East River Ferry Service (Finally?)

Great use of subsidies ... boat to nowhere.

I assume you're being facetious... I think the odds are heavily in favor of this being successful.

And why is that? Many-stopped (slow, arduous boat stops) travel between low-density areas and a remote, inaccessible slip in a part of Manhattan that nobody goes to except to sojourn at Bellevue??? I don't get it.

Or is the lateral travel between India Neck and N. 5th St. that's supposed to draw the traffic?

The defuncto Rockaway-Wall St. ferry made more sense.

Read Ward's post. If you need to travel from 34th St to Wall St, then yes, that is slower and more "arduous" (I have to admit, I've never heard of a short boat ride being "arduous" - cross-Atlantic treks on the Pinta or the Santa Maria, more likely) than taking the train. And despite your disdain for the outer boroughs, I would hardly describe some of these stops (especially North 5th) as "low-density." As for the "remote, inaccessible slip in a part of Manhattan that nobody goes to," you must have missed the part about the free shuttle bus that will go to such barren wastelands as Bryant Park, Rockefeller Center, and this Grand Central thing.

no more ny water taxi in lic?
no more cheeseball beach?

now that's heartbreaking, alison

Oh, perfect ... a half-hour (on a good day) crosstown commute once you disembark.

Hey, let's not exaggerate or anything! Sorry you feel this is a waste - plenty of commuters will disagree. Amazing how more transportation options can be spun as a bad thing.

this post will live on based on it's idiotic premise

here we go!!!

"the very few who live on the blyn waterfront, nearby the stops??--and then also happen to work in the nomansland that is far east 34th st??"

You haven't been there in a while, I take it. It's a lot of people, and there will be more. This is just good planning and (finally) some execution. And you conveniently left out the commute to the financial district, a veritable No Man's Land in its own right I hear.

my skateboard spins better as a transportation option than this laughable scheme

At least nobody's used the "L" word yet ... so no need for poetry.

W, always bringing good cheer and pure verbal nonsense wherever your little web browser takes you!

"it's idiotic premise"

Unintentional funny. Always the best.

you're quite right sb "its"--apostrophe only in conjunctive in theis case

duhh--there are some commuting workers who live nearby the ferry stops--but what are the chances they will work anywhere near enough to far-east 34th st to make it a better option than existing subway lines??

your cheerleading and attempts to make this about a runin (with me this time) don't make this an intelligent concept or premise for a thread--

shit ahoy!!!!

"duhh--there are some commuting workers who live nearby the ferry stops--but what are the chances they will work anywhere near enough to far-east 34th st to make it a better option than existing subway lines??"

Again, you're apparently not reading the link I posted. This isn't just for midtown commuters (not just midtown east either - again, read the thing); it's for downtown commuters as well. As someone who works downtown, I can tell you this is a good and needed development.

"your cheerleading and attempts to make this about a runin (with me this time) don't make this an intelligent concept or premise for a thread--"

Cheerleading? I think this is a good idea; you disagree; so suddenly, it's cheerleading? Obviously this won't solve all transportation issues and there are certainly questions about it, but for you to just come on this thread and declare this "a harebrained shitforbrains scheme" without even understanding the whole thing is pretty poor. And if you want to be the judge of what makes for "an intelligent concept or premise for a thread," go nuts, but don't exactly count on anyone else valuing your "opinions."

hey--the ferry serves all of manhattan--just get a cab once you set foot on the island

oh, and get a cab to the dock in blyn

youre nor kidding....really?

W, sorry, can you explain what you mean? That was indecipherable.

Best way to save Atlantic City, ferry services to AC. Even have slot machines onboard if traveling 3 miles out. Donald could revitalize the Trump Marina....no brainer.

truthskr: Not a bad idea, and certainly one that The Donald has thought about before.
Now may be the time, when Chris Christie will allow that to happen.

bjw: I know many people in that area of Brooklyn who are all happy to hear of the ferry service plan. In Manhattan,just being able to take the ferry to see the music available in Williamsburg would be better than cabbing it, or subwaying it. Take the ferry to W'Burg. Have a nice pre-concert dinner. Cab back to Manhattan after.
You stood your ground very well, in the midst of a gang pile-on, bjw.

