Happy Anniversary - 30 Years & Still Growing

NY WATERWAY MARKS 30 YEARS OF SERVICE TO METROPOLITAN-AREA COMMUTERS,

A HISTORY HIGHLIGHTED BY HEROIC RESCUE MISSIONS

NY Waterway marks its 30^th anniversary on December 3, 2016, 30 years of providing safe, reliable, environmentally responsible commuter ferry service to 250 million passengers.

President & Founder Arthur E. Imperatore started the company with one ferry, which carried 26 passengers on its first day.

Today, NY Waterway is the largest privately owned and operated commuter ferry service in the nation, with 31 ferries and 80 buses carrying more than 30,000 passengers per day on 20 routes between New Jersey and Manhattan, and between Rockland and Westchester counties, and between Orange and Dutchess counties.

NY Waterway has invested $26 million in new ferries and buses and in equipment upgrades in the last year, and will announce several new major developments in the coming weeks.                

            “Thanks to the dedicated men and women of NY Waterway and to our loyal customers, we have achieved this milestone, proving that a family-owned business can be a critical component of the New York-New Jersey Metropolitan Area’s mass transit system,” said Mr. Imperatore.

“Our commitment to providing our customers a civilized commute – the hallmark of our business – remains as strong as ever.”

Several long-time ferry customers, including some who rode on that first day, will join Mr. Imperatore for an informal reunion November 30.

In addition to providing the most reliable mass transit service in the region, with an on-time performance record of more than 99 percent, NY Waterway ferries have provided critical evacuation and rescue missions over the years.

In 1990, when a nor’easter flooded PATH tubes under the Hudson River, NY Waterway ferries provided service between the World Financial Ferry Terminal in Lower Manhattan and the Hoboken Rail/Ferry Terminal.

In 1993, when the first World Trade Center bombing shut down PATH service, NY Waterway ferries again provided the necessary transit link between Lower Manhattan and New Jersey.

On 9/11, NY Waterway ferries evacuated more than 150,000 people from Manhattan as part of the largest maritime evacuation in history.  For weeks, ferries were the only transit link between New Jersey and Lower Manhattan, carrying more than 60,000 passengers per day.  NY Waterway ferries played a critical role in getting people to work so New York City’s financial markets could reopen just six days after the 9/11 attacks.

After the 2003 blackout, NY Waterway ferries were the only transit link between Manhattan and New Jersey, carrying 160,000 people in one day.

In the 2009 Miracle on the Hudson, NY Waterway ferries rescued almost all the passengers from U.S. Air Flight 1549, the most successful marine rescue in aviation history.

NY Waterway ferry crews have rescued more than 100 people from the Hudson River in other incidents.

Ferry commuters save an hour or more per trip, the equivalent of a one-month vacation every year.  Ferries provide comfortable seating in climate-controlled cabins, but many passengers elect to ride outdoors, experiencing the exhilaration of the trip and the breath-taking views.  Passengers’ biggest complaint is that the ride is too short.

            Operating out of beautiful ferry terminals on both sides of the Hudson River, NY Waterway provides an unrivaled commuting experience. 

Commuter routes include:

• Port Imperial in Weehawken NJ, to West 39th Street in Manhattan, all day, seven days a week;
• Port Imperial to World Financial Center, morning/evening rush hours, weekdays;
• Port Imperial to Pier 11 at Wall Street, morning/evening rush hours, weekdays;

• Lincoln Harbor, Weehawken, to West 39th Street, all day, weekdays;
• Hoboken’s 14th Street to West 39th Street, all day, seven days a week;
• Hoboken’s 14th Street to World Financial Center, morning/evening rush hours, weekdays;
• Hoboken rail/ferry terminal to World Financial Center, all day, weekdays;
• Hoboken rail/ferry terminal to Pier 11, all day, weekdays;
• Edgewater, NJ to West 39th Street, morning/evening rush hours, weekdays;
• Belford, NJ to West 39th Street, morning/evening rush hours, weekdays;
• Belford to World Financial Center, morning/evening rush hours, weekdays;
• Belford to Wall Street Pier 11, morning/evening rush hours, weekdays;
• Belford to Jersey City-Paulus Hook, morning/evening rush hours, weekdays;
• Jersey City-Paulus Hook to West 39th Street, morning/evening rush hours, weekdays;
• Paulus Hook to World Financial Center, all day, weekdays;
• Paulus Hook to Pier 11, all day, weekdays;
• Jersey City-Liberty Harbor to Pier 11, morning/evening rush hours, weekdays;
• Jersey City-Port Liberte to Pier 11, morning/evening rush hours, weekdays.

Commuter ferries keep more than 7,000 cars per day out of New York City, reducing congestion and exhaust fumes.  NY Waterway’s fleet of 50 buses provides seamless connections on free shuttle bus routes.

NY Waterway also partners with NJ TRANSIT to provide discounted joint monthly passes for NJ Transit buses serving Bergen County and for the Hudson Bergen Light Rail.   

NY Waterway also is a leader in technology.  A free App available at the NY Waterway website allows customers to purchase tickets or see the exact location of buses on smartphones, computers and other devices.