The Staten Island Ferry is a passenger ferry route operated by the New York City Department of Transportation. The ferry's single route runs through New York Harbor between the New York City boroughs of Manhattan and Staten Island, with ferry boats making the trip in approximately 25 minutes. The ferry operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, with boats leaving every 15 to 20 minutes during peak hours and every 30 minutes at other times. It is the only direct mass-transit connection between the two boroughs. Historically, the Staten Island Ferry has charged a relatively low fare compared to other modes of transit in the area; and since 1997 the route has been fare-free.
Introduction
Staten Island Ferry
Staten Island Ferry | Introduction
The ferry's single route runs through New York Harbor between the New York City boroughs of Manhattan and Staten Island It runs between the New York City boroughs of Manhattan and Staten Island. New York City The ferry's single route runs through New York Harbor between the New York City boroughs of Manhattan and Staten Island.
how long is the staton island ferry ride
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Approximately 25 minutes
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The Staten Island Ferry operates 24/7. A new ferry trip begins every 30 minutes most hours of the day and night, with more frequent service during peak times, and takes 25 minutes to complete the route. The ferry carried 23.9 million passengers in fiscal year 2016. The Staten Island Ferry is administered separately from NYC Ferry.
Staten Island Ferry | Operations
The Staten Island Ferry is a passenger ferry route operated by the New York City Department of Transportation. The ferry's single route runs through New York Harbor between the New York City boroughs of Manhattan and Staten Island, with ferry boats making the trip in approximately 25 minutes. The ferry operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, with boats leaving every 15 to 20 minutes during peak hours and every 30 minutes at other times. It is the only direct mass-transit connection between the two boroughs. Historically, the Staten Island Ferry has charged a relatively low fare compared to other modes of transit in the area; and since 1997 the route has been fare-free.
Staten Island Ferry | Introduction
The Staten Island Ferry is the only transportation directly from Staten Island to Manhattan, roughly a 25-minute trip. The St. George Terminal, first opened in 1886, was rebuilt in 1951 and again in the 2000s. The ferry has been fare-free since 1997. The Staten Island Ferry transports over 60,000 passengers per day. It runs 24/7 every 15 to 20 minutes during weekday rush hours and every 30 minutes at other times. The ferries and both of its terminals are patrolled by a combination of the New York City Department of Transportation, New York City Police Department, United States Coast Guard and private security contractors.
Staten Island | Ferry
The Staten Island Ferry is one of several ferry systems in the New York City area and is operated separately from systems such as NYC Ferry and NY Waterway. The Staten Island Ferry route terminates at Whitehall Terminal, on Whitehall Street in Lower Manhattan, and at St. George Terminal, in St. George, Staten Island. At Whitehall, connections are available to the New York City Subway and several local New York City Bus routes. At St. George, there are transfers to the Staten Island Railway and to the St. George Bus Terminal's many bus routes. Using MetroCard fare cards, passengers from Manhattan can exit a subway or bus on Whitehall Street, take the ferry for free, and have a free second transfer to a train or bus at St.
Staten Island Ferry | Introduction
The ferry to Staten Island departs Manhattan from the Staten Island Ferry Whitehall Terminal at South Ferry, at the southernmost tip of Manhattan near the Battery, and follows a single route. On Staten Island, ferryboats to Manhattan depart from the St. George Ferry Terminal on Richmond Terrace, near Richmond County's Borough Hall and Supreme Court. The ferry ride affords views of the Downtown Jersey City skyline, the Lower Manhattan skyline, Statue of Liberty on Liberty Island, Ellis Island, Governors Island and the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge. As such it is a popular destination on Saturday nights, and beer and food items are served at the snack bar.
Staten Island Ferry | Route
Dom Giotti, founder of the Staten Island Catapult Development Committee (S.I.C.D.C.) maintains that the commuting needs of Staten Islanders have long been underserved by a cost-prohibitive dichotomy of bridge or boat. In his opinion the outermost New York City borough is a trove of history and culture that remains largely untapped due to a lack of mass transit alternatives. To that end, Dom proposes a "seminal transit alternative" for the Staten Island community. Under the rallying cry "Where mass transit has failed…physics shall prevail!", Dom spearheads an initiative to build a large-scale catapult that launches commuters back and forth from Staten Island to downtown Manhattan in five minutes.
Staten Island Catapult | Plot summary
A plan to reinstate car boarding, because of rising tolls on the Verrazzano Bridge, was seen as infeasible due to the effort needed to screen every car.
