Electrified Marina Completes Electric Ferry for the Charles River

Drew Rollert stands with arms crossed on the deck of Just Get On, Wada Hoppah's green-and-white electric ferry, docked on the Charles River.

Drew Rollert stands on Just Get On, the first boat in production from Wada Hoppah

A row of black-and-orange LiTime lithium batteries staged inside a boat hull during the ferry's electric powertrain installation.

LiTime 12V 100Ah lithium batteries staged during the electric powertrain installation aboard Wada Hoppah's Just Get On, part of the battery bank that powers the ferry.

A man smiles and gives thumbs up. There are LiTime batteries visible and they are in a warehouse working on a boat with tools in the background

Electrified Marina lead technician Robert Rubano about to install batteries on Wada Hoppah

Wada Hoppah's electric, wakeless ferry hits the Charles — the first commercial ferry there in 100 years, made possible by Electrified Marina.

Wada Hoppah is pleased to be teaming up with Electrified Marina to bring the next major change in maritime passenger transportation to Massachusetts and by extension, the United States......”

— Drew Rollert

CONCORD, MA, UNITED STATES, August 3, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Electrified Marina, an electric marine propulsion company, has completed the full electric powertrain installation for Just Get On, a 35-foot wakeless passenger ferry built by Massachusetts venture Wada Hoppah. The vessel entered the water in July and is the first commercial ferry to operate on the Charles River in approximately 100 years.

The ferry is currently undergoing systems testing. According to Wada Hoppah, passenger service is planned for Summer 2026, pending permits from the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation for docking access and river operation. When in service, the vessel is designed to carry 20 passengers between Watertown and Beacon Hill in about 40 minutes, at an estimated fare of $12 to $18.

The powertrain installed by Electrified Marina uses two 48-volt Electric Yacht QuietTorque 15.0 LC electric motors. The motors were matched to a custom hull built by Concord boat builder Inriver and designed to draw 14 inches of water to clear the river's shallow sections and to operate without a wake. The wakeless design was a requirement for river approval, as it reduces disturbance to rowing crews and limits shoreline erosion. The vessel runs on battery power alone; other ferries operating in the region use hybrid systems.

The project originated with Wada Hoppah founder Drew Rollert, a software engineer, who developed the concept after identifying an unused century-old public dock on the river. Because the city had long regulated gas motors on the Charles, a conventional ferry serving the dock had not been viable. Rollert spent approximately three years securing approvals from city officials and worked with Inriver over roughly 18 months on the vessel's design and construction. In 2024, the project received a Gussie Award in the category of Electric Commercial Passenger Vessels: In Development.

Rollert selected Electrified Marina to supply and install the electric propulsion system after identifying the company through its work in electric marine propulsion.

"Wada Hoppah is pleased to be teaming up with Electrified Marina to bring the next major change in maritime passenger transportation to Massachusetts and by extension, the United States," said Drew Rollert, Owner and Founder of Wada Hoppah. "No-direct-emission, clean transportation is the future of the maritime community, and critical partnerships like ours play a major part in its success going forward."

The Charles River installation follows Electrified Marina's electric repower of Tempe Boat Cruisin' in Tempe, Arizona. The company works on direct sales, as well as repower projects for vessels of all sizes operating under constraints such as shallow water, wake restrictions, and limits on combustion engines.

"Completing the propulsion system for Just Get On required matching the motors to a hull built for shallow, wakeless operation," said Robert Rubano, Service Tech of Electrified Marina. "It demonstrates that fully electric propulsion is viable for commercial passenger service on waterways where combustion engines are restricted."

Wada Hoppah has described plans to expand the service with additional vessels once the prototype completes testing and marine classification.

Wada Hoppah's "Just Get On," a wakeless electric ferry now undergoing testing on the Charles, uses a powertrain engineered and installed by Electrified Marina. Passenger service is targeted for Summer 2026, pending state permits.

Erick Pinzon Jr
Electrified Marina
+1 804-684-1737
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