BY PAUL LIOTTA | An improved and expanded ferry system will soon be available to help New Yorkers get around town.
At his State of the City address, Mayor de Blasio, announced plans to begin five new ferry services that will bring New York closer together.
The mayor sees the project as another step in his fight against the “Tale of Two Cities.” He believes that the new ferries will allow New Yorkers in mass transit-deprived and far-off communities more economic opportunity.
“For years the conventional wisdom has been that certain neighborhoods are doomed to isolation because of their geography,” the mayor said. “Residents of the Rockaways and Red Hook and Soudview will now be closer to the opportunities they need.”
The first three ferry routes will set sail in 2017 — from Rockaway, South Brooklyn and Astoria. In 2018, two more ferry routes will be launched — from Soundview in the Bronx and the Lower East Side.
All the new service will be knitted into the existing East River Ferry, which connects Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens, and will be run and funded by the city.
De Blasio said the ferry rides would be affordable, costing the same amount as a MetroCard swipe.
The Lower East Side ferry, which would arrive in 2018, would feature a stop at Grand St. From there, passengers could ride the waves one stop to Wall St./Pier 11, from where they could be whisked to points all over the city.
All ferries will run through Pier 11, and by 2018 New Yorkers could go from Soudview to Rockaway entirely by water.
City Councilmember Margaret Chin praised the plan to increase the access to transportation.
“My local elected colleagues and I have advocated for a Grand St. ferry stop because we know it will create a much-needed transit connection for Lower East Side residents,” Chin said.
In addition to Grand St. and Wall St./Pier 11, the East Side route will also feature stops at E. 23rd and E. 34th Sts.
The Grand St. ferry stop would link commuters with a variety of other transportation options and would be located at an already-existing dock.
Three buses stop at the planned Lower East Side ferry dock. The crosstown M21 and M14A stop there, as well as the M22 to Battery Park City.
The mayor also proposed a new ferry service that would travel from Coney Island to Wall St./Pier 11 and feature a stop in Staten Island. That ferry has not yet been approved.
To ensure that the new citywide ferry system stays afloat financially, the mayor announced that it would receive a $55 million subsidy from the city.