Staten Island Ferry | Route
George. Conversely, passengers from Staten Island can freely transfer to a subway or bus in Manhattan after riding the ferry. The Staten Island Ferry originated in 1817, when the Richmond Turnpike Company started a steamboat service from Manhattan to Staten Island. Cornelius Vanderbilt bought the Richmond Turnpike Company in 1838, and it was merged with two competitors in 1853. The combined company was in turn sold to the Staten Island Railroad Company in 1864. The Staten Island Ferry was then sold to the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad in 1884, and the City of New York assumed control of the ferry in 1905.
Staten Island Ferry | Introduction
It was hoped that the completion of the tunnel would spur the development of inner Staten Island and St. George, as a trip to Manhattan via the tunnel was expected to take only 12 to 15 minutes, compared to 25 on the ferry. However, after several delays and a groundbreaking in 1923, the project was canceled in 1925. Another plan for an expanded ferry terminal with a 26-story office complex was proposed in 1930, but never built.
St. George, Staten Island | Post-unification development
Staten Islanders on the South Shore have the longest average commute of anyone in New York City. Commuters to Manhattan have the option of express buses, which run along Hylan Boulevard, Richmond Avenue, and New York State Route 440, or the Staten Island Railway. Express train service cuts the commute time to and from the Staten Island Ferry. Morning express trains make all local stops to New Dorp station, and then express to the St. George Terminal. In the evening, express trains travel from St. George to Great Kills station, then make all local stops until Tottenville station. Local trains make all stops.
South Shore, Staten Island | Transportation
Governors Island has two ferry landings, Soissons Landing and Yankee Pier. Soissons Landing, located at the northern shore of the island, contains two slips. Ferries travel from here to Slip 7 at the Battery Maritime Building, located adjacent to the Staten Island Ferry Whitehall Terminal in Manhattan's Financial District. The ride is about 7 minutes long. These ferries are operated by The Trust for Governors Island and operate daily when the island is open. During summer weekends, ferries also operate to Yankee Pier on the southeastern side of the island, which is served by two ferry routes. One route is operated by The Trust and travels to Red Hook (though it traveled to Pier 6 of Brooklyn Bridge Park prior to 2020).
Governors Island | Current services
A subway tunnel called the Staten Island Tunnel started construction in 1923, but was abandoned two years later; the completed portion lies dormant beneath Owl's Head Park in Brooklyn. Today, express bus service is provided by NYC Transit throughout Staten Island to Lower Manhattan, Union Square, and Midtown Manhattan. A right of way exists along the north shore of Staten Island. This North Shore Branch of the Staten Island Railway was built, owned, and operated by the B&O, which used it for passenger service until 1953. It then became a B&O freight line until the 1980s, when service was stopped.
Staten Island | Trains
St. George Terminal is the southern terminal of the Staten Island Ferry; it runs only to Whitehall Terminal, on the southern tip of Manhattan near Battery Park. The Staten Island Ferry runs a 24-hour service between the terminals. Ferries usually run at 15-to-20-minute intervals during rush hours and every 30 minutes at other times. In January 2019, NYC Ferry announced that it would start operating its St. George route in 2020. The route was originally supposed to run from the St. George Terminal to Battery Park City Ferry Terminal and West Midtown Ferry Terminal in Manhattan. However, due to concerns that the massive Staten Island Ferry boats and the small NYC Ferry craft might not be able to share a dock, the New York City Economic Development Corporation announced in January 2020 that a NYC Ferry dock would instead be built close to the existing terminal, on the opposite side of Empire Outlets closer to the Richmond County Bank Ballpark.
St. George Terminal | Ferry terminal
The Staten Island Ferry system transports 65,000 passengers a day on the five-mile ride between St. George Terminal on Staten Island and Whitehall Terminal in Manhattan. The boats operate 24 hours a day, 365 days a year and have been a vital municipal service since 1905. During Weinshall’s tenure, DOT has taken a number of steps to modernize the Staten Island Ferry service. In February 2005, Weinshall joined Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg at the opening of the new Whitehall Ferry Terminal in Lower Manhattan. Later that year, in May, DOT celebrated the grand opening of the renovated St. George in Staten Island.
