Long Island City’s new Citywide Ferry Service dock will be located in Gantry Plaza State Park.
Mayor Bill de Blasio’s administration and local elected officials will announce Monday that Long Island City’s second fast ferry route will set sail from the northernmost tip of the park, just off Center Boulevard, in 2017 as part of the mayor’s Citywide Ferry Service launch.
The new landing will serve 4,000 riders a day, according to estimates from the city, which bank partially on the landing’s close proximity to residential buildings. The site was chosen after what the New York City Economic Development Corporation called “extensive environmental review and engagement with residents.”
“Citywide Ferry Service will provide affordable and reliable transit connections to rapidly growing waterfront communities like Long Island City,” said Maria Torres-Springer, president of the NYCEDC, in a statement.
From the park, Manhattan-bound ferries will stop first at East 34th Street and then at Wall Street during a trip totalling an estimated 22 minutes.
Ferries traveling north from the landing will stop at Roosevelt Island before heading to Astoria — a 16-minute trip.
The current East River ferry operations at Hunter’s Point South will be integrated into the larger Citywide Ferry Service network in 2017. The current service will remain unchanged, with a direct route to 34th Street in Manhattan as well as another route that stops at four dock locations in Brooklyn before heading to Wall Street.
“Long Island City is growing rapidly, and its residents need a variety of transportation options,” said Councilman Jimmy Van Bramer in a statement.
