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Mayor Michael Bloomberg and City Council Speaker Christine Quinn announced Monday that on May 12 a new ferry service will be operating between the Rockaways and Lower Manhattan with a stop in Sunset Park, with expanded ferry service operating in North Brooklyn and Long Island City to follow this summer.
“As our waterfront becomes even more dynamic, with new housing and open space in communities like Greenpoint, Williamsburg, and Hunters Point, ferries are going to become an even bigger part of our city’s transportation network,” said Bloomberg at the Brooklyn Army Terminal, where the new ferry will be stopping in Brooklyn.
The Rockaway service is a two-year pilot program funded with $1.1 million allocated by Queens councilman Joseph Addabbo. New York Water Taxi will operate the service, which will run from Riis Landing to Pier 11 in Lower Manhattan with the stop in Sunset Park. A one-way trip will cost $6.
The mayor and speaker also announced that coming this July, New York Water Taxi will restore service to Long island City and South Williamsburg, connecting the two neighborhoods to Pier 11 and 34th Street in Manhattan. In Brooklyn, the water taxi will be landing at a new $1.25 million, city-funded facility at Schaefer Landing.
But that is just part of the city’s plan to expand ferry service across the five boroughs. The City Council has also allocated $500,000 to fund a comprehensive study to find even more sites suitable for ferries. Those could include LaGuardia Airport and Astoria in Queens, as well as Bay Ridge and Sheepshead Bay in Brooklyn.
Meanwhile, money has already been allocated to fund the construction of ferry landings in Greenpoint and North Williamsburg, as well as a dock on Roosevelt Island.
“Everyone knows the subways are stretched,” said North Brooklyn councilman David Yassky. “The fastest, least expensive way to expand our mass transit network is to take advantage of the waterways.”
The Department of Transportation (DOT) is also working with the MTA to link ferry and bus service.
“Expanding ferry service is a tremendous step toward improving mobility and greening up our city’s transit network, and we are making sure that this change doesn’t end at the ferry landing,” said DOT commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan.
Roland Lewis, president of the Metropolitan Waterfront Alliance, praised the city’s initiative at creating a citywide ferry service, as well as its efforts to keep it affordable.
“By setting the water transit fare equal to an express bus fare,” said Lewis, this truly will make ferries an attractive option for many people, and at the same time help relieve stress on our already crowded transit systems and congested roads.”
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