Iris Weinshall | Staten Island Ferry
There has been continuous ferry service between Staten Island and Lower Manhattan since the 18th century. Travelling across the Upper Bay between South Ferry and St. George Ferry Terminal, the free Staten Island Ferry transports on average 75,000 passengers per day. Service on the East River ended in the early 20th century and on the Hudson River in the 1960s. It has been restored and grown significantly since the 1980s providing regular service to points in Manhattan, mostly below 42nd Street. Major terminals are Hoboken Terminal, Battery Park City Ferry Terminal at World Financial Center, Paulus Hook Ferry Terminal, Weehawken Port Imperial, Pier 11/Wall Street, West Midtown Ferry Terminal, and the East 34th Street Ferry Landing.
Port of New York and New Jersey | Ferries and sightseeing
(the terminal) is a continuation of what you feel on the ferry ... in a sense you are suspended over the water." Described as "an elegant addition to [the] city's architecture," a 2005 Newsday writer called it a transit hub that is so beautiful that it has become a "destination": with "the panorama of lower Manhattan from the top of the escalators, the vast windows framing the Statue of Liberty, the upstairs deck with views of the harbor -- these are reasons to take shelter here for a little longer than the ferry schedule makes strictly necessary."
Frederic Schwartz | Staten Island Ferry Whitehall Terminal
It allows 24 trains per hour (or one every 2 minutes and 30 seconds) to terminate at the station. The new station offers three street entrances, with the main entrance located across from the Staten Island Ferry terminal; the loop station originally had only one entrance within the terminal itself before it reopened with a connection to the South Ferry–Whitehall Street complex in 2013. It also added a free transfer to the Whitehall Street–South Ferry station on the BMT Broadway Line. Landscaping for Peter Minuit Plaza, which is above the station, was completed in May 2010.
South Ferry/Whitehall Street station | South Ferry station (2009–2012, 2017–present)
Detailed ridership figures for many fiscal years are not widely available because, in many cases, they not have been publicly released. A 1958 "New York Times" article cited a figure of 24 million annual riders. Ridership on the ferry peaked in 1964, with 27.5 million passengers, but the figure dropped to 22 million in 1965, after the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge opened. In the early 2000s, ridership mostly fluctuated between 18 and 19 million, rising to 21.8 million in 2006 before dropping to 18.5 million the next year. Afterward, ridership started rising again, reaching over 21 million in fiscal year 2011. In fiscal 2012, the ferry carried 22.18 million passengers, the highest figure in several decades.
Staten Island Ferry | Ridership
An NYC Ferry route is planned to start operating in 2020 between the St. George Terminal and Manhattan's West Side. This route will be operated separately from the Staten Island Ferry and will charge a fare.
Staten Island | Ferry
The passenger ferry service was abandoned on March 3, 1925. A track spur split from the Montauk Branch east of the Long Island City station, running along the south border of the station before curving north to the North Shore Freight Branch running between 48th and 49th Avenues, where there were connections to car floats at what is today the Gantry Plaza State Park. These car floats carried freight trains to and from Manhattan and New Jersey until the mid-20th century. Today, ferry service is operated by NYC Ferry. The station house was torn down again in 1939 for construction of the Queens–Midtown Tunnel, but continued to operate as an active station throughout the tunnel's construction and opening.
Long Island City station | History
Commuters on the railway typically use the Staten Island Ferry to reach Manhattan; the line is accessible from within the Ferry Terminal, and most of its trains connect with the ferry. The line has a route bullet similar to other subway routes: the letters "SIR" in a blue circle. It is used on timetables, the MTA website, and some signage, but not on trains. Like the New York City Subway, the line runs 24 hours a day every day of the year, and is one of the few 24/7 mass-transit rail systems in the United States. Although the railway was originally considered a standard rail line, the existing line is severed from the national rail system, and only a small portion of the former North Shore Branch still sees freight use.
Staten Island Railway | Introduction
"Ferry Play" has two acts: the first act takes place on the ride from Manhattan to Staten Island; the second act takes place on the ride from Staten Island to Manhattan. Act Two can be experienced right after Act One, or hours, days, or months later.
This Is Not A Theatre Company | Ferry Play
The Staten Island Railway, while operated by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, does not have a physical connection to the rest of New York City's rail network. As such, transfers to Manhattan are facilitated by the free Staten Island Ferry.
Intermodal passenger transport | Train–ferry connection
Old Place is served by the bus and its rush-hour-only limited-stop counterpart, the bus.
