The East River Ferry is one of Mayor Bloomberg's greatest legacies, and it continues to be one of the most pleasant ways to cruise between Lower Manhattan, parts of Brooklyn, Long Island City, and, um, Bellevue. But such aquatic convenience comes at a price, which is being further passed along to commuters starting this weekend, when the formerly $4 ticket will increase to a whopping $6 ticket on weekends. And now you have to buy these damn tickets in advance, making it almost impossible to slip onboard as a stowaway.
The East River Ferry started out as a pilot project in 2011, and has been operating with the help of a $3 million taxpayer-funded subsidy. At the end of last year, the Bloomberg administration announced that the program would be extended until at least 2019, issuing this statement:
Ferry service was launched on June 13, 2011, as part of a three-year pilot program to provide year-round, daily ferry service between East 34th Street and Pier 11 in Manhattan, Long Island City in Queens, Greenpoint, North Williamsburg, South Williamsburg, and Brooklyn Bridge Park/DUMBO in Brooklyn, and seasonal weekend service to Governors Island. Fares for passengers will remain $4 for a one-way weekday ticket and $140 for a weekday unlimited monthly pass. Weekend ferry service will be $6 per ride, and all ferries will continue to accommodate bikes on board for an additional dollar.
So apparently we knew about this weekend fare increase back in December. Must have blocked it out. Still sucks, but at least weekdays it's still $4. Anyway, one other bit of news is that the ferry is moving to its spring schedule this weekend, which means that on weekends they’ll be using larger boats that operate on a more frequent (40-minute) schedule. Smorgasburg, here we come.
