East River Ferry Service Extended to 2019

Mayor Bloomberg announced that the East River Ferry, which connects Long Island City to the Brooklyn Waterfront, Lower Manhattan, and Midtown Manhattan, will run until 2019. This is a five-year extension to the pilot project subsidized by the city, which launched in June 2011 and was set to end in June 2014. Crain’s reports that the fares for weekend service will increase to $6 from $4, and winter weekend service will decrease.

Mayor Bloomberg announced on Friday that ferry ridership has tripled since 2011. And Senator Gianaris released this statement regarding the news: “The extension of East River Ferry service through 2019 is welcome news for western Queens, an area in dire need of better mass transit due to woefully inadequate service on the 7 subway line. Hopefully, this step in the right direction will lead to continued attention to the mass transit needs of the growing community of Long Island City.”

East River Ferry Service Extended Until 2019 [Crain’s]

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