Bay Ridge ferry dock construction on schedule, NYC Economic Development Corporation says

March 24, 2017 By Paula Katinas Brooklyn Daily Eagle

The construction of the ferry landing is right on schedule, according to NYCEDC officials. Eagle photo by Paula Katinas

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Construction of a new ferry landing at the 69th Street Pier in Bay Ridge is right on schedule, according to officials from the New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC), who said the pier will be one of the key stops on the South Brooklyn route of the new Citywide Ferry Service Mayor Bill de Blasio’s administration is getting set to launch.

The South Brooklyn route is expected to be up and running in July.

Ferries operating on the route will make stops at Bay Ridge, the Brooklyn Army Terminal, Red Hook, Brooklyn Bridge Park’s Pier 1 and Pier 6, and will then travel over to Pier 11 at Wall Street in lower Manhattan.

Ticket prices will be set at $2.75 a ride, the same price as a bus or subway ride.

On Friday morning, NYCEDC President and CEO James Patchett, Councilmember Vincent Gentile (D-Bay Ridge-Dyker Heights-parts of Bensonhurst), Assemblymember Pamela Harris (D-Bay Ridge-Dyker Heights-Coney Island) and Community Board 10 District Manager Josephine Beckmann visited the 69th Street Pier to get a look at the progress of the ferry landing construction.

“It’s very exciting,” Patchett said, adding that he has recently inspected ferry landing construction sites at several locations around the city.

The Citywide Ferry Service, which is being rolled out in phases in 2017 and 2018, will eventually consist of six different routes accommodating a total of 20 vessels stopping at 21 ferry landings around New York, NYCEDC officials said.

DNAinfo.com reported that each ferry landing will be 35 feet wide and 90 feet long, have ticket machines and waiting areas for passengers and will be equipped with canopies and windscreens.

The ferry landings were designed by engineers at McLaren Engineering Group and are being constructed by Skanska.

An East River ferry service has been running since 2011.

Following the rollout of service in 2017 and 2018, the city will look at establishing other routes, including Coney Island and Stapleton, Staten Island.

Each ferry will be able to carry 150 passengers along with space for bikes, strollers and wheelchairs and will be compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act. Wi-Fi will be available throughout the ship and the decks will be heated during the winter.

Gentile said he is pleased with the progress of the Bay Ridge ferry landing work.

He recalled that after the Sept. 11 terror attack, the city introduced a temporary ferry service to accommodate riders whose subway commutes were sidetracked. When that temporary service ended, he began pushing for a permanent ferry service. “I remember having [former Borough President] Marty Markowitz and then-Councilman Bill de Blasio down here,” he said.

The new ferry landing “is permanent,” Gentile said.