Locale | New Jersey New York |
---|---|
Waterway | Hudson River East River Upper Bay Lower Bay |
Transit type | passenger ferry excursions sightseeing |
Operator | NY Waterway |
Began operation | December 3, 1986 |
No. of lines | 23 |
No. of vessels | 34 |
No. of terminals | 21 |
Daily ridership | Approximately 30,000[1] |
Owner | Arthur Imperatore |
Website | http://www.nywaterway.com/ NY Waterway |
NY Waterway, or New York Waterway, is a private transportation company running ferry and bus service in the Port of New York and New Jersey and in the Hudson Valley. While operations and much marketing come under the NY Waterway logo, the company works with other private companies and in public-private partnership with agencies such as the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, New Jersey Transit, New York City Department of Transportation, and Metropolitan Transportation Authority, to provide service and maintain docking facilities.[2] In 2009, the fleet included 33 boats, 15 of which are operated by the company for its associate Billybey Ferry.[3]
NY Waterway uses ferry slips at four terminals in Manhattan as well as terminals and slips in Jersey City, Hoboken, Weehawken, and Edgewater, all located along the Hudson River Waterfront Walkway, and at landings on the East River in Brooklyn and Long Island City. Commuter peak service is also provided on the Haverstraw–Ossining Ferry, Newburgh–Beacon Ferry, and to the Raritan Bayshore. Excursions and sightseeing trips [4] include those to Yankee Stadium,[5] Gateway National Recreation Area, and Governor's Island.
Contents |
In 1981 Arthur Edward Imperatore, Sr., a trucking magnate, purchased a 2.5 miles (4.0 km) length of the Weehawken, New Jersey waterfront, where the company is based,[6] from the bankrupt Penn Central for $7.5 million, with the plan to redevelop the brownfield site as had others along the west bank of the Hudson River waterfront and to restore ferry service to it. In 1986 he established New York Waterway,[1] with a route across the river between Weehawken Port Imperial and Pier 78 on the West Side of Midtown Manhattan. Three years later, it began operation between Hoboken Terminal and Battery Park City.[7][8] During the course of the next decade numerous routes across the Hudson were added.[9] In February 2011 it was contracted to operate a route calling at slips in Brooklyn and Queens as well as the East River terminals.[10] Subsidized by the City of New York, the service was originally intended for commuters, but after a few months became popular with weekend users and tourists.[11]
The September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center destroyed the PATH terminal located there, greatly reducing cross-Hudson River passenger capacity. To compensate, NY Waterway service quickly expanded by adding new routes and increasing the frequency of crossings. It borrowed heavily to fund the acquisition of additional vessels. After PATH service was restored ridership significantly declined, the loss of passengers bringing the company, unable to reduce its fixed costs, to brink of bankruptcy. By December 2004, there was deep concern that there would be a total shutdown of ferry service, disrupting the commutes of 30,000 daily riders.[12] The Port Authority, as well as city and state agencies had already contracted the construction of new ferry terminals to be leased to private operators. The shutdown was averted when the new BillyBey Ferry Company LLC which had never before operated ferry services, founded by Manhattan lawyer William B. Wachtel, agreed to take over almost half of NY Waterway's equipment and routes. Other ferry and sightseeing boat operators were displeased that the Port Authority approved the transfer without a transparent bidding process.[13]
NY Waterway has played a role in a number of rescue and emergency operations.[14] In the immediate after effects of September 11, 2001 attacks, the company was instrumental in the evacuation of passengers who otherwise would have been stranded[15] in Manhattan due to the chaos created in the mass transit system. Ferry service also played a important role during the Northeast Blackout of 2003, enabling people to make the river crossing since normal service on New Jersey Transit and Port Authority Trans Hudson trains was temporarily discontinued due to power outages. During the 2005 New York City transit strike it provided alternative transportation. In 2009, the company was instrumental in the rescue of passengers of US Airways Flight 1549, which made an emergency landing on the Hudson River.[16] The firm gained media attention both for its efforts to rescue passengers from airplane and for its hiring of 20 year-old Brittany Catanzaro as captain. Thanks in a large part to the successful efforts of Captains Vincent Lombardi and Catanzaro, together with their crews, all aboard were rescued.
