Should Taxpayers Subsidize Ferry Rides Across The Hudson River?

Increasing ferry ridership across the Hudson River seems like a no-brainer, both for those who appreciate the fresh air and relaxing commute, and for those who want less crowding on the GWB and in the Lincoln Tunnel.

But what if it comes at the taxpayer’s expense?

On Monday, Armand Pohan, the chairman of NY Waterway - one of the largest, privately owned commuter ferry services in the U.S. – put forth a thought-provoking question to the members of the New Jersey State Assembly’s Transportation and Independent Authorities Committee.

Why don’t we get government subsidies?

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.

And it’s only fair that companies like NY Waterway also get a piece of the pie, he argues… for everyone’s benefit.

“Ferries can also provide a relatively inexpensive means of providing a longer-term solution to capacity problems in the public transportation systems,” Pohan asserted. “At the present time, the Regional Plan Association estimates that by 2040, trans-Hudson commuter traffic will grow by an additional 26 percent, or roughly 100,000 additional trips per day. This additional ridership simply cannot be accommodated without rehabilitating and expanding the existing public infrastructure.”

• See related article: Hoboken's Original Ferry Terminal Re-Opens

According to Pohan, the Port Authority Bus Terminal is already over its capacity. The rail tunnels and tracks into Penn Station, which are already aged and failing, cannot accommodate additional trains. And at a fraction of the cost of new bridges, tunnels or other massive infrastructure projects, new ferryboats and facilities can be built much more quickly and cheaply by utilizing the cheapest infrastructure of all… New York Harbor.

There’s just one catch: the cost.

“In order for ferries to provide meaningful overspill relief, however, the public sector needs to address the great fare disparity between public and private commutation,” Pohan said. “Our 30 years’ experience at NY Waterway has shown that in certain areas, there may be sufficient ridership to support a private ferry service at market rates. But to divert a substantial number of additional riders to ferries may take the same kind of government support for commuter fares which is already provided for other modes of public transportation.”

• See related article: N.J Rail Tunnel Project Would Cost $13B - And It May Never Happen

THE PROPOSED DEAL

Here’s what Pohan is proposing:

“We believe that NJ Transit and the Port Authority could divert a significant number of East Bergen and North Hudson commuters from the bridges and tunnels by offering those commuters a combination ticket which would provide a bus ride to the Weehawken ferry terminal, a ferry ride to our terminal in midtown Manhattan, and then a bus ride to the commuter’s final midtown destination.”

Pohan continued:

“If such a combination ticket could be offered at a price equivalent to the current bus fare to New York plus a subway fare to final destination - and it is estimated that 50 percent of bus commuters take an ongoing subway trip - we believe that a public subsidy of roughly $1 per trip could divert approximately 3,000 riders per day, an annual subsidy of a less than $1 million. A six-month pilot program on one route alone might divert about 1,000 riders at a fraction of that cost.”

Pohan added that if such a program proved successful on the East Bergen bus routes, it could be expanded to additional Bergen and Hudson routes, and also to a combination train-ferry ticket at Hoboken.

It’s a possibility that the area has already explored during the recent “Summer of Hell” delays, when many NJ Transit and PATH tickets were cross-honored via NY Waterway ferry.

• See related article: NY Waterway Will Continue Hoboken To Midtown Ferry Service

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YouTube screenshot: NY Waterway