Old Place, Staten Island | Transportation
The Staten Island Ferry is the world's busiest ferry route, carrying more than 23 million passengers from July 2015 through June 2016 on the route between Staten Island and Lower Manhattan and running 24 hours a day. Other ferry systems shuttle commuters between Manhattan and other locales within the city and the metropolitan area. NYC Ferry, a NYCEDC initiative with routes planned to travel to all five boroughs, was launched in 2017, with second graders choosing the names of the ferries. Meanwhile, Seastreak ferry announced construction of a 600-passenger high-speed luxury ferry in September 2016, to shuttle riders between the Jersey Shore and Manhattan, anticipated to start service in 2017; this would be the largest vessel in its class.
New York City | Ferries
Staten Island Borough President Joseph A. Palma, in 1936, proposed to extend Staten Island Rapid Transit to Manhattan (via New Jersey) across the Bayonne Bridge, which had been built to accommodate two train tracks. The Port of New York Authority endorsed the second plan in 1937, with a terminal at 51st Street in Manhattan near Rockefeller Center to serve the trains of Erie, West Shore, Lackawanna, Jersey Central, and trains from Staten Island. This original proposal would be brought back in 1950, by Edward Corsi, a Republican candidate for Mayor of New York City. On February 4, 1932, the headway on trains was decreased to 15 minutes from 20 minutes between 9:29 p.m.
History of the Staten Island Railway | Expansion
George Terminal of the Staten Island Ferry, in Staten Island.
Katherine Walker | Legacy
The other two boats were approximately long by wide, and had a draft of and a gross tonnage of 2,029 (for "President Roosevelt") or 2,089 (for "American Legion I"). "Mayor Gaynor" was the first to be dismantled, in 1951, while "President Roosevelt" and "American Legion I" were scrapped in 1956 and 1963, respectively.
Staten Island Ferry | Former
South Ferry is at the southern tip of Manhattan in New York City and is the embarkation point for ferries to Staten Island (Staten Island Ferry, through the Staten Island Ferry Whitehall Terminal) and Governors Island. Battery Park, abutting South Ferry on the west, has docking areas for ferries to Liberty Island and Ellis Island. Its name is derived from an historical ferry company which provided service to Brooklyn, run by the South Ferry Company.
South Ferry (Manhattan) | Introduction
The backdrop of the Staten Island Ferry's route also makes it a popular place for film shoots, and the ferry has been featured in various films, such as "Working Girl" (1988), "How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days" (2003), and "" (2017). Many other films and TV episodes use the Staten Island Ferry in establishing shots. In the past, ferries were equipped for vehicle transport, and operators charged $3 per automobile. A vehicle ban was approved in 1992, after the Whitehall Terminal was destroyed and subsequently rebuilt without vehicle loading areas. Although the temporary terminals included car loading areas, car boarding was discontinued after the September 11 attacks.
Staten Island Ferry | Route
Unlike NYC Ferry, the Staten Island-to-Midtown route would not receive any per-passenger subsidies from the city. By September 2017, private developers on the South Shore were also negotiating with SeaStreak to run a separate fast ferry route from the South Shore to Lower Manhattan. In January 2019, NYC Ferry announced that it would start operating a route between St. George and West Midtown terminals, running via the Battery Park City Ferry Terminal. The route would begin running in 2020.
Staten Island Ferry | Midtown fast ferry service
[the terminal] is a continuation of what you feel on the ferry ... in a sense you are suspended over the water." Described as "an elegant addition to [the] city's architecture", the transit hub was described by a Newsday editor as so beautiful that it had become a tourist attraction in its own right.
Staten Island Ferry | Whitehall Terminal
This service ran every 90 minutes between 4 a.m. and 8 p.m. daily. It was discontinued at the end of 1913, due to low ridership. Staten Islanders protested against the city's discontinuance of the Stapleton ferry, to no avail. Mayor McClellan's successor, William Jay Gaynor, was opposed to what he saw as a hasty purchase of the 39th Street line. Upon becoming mayor in 1910, Gaynor communicated to his administration's docks commissioner, Calvin Tompkins, that the operating costs of that route needed to be reduced; in response, Tompkins replaced the superintendent of ferries. Neither of the city's Staten Island ferries showed a profit until 1915, under John Purroy Mitchel's mayoral administration.