Route | Transfers | |
---|---|---|
West Midtown Ferry Terminal[17] West Side Highway at West 39th Street Hudson River Park-Midtown Manhattan |
NY Waterway buses[18][19] New York City Transit buses M42 and M50 |
|
To | Notes | |
Edgewater Landing | peak service | New Jersey Transit buses NY Waterway buses |
Weehawken Port Imperial[21] Weehawken |
full service | Hudson Bergen Light Rail New Jersey Transit NY Waterway buses |
Lincoln Harbor | residents and guests only | |
14th Street[23] Hoboken |
via Lincoln Harbor off-peak | New Jersey Transit bus |
Pavonia-Newport[24] Jersey City |
peak service | |
Paulus Hook Ferry Terminal[25] Jersey City |
peak service | PATH Hudson Bergen Light Rail New Jersey Transit bus New York Waterway shuttle |
Belford Harbor[26] Raritan Bayshore, Monmouth County |
limited peak service | via The Narrows & Upper Bay |
Route | Transfers | |
---|---|---|
Battery Park City Ferry Terminal[27][28]
[29][30][31] |
Liberty Water Taxi SeaStreak[33] |
|
To | Notes | |
Weehawken Port Imperial[34] Weehawken |
full service | Hudson Bergen Light Rail New Jersey Transit bus NY Waterway buses |
14th Street [35] Hoboken |
peak service | New Jersey Transit bus |
Hoboken Terminal[36] Hoboken |
full service | Port Authority Trans Hudson Hudson Bergen Light Rail NJT & MTA rail Hudson Place bus terminal |
Paulus Hook Ferry Terminal[37] Exchange Place, Paulus Hook, Jersey City |
peak service | PATH Hudson Bergen Light Rail New Jersey Transit bus New York Waterway shuttle |
Liberty Harbor[38] Marin Boulevard, Paulus Hook, Jersey City |
full service | Hudson Bergen Light Rail |
Belford Harbor[39] Raritan Bayshore, Monmouth County |
peak service | via The Narrows & Upper Bay |
Route | Transfers | |
---|---|---|
Pier 11 at Wall Street[40] South Street at Gouverneur Lane |
SeaStreak New York Beach Ferry |
|
To | Notes | |
Weehawken Port Imperial[41] Weehawken |
Hudson Bergen Light Rail New Jersey Transit NY Waterway buses |
|
Hoboken Terminal[42] Hoboken |
New Jersey Transit bus |
|
Paulus Hook Ferry Terminal[43] Jersey City |
rush hour service | PATH Exchange Place Hudson Bergen Light Rail New Jersey Transit bus NY Waterway shuttle |
Port Liberte[44] Jersey City |
AM peak & aft/eve service | New Jersey Transit bus |
Belford Harbor[26] Raritan Bayshore, Monmouth County |
peak service | via The Narrows & Upper Bay |
Service operates in both directions with year-round service running every 20 minutes. Peak service runs every 20 minutes, off-peak service runs every 30 minutes during the summer (April-Oct) and hourly during the winter.[45][46]
Route | Transfers |
---|---|
East 34th Street Ferry Landing FDR Drive/34th Street, Manhattan |
SeaStreak NY Waterway Bus[47] |
Hunters Point-Long Island City Queens |
Long Island City (LIRR station) |
Greenpoint India Street, Brooklyn |
|
North Williamsburg North Sixth Street, Brooklyn |
|
South Williamsburg Schaefer Landing, Brooklyn |
|
Fulton Ferry Landing Fulton Street, Brooklyn |
New York Water Taxi |
Pier 11 at Wall Street South Street, Manhattan |
New York Waterway SeaStreak New York Beach Ferry |
Route | Notes |
---|---|
Belford Harbor[48] Raritan Bayshore -Middletown-Monmuth County |
limited peak service via The Narrows & Upper Bay calling at Wall Street, Battery Park City Ferry Terminal, & Paulus Hook Ferry Terminal |
- | |
West Midtown Ferry Terminal[49] |
Route | Transfer |
---|---|
Haverstraw–Ossining Ferry peak service |
Metro-North Railroad-Hudson Line Bee-Line Bus System |
Newburgh–Beacon Ferry peak service |
Metro-North Railroad-Hudson Line Dutchess County LOOP |