Virginia.

D.C. Water taxi rates start at $18 round trip for adults, with unlimited season passes for $199.

Jeff Clabaugh

Jeff Clabaugh has spent 20 years covering the Washington region's economy and financial markets for WTOP as part of a partnership with the Washington Business Journal, and officially joined the WTOP newsroom staff in January 2016.

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