Hi, Truth.

it'll be interesting to see how long this can last; most of Williamsburg is dealing with a two train commute as it is, so having to hop on a bus isn't the end of the world; that being said, NYC doesn't deal with ferry service well..

juuce, agreed - ferries have a bad rep here, but the frequent service (including weekends), subsidies, and the fact that NY Water Taxi is no longer involved are all causes for optimism, I think. I'm guessing Williamsburg residents who work in midtown will continue to opt for the M since it's direct, but commuters who live in Greenpoint or LIC may well consider it.

Truth, not hard to do when the people in question can't seem to be bothered actually reading the link. Ward Dennis (the blogger in question, who is chair of the land use committee for CB1) is pretty knowledgeable about these things and quite honest about the pros and cons. But hey, for some people, more transportation is "idiotic." Go figure.

Service will start June 13: http://brooklyn11211.com/2011/05/waterway-june-13/

so if you get on at n6 and want to go anywhere in manhattan , does this save you time?

Only if you're going to the Financial District or Murray Hill areas. Possibly some surrounding neighborhoods as well, but tough to know without testing out commute times. Will also save time going to Dumbo, Brooklyn Heights, and yes, even Governor's Island.

shit ahoy!!

what moron authorized subsidies for this idiocy??

ok so this was designed to help out travel within brooklyn...that makes sense. If I lived at the edge / nsp , Id be lobbying for some sort of high frequency service from there striaight to 34 or something.

I read that it will also go to LIC once they design a triple hull to deal with the pollution corrosion.

marco, it helps travel to both Brooklyn and Manhattan. There are only so many Manhattan destinations that make sense though. They're not throwing in Washington Heights for a ferry ride, for example. I mean, it's called the East River Ferry for a reason.

Bottoms, can't wait for you to test out that skateboard over the East River. That'll be fun to watch.

No, this was designed to help out the operator of the ferry service, who undoubtedly helped out many other people. I'm always happy when people help other people.

People helping people. It's powerful stuff.

It's how zillionaires are made.

bjw: It's a good thing: the ferry.

Look who you are trying to have a discussion with. Almost the entire bully gang.
(Except for marco, thruthskr and juuceman; who aren't trolls, aren't bully gang members.)

Truth, I know it's a good thing. It's kinda fun watching people convince themselves that more public transportation is "moronic." And bottoms has never denied his rampant trolling, so I don't fault him for being who he is.

It's not public transportation. It's just transfer of public money to a private transportation company.

Nobody will ride it because it will turn a half-hour commute into a 90-minute commute. Nobody.

It is what it is with the bully gang member trolls.
They aren't forcing me off of se, and they sure aren't forcing you.

A pathetic bunch of do-nothings. Except for trolling and disrupting discussions on se.

alan, sorry you feel that way. You do know the subways started out private as well, right? I am also pretty certain that my current 35-minute commute will be shorter when I use this ferry. And based on Ward's post, as well as the comments on Brownstoner, 'spretty clear somebodies will be using this thing.

For it to really work long-term though, there's no doubt they have to incorporate Metrocard use.

bjw2103, Truth just wants to throw herself in front of the Brownfields Ferry and get good injuries so she can initiate another meritless lawsuit.

Otherwise, even she with her limited faculties realizes the insignificance of the new ferry route. Even before they cut the number of rides per hour, which will take about 6 weeks.

alan, come on, such whinging and pessimism. Where are we, London?

alanasswipehart. Again.

So, to recap: if you agree with Truth, you aren't "bully gang members." If you disagree with Truth, you are part of the "bully gang" and "pathetic bunch of do-nothings." I actually don't like bullies, try to do "something" every day, although it is not generally too worthwhile, and am trying to be less "pathetic," so please change my moniker to "nattering nabob of negativism." Or "Keith." Thanks much (and I love the force of your logic in responding to comments).

