A reaction ferry is a cable ferry that uses the reaction of the current of a river against a fixed tether to propel the vessel across the water. Such ferries operate faster and more effectively in rivers with strong currents.
Reaction ferry crossing the Rhine at Basel, Switzerland
The Lytton Ferry across the Fraser River in British Columbia, Canada, is a reaction ferry using an overhead cable and traveller, visible in the upper right corner.
The Aken Ferry, Germany
The Westerhüsen Ferry across the Elbe in Germany is a reaction ferry using a floating cable attached to a mid-channel anchorage, to the right of the boat.
A cable ferry is a ferry that is guided across a river or large body of water by cables connected to both shores. Early cable ferries often used either rope or steel chains, with the latter resulting in the alternative name of chain ferry. Both of these were largely replaced by wire cable by the late 19th century.
Coin-operated cable ferry at Espevær in Bømlo, Norway
Chain-pulling engine of a small ferry on Berounka river near Prague, Czech Republic
Cable ferry in Vaxholm, Sweden
Winding mechanism on the Sackville Ferry in New South Wales, Australia