Staten Island Ferry | City ownership and ferries to other destinations
The busiest ferry in the United States is the Staten Island Ferry, which annually carries over 19 million passengers on the 5.2 mile (8.4 km) run between St. George Ferry Terminal and South Ferry. Service is provided 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, and takes approximately 25 minutes each way. Each day eight boats transport almost 65,000 passengers during 104 boat trips. Over 33,000 trips are made annually. The Ferry has remained free of charge since 1997. Vehicles have not been allowed on the Ferry since the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, though bicycles are permitted on the lower level at no cost.
Transportation in New York City | Ferries
The ferry was at the end of its , 25-minute trip from South Ferry, Manhattan to St. George, Staten Island. On board were approximately 1,500 passengers, one-quarter of the maximum capacity of 6,000. Winds were heavy that afternoon, with gusts of more than . The water in New York Harbor was described as "very choppy". Instead of docking, the ferry angled away from its berth and collided with a concrete maintenance pier. The pier ripped into the ferry's starboard side and tore into the boat's main deck where many passengers were crowding forward to disembark. The accident left a number of victims trapped in a pile of metal, glass, and splintered wood, while other passengers jumped overboard.
2003 Staten Island Ferry crash | Accident
As of 2019, public transportation on the island is limited to:
Staten Island | Public transit
The start of construction was delayed for nine months because it awaited approval of the Secretary of War, and another six months due to an injunction from the State of New Jersey. Construction had to continue through the brutal winter of 1888 because Congress had set a completion deadline of June 16, 1888; two years after signing the bill. The bridge was completed three days early on June 13, 1888. When it opened, the Arthur Kill Bridge was the largest drawbridge ever constructed; it cost $450,000 and was constructed without fatalities. The bridge consisted of five pieces of masonry, the center one being midstream with the draw resting on it.
History of the Staten Island Railway | Extension to New Jersey
The ferry began operating under the municipal authority of the Department of Docks and Ferries on October 25, 1905, seven years after the five boroughs were consolidated into New York City. The "Municipal Ferry Terminal" was erected in 1906–9, during the administration of Mayor George McClellan, and designed by the architectural firm of Walker and Morris. Two primary ferry terminal buildings were designed in a Beaux-Arts style. One set was opened in 1906 for the two slips of the Staten Island Ferry with direct links to the Manhattan Elevated terminal platforms. The adjoining terminal was completed by 1909 in an identical style for the South Brooklyn Ferry routes and would become the Battery Maritime Building.
Staten Island Ferry Whitehall Terminal | Original terminal
The MTA stated that the new station saved four to six minutes of a passenger's trip time and increased the peak capacity of the 1 service to 24 trains per hour (or one every 2 minutes 30 seconds), as opposed to 16 to 17 trains per hour (or one every 4 minutes) with the loop station. The successor station is fully accessible (although its transfer to the BMT Broadway Line is not), with the main entrance located across from the Staten Island Ferry terminal building's entrance. After Hurricane Sandy in late October 2012, the outer loop was brought back into service in order to turn trains uptown after terminating at Rector Street, as the replacement station suffered extensive flooding damage and closed for repairs.
South Ferry/Whitehall Street station | Replacement and restoration
The size of the LED display in Venturi's design was heavily reduced. Also added were a rooftop waterfront viewing deck with a photovoltaic array on its canopy, a long sinuous canopy on the street side with the words "Staten Island Ferry" on it, and a Percent for Art installation called "Slips" by Dennis Adams. Two factors complicated construction of the new terminal. First, the NYCDOT mandated that two of the terminal's three ferry slips remain open during construction. Second, the terminal was being built over the Battery Park Underpass and three New York City Subway tunnels, so a foundation for the terminal had to be built underground.
Staten Island Ferry Whitehall Terminal | New terminal
They proposed several stops in Bayonne and Jersey City and a stop on Richmond Terrace. This -long line was estimated to take slightly less time than the Staten Island Ferry, but would result in passengers spending less time waiting and transferring. The New York City Department of Transportation undertook a study called North Shore Transit Corridor, which proposed using the right-of-way as a guided busway, which would decrease travel times to and from St. George for bus routes from across the island. Specially equipped buses were to enter and leave the guideway at Howland Hook, Morningstar Avenue, Broadway or Bard Avenue, and operate nonstop to the ferry, or with a local stop near St.
North Shore Branch | Possible reactivation for passenger service
The harbor is still served by cruise lines, commuter ferries, and tourist excursion boats. Although most ferry service is private, the Staten Island Ferry is operated by the New York City Department of Transportation. Passenger ship facilities are New York Passenger Ship Terminal, the Brooklyn Cruise Terminal at Red Hook, and MOTBY at Bayonne.
