3,500 Took Ferry Between New Jersey, New York During Snowstorm

HOBOKEN, NJ — For the third time this month, rail and bus commuters stranded at the Hudson River turned to local ferries for relief.

During a freakishly severe snowstorm on Nov. 15 that shut down the Bayonne Bridge and turned roads in Hoboken and neighboring towns into parking lots, NY Waterways took 3,500 passengers across the river on trips between New Jersey and New York, the company reported earlier this week.

While NJ Transit dealt with a bevy of headaches from the storm, their river-based counterparts lent a hand by cross-honoring rail and bus tickets. It was the third time in November that the company has been asked to do so, NY Waterway stated.

• See related article: Bayonne Bridge Closed In Snow Storm; 'Trucks Can't Get Up Ramp'
• See related article: Hoboken Has A Hard Day's Night In Snowstorm (PHOTOS)

According to NY Waterway, its ferries ran past midnight during the snowstorm. Some took commuters from Manhattan’s West 39th Street Ferry Terminal to the Port Imperial Ferry Terminal in Weehawken, where passengers continued their trips on the Hudson-Bergen Light Rail or by bus or private car or cab.

Other ferries took stranded commuters to the Edgewater Ferry Landing, Lincoln Harbor in Weehawken, Hoboken/14th Street, the Hoboken/NJ TRANSIT Terminal, Harborside, Paulus Hook, Liberty Harbor and Port Liberte′ in Jersey City and Belford/Middletown in Monmouth County, the company said.

While road conditions delayed some of NY Waterway’s free buses, all ferries ran on or close to schedule, with additional ferry trips to ensure passengers arrived at their desired locations, spokespeople said.

“Our dedicated ferry crews, bus drivers and terminal staff worked late into the night to help others, a core belief and practice of our company for 32 years,” said NY Waterway president and founder Arthur Imperatore. “We were there at 9/11 and other emergencies. We were there for the Miracle on the Hudson and we will always be there when needed.”

Executives with NY Waterway – one of the largest privately owned commuter ferry services in the U.S. – recently put forth a thought-provoking question to New Jersey state authorities: Why don't we get government subsidies?

In 2017, Chairperson Armand Pohan said that NJ Transit derives only about half its revenue from the farebox, and the PATH system – "which loses about $400 million a year" - is subsidized at a cost of about $5 per rider.

"Ferries can also provide a relatively inexpensive means of providing a longer-term solution to capacity problems in the public transportation systems," Pohan asserted.

• See related article: Should Taxpayers Subsidize Ferry Rides Across The Hudson River?

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Photo: YouTube / NY Waterway