Have another drink, ar/MidtownerEast.
If somebody doesn't agree with you, you call on your slaves.
They are on here, on attack; within minutes.

An alkie slob, lecturing about "the force of logic in responding to comments". LOL!

nasty, spiteful, psychotic bitch.

sweet dreams, "truth"

Talking about yourself again, ar?
Have another drink, you slob.

go shoot up with some of your friends, truth.

Oh, the alkie slob is on her way to another se meltdown.

She'll be on here, long after I'm off of this thread.

8:20 pm. The rest of you on se will have the pleasure of her drunken "comments".

yawn.

Truth's mangled syntax, random use of semicolons and LOL! seemed very familiar, then it dawned on me. She's channeling mutombo. But it's like a really angry, off-his-meds mutombo. Rich and compelling.

She, Sir, is no mutombo.

>MidtownerEast
about 2 hours ago
ignore this person
report abuse Truth's mangled syntax

Midtowner - I'm curious, you have no actual beef with Truth, and alanhart and columbiacounty don't like you, so what's your angle here?

Midtowner, mutombo was great with Denver and Atlanta, I have to say.

bj, you just wont let it rest with mutumbo, will you

maybe that your blather elicits nil response has you yearning for attention??

Bottoms, not sure what you find so offensive in a little bball talk. You're a bit testy of late - what happened? Don't worry, I'll sign your poster soon enough.

Wasn't Wbottom trying to insult Primer until he asked if Wb. wanted to go out to various places here in the city and see the work that he does?
No response. Primer asked again.
No response.

Wbottom commenting on your "blather", bjw.
Doesn't like my syntax, my LOL! bothers Wbottom.

Back to "troosh/doosh"...Wbottom goes.

You're "LOL!" *is* really bothersome. Facts is facts. ICD!

Bjw -- I got the Dikembe reference, but I'm not sure Mutombo would.

Truth -- LOL! (And Keith!)

Midtowner, I'm not sure bottoms got it either.

The bully gang-members are also racists.
They think that Mutombo is an ignorant immigrant.

They don't like my "LOL!".
They think that what's happening in Joplin is funny.

>Midtowner, I'm not sure bottoms got it either.

You mean MidtownerVirgin and Wbuttocks?
Hate to break it to you ... same person.

The service is free until June 24th. Took it this morning - was great, fast, and they even served free coffee (not sure that'll always be the case though).

your ferry could've sunk like a stone and you'd still be cheerleading, swimming your way through the spuyten duyvil clinging to a flotation device

i credit you to persistence with which you deliver your.......

Yes, bottoms, you paranoid ninny - you've figured it out! NY Waterway is paying me $3k per post here. You really are the queen of runins.

Bottoms just seems to be a very sad SOB - I vote to rename him BitterBottom

Right or wrong, bitter notwithstanding, Wbottom is nearly right, but missed the fact that first bjw2103 will happily ride the waves through the East River's well-named Hell's Gate gleefully extolling the virtues of a temporary taxpayer moneypit.

Taxpayer moneypit? Why, because you don't care for the service? By that same token (pun), the entire MTA is a taxpayer moneypit, no? Easy for you to knock it while blatantly ignoring the benefits, but hey, the ridership will speak to that in due time. As long as the execution is there, I don't see this failing.

Virtually the entire MTA has extraordinarily high ridership, exceeding in the middle of the night the ridership of most US cities' mass transit systems at rush hour. The East River folly will necessarily be have low ridership.

How crowded was your free ride this morning? Where did you go, and how long did it take you door-to-door? I thought so.

Bit presumptuous, huh alan? There were 30+ on my ride. Went from North 6th to Wall St. Door-to-door 20 mins.