New York Harbor | Ferries and cruise ships
Due to its proximity to the Staten Island Ferry, Stapleton is well served by public transportation. The Staten Island Railway has a station of the same name at Prospect Street and Bay Street. Stapleton is also served by the local buses. Express bus service to and from Manhattan is provided by the route.
Stapleton, Staten Island | Transportation
After going through the valley, the line would curve toward Amboy Road before curving southward, passing Billop House, and ending near Biddle's Grove and the Amboy ferries. The second route would start at Vanderbilt's Landing and run through Clifton to New Dorp.
History of the Staten Island Railway | Initial efforts: 1836–1860
Staten Island (Richmond County) is the most suburban in character of the five boroughs. Staten Island is connected to Brooklyn by the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge, and to Manhattan by way of the free Staten Island Ferry, a daily commuter ferry which provides unobstructed views of the Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island, and Lower Manhattan. In central Staten Island, the Staten Island Greenbelt spans approximately , including of walking trails and one of the last undisturbed forests in the city. Designated in 1984 to protect the island's natural lands, the Greenbelt comprises seven city parks.
New York City | Staten Island
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) operates a number of bus routes in Staten Island, New York, United States. Some of them are the direct descendants of streetcar lines (see list of streetcar lines in Staten Island). Many routes run to the St. George Terminal, at St. George in northeastern Staten Island, where there are connections to the Staten Island Ferry. The unidirectional fare, payable in MetroCard, coins, or the OMNY contactless payment system, is $2.75. Discount fare media is available.
List of bus routes in Staten Island | Introduction
The St. George Terminal of the Staten Island Ferry is less than a five-minute walk from the ballpark. The S40 and S44 buses directly serve the stadium, but the stadium is accessible from the buses that terminate at the St. George Ferry Terminal. The St. George station of the Staten Island Railway is also at the ferry terminal. From 2001 to 2009, on game days during the baseball season, SIR trains served the RCB Ballpark station adjacent to the stadium, with trains from both St. George and Tottenville. In 2010, train service to RCB Ballpark station was suspended due to budget cuts from the MTA.
Richmond County Bank Ballpark | Transportation
"Herbert H. Lehman" was retired on June 30, 2007, after the 10:30 p.m. run from Whitehall Street to St. George. "John F. Kennedy" is being kept for the time being in weekday service on an as-needed basis, as captains considered it to be the most reliable vessel in the fleet and riders preferred its abundant open-air deck space.
Staten Island Ferry | "Kennedy" class
This table gives details for the routes prefixed with "S" - in other words, those considered to run primarily in Staten Island by the MTA. For details on routes with other prefixes, see the following articles: Routes marked with an asterisk (*) run 24 hours a day. Connections to New York City Subway stations, the Staten Island Ferry, or Hudson–Bergen Light Rail at the bus routes' terminals are also listed where applicable.
List of bus routes in Staten Island | Routes
The Whitehall Terminal is a ferry terminal in the South Ferry section of Lower Manhattan, New York City, at the corner of South Street and Whitehall Street. It is used by the Staten Island Ferry, which connects the island boroughs of Manhattan and Staten Island. The Whitehall Terminal is one of the ferry's terminals, the other being St. George Terminal on Staten Island. The Whitehall Terminal originally opened in 1903 as a new transportation hub for the Staten Island Ferry, which was in the process of being acquired by the city government. It was renovated from 1953 to 1956 at the cost of $3 million, but by the 1980s, was in a state of deterioration.
Staten Island Ferry Whitehall Terminal | Introduction
On October 21, 1957, four years after North Shore sub-division passenger trains ended, a train from Washington, D.C.—the last SIRT special—carried Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip across the Arthur Kill Bridge en route to the Staten Island Ferry after a meeting with President Eisenhower. The special train movement was conducted in secrecy and the tracks along the route were cleared for this occasion. The train traveled over B&O, Reading Company, and Lehigh Valley lines to get to Staten Island Junction and the SIRT. The royal train, along with a press train, ended its run at a freight yard at Stapleton.
History of the Staten Island Railway | Freight operations: 1957–1971
Despite having only a single route, it carried 23.9 million passengers in fiscal 2017 (the multiple-route Washington State Ferries, the largest U.S. ferry operator with the largest fleet, carried 24.2 million passengers in 2016).
