At Ride The Ducks guest safety is paramount.
In business for more than 33 years, Ride The Ducks operates over 90 vehicles and carries more than 1,200,000 guests each year. At
Ride The Ducks Philly, our guests ride through the most historic square mile in America, down "the hippest street in town" - South Street - before splashing down into the Delaware for a fun cruise.
In Ride The Ducks' 33 year history, no one had ever been injured on the water prior to the July 7, 2010 accident in Philadelphia. At the June 21, 2011 National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) hearing regarding the July 7, 2010 accident of a duck boat and barge being pushed by a tug indicated this tragedy could have been avoided if the mate of the tug had been doing his job. The NTSB determined that the mate operating a tugboat near Philadelphia on July 7, 2010, failed to maintain a proper lookout while towing a barge up the Delaware River. The investigation revealed that the mate was inattentive to his duties while navigating the vessel because he was distracted by his repeated use of a cell phone and lap top computer. Further, rather than being in the upper wheel house as expected, the tugboat mate was navigating from its lower wheel house where visibility of the channel ahead was limited.
Also, according to data from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), the commercial passenger vessel industry is the safest transportation industry in the nation and noted Ride The Ducks' commitment to safety, exceeding industry requirements. Since the duck boat accident, RTD has made voluntary improvements including stationing a quick-response boat to immediately assist disabled vessels, plus adding redundant safety equipment on board including a third air horn and second VHF radio. The company also enhanced safety procedures through increased training for RTD personnel.