Sunset-Ridge Waterfront Alliance

Brooklyn — Leading up to today’s vote on Mayor Bloomberg’s congestion pricing plan, one City official has some harsh words for the Traffic Congestion Mitigation Commission. Council Member Vincent J. Gentile (D-Brooklyn), along with elected officials, community board members and water taxi riders rallied today at the Brooklyn Army Terminal to denounce the City’s continued failure to prioritizing ferry service as a major transportation option throughout the city.

On Thursday, January 31, 2008, Council Member Vincent J. Gentile (D-Brooklyn), along with community members, elected officials and water taxi riders, will rally at the Brooklyn Army Terminal to denounce the City’s continued silence on prioritizing ferry service as a major transportation option throughout the city.

Given the latest developments, the Councilman has renewed his appeal to the city to expand subsidies to private operators, stating that rising fuel costs, inadequate infrastructure, and inaccessibility have contributed to the demise of the Sunset Park ferry service.

[Source: Times Ledger]

Although politicians may not always be able to walk on water, two city councilmen are trying to increase funding so you can commute on it.

Councilman Eric Gioia (D-Sunnyside) and Councilman David Yassky (D-Brooklyn) called on the city to increase funding for and awareness of the New York City Water Taxi service that runs between Manhattan and Brooklyn and Queens at a news conference Saturday in Williamsburg.

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The Sunset Ridge Waterfront Alliance, a Brooklyn-based advocate group, praised Gioia and Yassky for taking the initiative. The group said government subsidies would not only lower the $5 one-way fare for the water taxis, it would save the city millions in eased congestion.

“The taxis are greener for the city, because they get people off the roads and on the water. This initiative has bipartisan support,” said Heather McGown, the founder of the alliance.

East River Service will Shut Down for Winter Without Intervention

In a blow for Brooklyn and Queens waterfront residents, New York Water Taxi’s East River service will be suspended for the winter months due to insufficient revenue. Councilmembers David Yassky (D-Brooklyn) and Eric Gioia (D-Queens) are calling for the city to step in to provide ferry service as an alternate to other mass transit.

[Source: The Brooklyn Paper]

The prospects for a ferry from the 69th Street pier to the Financial District are in a holding pattern, but it was full-speed-ahead on Tuesday as proponents of the service invited passengers on board for a successful dry-run.

Organized by local activists Heather McCown, Adam Wasserman, and Peter Killen, the 20-minute ride from Bay Ridge to Lower Manhattan went off without a hitch.

[Source: Brooklyn Daily Eagle]

BAY RIDGE — It took 15 minutes for a ferry at a 25 mph clip to travel from off the 69th Street Pier in Bay Ridge to the Wall Street Pier 11 on Tuesday afternoon.

The “let’s root and toot for the ferry” test run with a waterborne lunch pep talk served as a preview of what many ferry advocates hope will be the wave of the near-future for Bay Ridge commuters, perhaps as early as this coming spring.

[Source: The Brooklyn Paper]

One resident’s against-the-tide crusade to return ferry service to the 69th Street pier may finally be hitting smoother waters.

On Oct. 1, transportation activist Heather McCown sent Mayor Bloomberg a 1,400-signature petition that demanded a ferry from the 69th Street pier to Lower Manhattan — and last Wednesday, the mayor’s office responded with a message of its own: Give us eight weeks.

The Department of Transportation told McCown that a final decision would be made “by the end of December, 2007.”

The history of ferry service in Brooklyn, NY dates back to 1643. In the article from the Brooklyn Daily Eagle, Monday July 18, 1870, the first ferry service and ferryman are discussed. Prior to the roadway and bridge infrastructure being built to connect Brooklyn and Manhattan, the waterways were the primary source of […]