8 THE QUEENS COURIER • AUGUST 31, 2017 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
Astoria residents look forward to shorter
commute as ferry service launches
BY ANGELA MATUA
amatua@qns.com
Hallets Cove in Astoria sits just 1,515
feet from midtown Manhattan, but for
many residents living near the waterfront,
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their commutes to work are anything
but short.
Th at changed today with the introduction
of NYC Ferry’s Astoria route,
which makes stops in Long Island City,
Roosevelt Island, 34th Street and Wall
Street. Th e expansion of ferry service,
announced by Mayor Bill de Blasio in
2015, aims to make Manhattan more
accessible to those who felt it was out of
reach.
Ferry service was recently introduced
in waterfront neighborhoods such as Red
Hook in Brooklyn and the Rockaways. A
recent survey conducted by the Economic
Development Corporation found that 93
percent of New Yorkers rated the service
a 7 or higher out of ten. So far, the
expanded ferry service has accommodated
approximately 1.5 million riders.
Shavita Snipe, an Astoria resident for
19 years who works near Wall Street, was
among the fi rst passengers on the Astoria
ferry for the 6:30 a.m. launch. She previously
took the R or N train to work but
began utilizing the Hunters Point ferry in
Long Island City.
Now, instead of driving to Long Island
City and looking for parking, Snipe can
walk across the street to the ferry.
“Th ere is no hustle and bustle, no
hot train station; just a breeze, a beautiful
view of the water,” she said. “It’s awesome.
I’m super excited that it’s across the
street from my house.”
Costing the same price as a one-way
MetroCard, the trip from Astoria to
Wall Street is approximately 47 minutes.
Councilman Costa Constantinides,
who also rode the 6:30 a.m. ferry, said the
launch of the service is “exhilarating.”
“Th is is something the community has
been waiting for for 80 years — fi rst
ferry stop in Astoria in that time, it’s
transforming the Hallets Cove Peninsula
where they have some of the longer commutes,”
he said. “Th ey can see Manhattan
from their homes…and yet it’s the longest
commute in the district so to see now this
connection for school, for work, for recreation
is just a transformative moment for
western Astoria.”
Th e mayor arrived at 34th Street in time
to shake hands with commuters and ask
them how the ride went.
“Folks at Astoria Houses used to have to
walk almost 20 minutes to get to the nearest
subway and that honestly cut them off
from a lot of the things they needed,” he
said. “NYC Ferry is going to help people
get around. It’s going to help reduce congestion
on our roads and trains. It’s going
to right wrongs of the past.”
Claudia Kroger, the president of the
Astoria Houses Resident Association, has
lived in the Astoria Houses for more than
50 years. She said the route is an important
one for the community, which has
struggled to connect to the rest of New
York City.
“I’m excited,” she said. “We’ve been
waiting a long time to connect, so this is
our day of connection. I fi nd the ride
beautiful. I love the water. I’m just a
nature girl.”
Kroger added that the community
understands the need for the service and
acknowledges that “this is going to make a
diff erence.” But others are worried about
the congestion it will bring as nearby residents
park their cars in the area to take
the ferry instead of a bus or train.
“Most people express concern about
the congestion, automobile parking and
things like that, things that they see will
impact the stability of their communities,”
Kroger said. “But these are things
we deal with on a regular basis all over the
city of New York, so it’s not new to me.”
Jerelene Fitzgerald, 93, has lived in the
Astoria Houses since 1953 and also took
the fi rst ride on the ferry. She gave the
service a stamp of approval, especially
because it was easy to navigate with
her cane.
“It was beautiful,” she said. “I didn’t
have to go into Long Island City to get
the train and come into the city to go up
all those steps and go down the steps. I
loved it.”
The Astoria ferry route launchedon Aug. 29.