The Port Authority will build a new permanent ferry terminal in Battery Park City in response to an increase in ferry service in the New York-New Jersey region.
The Board of Commissioners approved a contract with Spearin, Preston and Burrows of Staten Island, N.Y., to build a larger, more comfortable ferry terminal that will offer additional seating, an expanded waiting area, restrooms and concessions. The terminal will replace a temporary facility used by more than 7,800 weekday commuters.
New York Governor George E. Pataki said, “This new ferry terminal is a linchpin in the rebuilding of Lower Manhattan’s transportation network, and part of my administration’s ambitious timetable for the rebuilding of the downtown area. It will help provide more efficient, convenient ferry service for more than 7,800 commuters, and will bring people back downtown for work or recreational activities.”
Timothy S. Carey, President and CEO of the Battery Park City Authority, said, “Battery Park City’s recovery from the attacks of 9/11 is evidenced by the opening of our new ballfields, the extension of the Museum of Jewish Heritage, the Skyscraper Museum and The Solaire, the nation’s first sustainable high-rise residential building. The addition of this new ferry terminal is a wonderful addition to our community and a welcomed reminder that we are back and better than ever.”
The existing temporary ferry terminal has two ferry slips and accommodates 250 landings per day. The
new terminal will provide: Five ferry slips that will accept side- and end-loading vessels; a larger passenger waiting area to reduce crowding and improved amenities, such as separation of arriving and departing passengers, restrooms, concessions, additional seating and improved lighting.
The new terminal will include two ramps, allowing for better passenger flow on and off the vessels, which will help to prevent overcrowding on the esplanade.