30 passengers?? wow i wonder what the actual cost per passenger is

door to door 20 minutes? was it a cigarette boat? and did you jump in from your apt window as it flew by?

did you have a siren-equipped chauffeur meet you at the wall st dock? or maybe your office is right there, on the very dock?

did they skip the schaeffer landing stop? and the DUMBO stop? or do they do the jump-in-the-boat-while-it's-moving trick there too?

cheers!!

Where have I been? This thread; is funny, LOL!

Truth,

I've never noticed you LOL'ing.

Bottoms, I know, it's so hard for your brain to believe that there's no way it can possibly be true, right? No stops were skipped and yes, my office is quite close to Pier 11. As for the passenger count, it was after 9am on the first day of service. So yeah, let's just write the whole thing off as a bad idea. Brilliant! Bottoms, your powers of thought never cease to impress.

Think I'm going to ride the ferry while it's free.

I'm sure ridership will increse when they start charging...will it allow one to board a bus or the subway at either end using metrocard, with no add'l charge?

It has a very luxurious crew-to-passenger ratio ... sure to give Silversea a run for its money.

Fact is, bottoms, you have no idea. Just spouting off in your usual run-in style. There is a free bus transfer at 34th St, which stops at Bryant Park, Rockefeller, and Grand Central.

oh...so once one gets off the bus at grand central, after, what, another 3 minutes or so, and can finally board a subway, will the damned metrocard work without additonal payment??

No, and if you'd actually read this thread instead of just whining over and over again, you'd have known that. I completely agree full Metrocard integration is a necessary step to insure the long-term success of this thing.

I hate the way the Eastern shuttle doesn't have full Metrocard integration. Just like the Cyclone. It's a necessary step to insure the long-term success of those things.

http://www.dnainfo.com/20110613/murray-hill-gramercy/east-river-ferry-service-makes-waves/slideshow/popup/81869

The ferry kind of looks like the SS Minnow. Plus, the Howard Stringer slide shows that he is employing Al Franken's younger brother as an aide.

Scott Stringer, sorry. Howard worked at CBS?

Midtowner, great call - he's a dead ringer.

For the haters - just took a packed ferry ride home. Door-to-door: 33 mins, which included a nearly 15 minute wait at the pier (had just missed the last one). Public transportation really is a crummy idea.

hey! midtownhooker lives! phew, who says pimps lack compassion.

mutombo: You've never noticed because when you and I LOL nobody else has a complaint about it except the bully gang members.

bjw: It's good for you and you're one of the people who need it and so far, are happy with it.

Truth,

MoldtownerEast, is an affiliate of the BGM?

He's an affiliate of the bully gang members.

Let's LOL! mutombo.
It upsets them that we aren't miserable like they are.

Truth,

OMG, I don't know MoldtownerEast, LOL, but he's an erudite. I was LOL'ing when you said someone was loaded on Sidecars by noon. LOL. We have the same writing style, mangled syntax, LOL.

Yes, but they are afraid to bully you mutombo.
and they are too stupid to know better than to try to bully me.

mutombo, i don't think she gets it.

frankly, i often don't know wtf you're talking about. but i'm good with that.

after all, i did get the absentee ballot info for you. every vote counts.

Absolutely the only good thing about Unstable Mabel is that mutombo is often around when she's ruining every thread she can get her meds-shaken hands on.

mutumbo, i thought you smarter that one who would befriend our trooshy dooshy

damn i'm home late--argued with my cabby--fing guy couldn't get on board with metrocard integration, public transportation--fool--i told him the taxpayers'd pick up the fare

AR,

What are you talking about? I have no problem with you, and never got involved with any beef you've had on SE. Thanks for the absentee ballot I appreciated the gesture, buddy!

i know, mutombo, i know. that was my point. riding the ferry on a nice night for free doesn't sound so bad.

AR,

What is your point? I would like for you to state your point. You must think I have somethng against you, and I'm teaming up with Truth, if that is your point so let it be.

lol!

I think I found the truth, LOL!

mutombo, no not at all. i was pointing out the opposite. i'm not saying your on either of our "sides" but you certainly aren't teaming up with anyone.

maybe i was wrong.