East River Ferry Service in Jeopardy—Again
In what can’t be taken as anything but a blow to the already challenging marketing campaigns of the handful of high-end waterfront developments in Brooklyn, New York Water Taxi announced that it might have to stop its East River commuter service for the third time in four years after being unable to come to an…
In what can’t be taken as anything but a blow to the already challenging marketing campaigns of the handful of high-end waterfront developments in Brooklyn, New York Water Taxi announced that it might have to stop its East River commuter service for the third time in four years after being unable to come to an agreement with the city; to make matters worse, EDC announced that plans to create more routes had been tabled by the recession. The news will definitely create problems for those already living on the waterfront. Take Robert Thorne, who lives at Schaefer Landing in South Williamsburg with his family: [The ferry] saves us 35, 40 minutes each way, he said. That’s more time with our daughter. A spokesperson for City Council Speaker Christine Quinn said that she’s confident we will be able to preserve and expand existing service. We shall see.
East River Commuter Ferry Service Could Be Halted, Again [NY Times]
Photo by Tom Hoboken
the L train is overcrowded
Ferry service as another option is a good thing for the neighborhood, and not just for the ugly condo dwellers
there were actually plans to expand service to a pier on the northside not long ago, was looking forward to this.
Thank you for your nomination, Dipster. However, at this point I think I’d rather be a borough president. A lot less pressure to actually produce results… and still get paid $160,000 a year. I could deal with that. I’d probably shout less.
“And a similar cost to go to the Bronx without going through Manhattan — you’d think they’d want to promote avoiding Manhattan if you didn’t need to go there!”
This is a good point. When driving from Queens to the Bronx or from Brooklyn to Staten Island, you pay a bridge toll that subsidizes mass transit, but you can go to the most congested area of Manhattan for free.
The current toll system encourages people going upstate from Brooklyn to travel via Manhattan. BQE often gets worse traffic than the FDR because it permits commercial vehicles. During non-business hours, for example coming back to Brooklyn on a Sunday afternoon, BQE is usually better.
I dunno Tyburg…I think less congested/shorter/less polution to get to Bronx via Manhattan (FDR) than BQE-triboro.
How come Brownstoner didn’t feature the article about bike sharing in Paris that turned into nightmare.
Tybur for mayor – he’d make things more interesting, for sure
You should be able to get between ALL of the boroughs for free… if you are registered as a NYC resident. Staten Island isn’t exactly a public transportation mecca… but it costs you $10 to drive there!
And a similar cost to go to the Bronx without going through Manhattan — you’d think they’d want to promote avoiding Manhattan if you didn’t need to go there!
I’m all for “border” tolls! Nassau –> Brooklyn/Queens and internally toll the hell out of folks that have Penn./SC/NC/Fla. registrations!
sparafucile – you can get to every other boruggh for free from Manhattan, so why not Staten Island?
Winelover – have you been on a JMZ as it crawls across the bridge? – its slower than walking. That alone must add 15 mins to the journey.
Greenpoint went downhill after the closed the ferry in 1932.
If (as they planned) they expanded service to the northside and Greenpoint it would help the bottom line. The water taxi is expensive ($4.50 from Schaefer to Wall Street with a multi-trip discount), but, as someone noted, it’s a hell of a lot nicer than the L train. And a northside/Greenpoint ferry could help people who don’t live in non-luxury who work at NYU Med Center or in the Wall Street area – it’s more expensive, but it’s quicker (particularly to NYU) and easier. If you have to get on a train or a bus to get to/from the ferry, it’s not worth it.
Schaefer – and many other waterfront developments – have used the water taxi as a selling point, and they (either developers or condo boards) should be providing some subsidy too. It certainly won’t help property values at Schaefer if the taxi continues to be a part-time proposition.
And it is easy to see how the water taxi can save 35 to 40 minutes for someone working at NYU medical center. It’s an 8-block hike to walk to the JMZ (10 minutes at least), and getting to First Avenue from public transport is another long walk. The water taxi is one stop, takes 5 or 10 minutes and leaves you about four blocks away from NYU.
There already is ferry service to Sunset Park (Brooklyn Army Terminal) and the Rockaways – both are subsidized.