Staten Island Ferry | Ridership
St. George Terminal is a ferry, railway, bus, and park and ride transit center in the St. George neighborhood of Staten Island, New York City. It is located at the intersection of Richmond Terrace and Bay Street, near Staten Island Borough Hall, Richmond County Bank Ballpark and Richmond County Supreme Court. St. George is one of the few remaining rail-boat connections in the United States.
St. George Terminal | Introduction
Although the Staten Island Railway originally consisted of three lines, only the north-south Main Line is in passenger service. It resembles an outdoor line of the New York City Subway. Although the railway has been grade-separated from all roads since the 1960s, it runs more or less at street level for a brief stretch north of Clifton, between the Grasmere and Old Town stations, and from south of the Pleasant Plains station to Tottenville—the end of the line. The terminus at St. George provides a direct connection with the Staten Island Ferry. St. George has twelve tracks, ten of which are in service.
Staten Island Railway | Passenger service
and 10:29 p.m.; and was decreased to 30 minutes from 40 minutes between 10:29 p.m. and 1:29 a.m. on the Perth Amboy Division.
History of the Staten Island Railway | Expansion
The New York City Department of Transportation is now the first ferry operator in the United States to voluntarily comply with this internationally accepted safety regime.
Iris Weinshall | Staten Island Ferry
The renovated Whitehall Terminal was designed by New York architect Frederic Schwartz, with Robert Silman Associates as the structural engineers. It includes a new plaza, named after Peter Minuit. The terminal, which is open 24 hours a day, handles around 70,000 ferry passengers daily. It includes access to taxis, the New York City Subway (at the South Ferry–Whitehall Street station complex on the ), and buses; through the Terminal and Minuit Plaza, access to bicycle lanes and other water transport are also available. Described as "an elegant addition to [the] city's architecture," a "Newsday" writer called it a transit hub that is so beautiful that it has become a destination in its own right: with "the panorama of lower Manhattan from the top of the escalators, the vast windows framing the Statue of Liberty, the upstairs deck with views of the harbor -- these are reasons to take shelter here for a little longer than the ferry schedule makes strictly necessary."
Staten Island Ferry Whitehall Terminal | Description
The figure in fiscal 2013 declined slightly to 21.4 million. Ridership for fiscal 2014 declined again to 21.25 million, while ridership on private ferry services increased. Public ridership then began rising in subsequent years, especially after the 2015 increase in trip frequency, when ridership reached 21.9 million. In fiscal 2016, ridership on the ferry increased to 23.1 million passengers; and in fiscal 2017, ridership increased further, to 23.9 million passengers, breaking the previous year's record. Ridership in fiscal year 2018 rose again to 24.5 million passengers, and in fiscal year 2019, increased to 25.2 million passengers. , the Staten Island Ferry is the single busiest ferry route, and one of the busiest ferry systems, in the United States, as well as the world's busiest passenger-only ferry.
Staten Island Ferry | Ridership
A new ferry and rail terminal at St. George's Landing and an extension of the Staten Island Railway north from Vanderbilt's Landing had been proposed in the 1870s by the owners of the railroad (George Law, Cornelius Vanderbilt, and Erastus Wiman) to replace the various ferry sites on the north and east shores of Staten Island. St. George was selected due to its being the point where Staten Island is closest to Manhattan, approximately away. The terminal and local neighborhood were renamed "St. George" in honor of Law, allegedly as a concession by Wiman in order to build the terminal and connecting tunnel on land owned by Law.
Staten Island Ferry | St. George Terminal
The Charleston Bus Depot opened in January 2011 at Arthur Kill Road in Charleston. Talks have been underway to implement a new Fast Ferry service from the Prince's Bay/Mount Loretto area on the Raritan Bay to both Midtown Manhattan and the Wall Street area. It is estimated based on several studies that the ridership base for such a ferry route would be substantial, given the lack of sufficient alternative public transportation from this area and its population of high-income professionals commuting to Manhattan.
South Shore, Staten Island | Transportation
This is a timeline of Staten Island.
Timeline of Staten Island | Introduction
The MV "John F. Kennedy" is the last remaining active Kennedy class ferry operating for the Staten Island Ferry, carrying passengers between Whitehall Terminal in Manhattan and St. George Terminal in Staten Island. Built by the Levingston Shipbuilding Company between 1963 and 1965 for the Department of Marine and Aviation , the "John F. Kennedy" was delivered May 14, 1965.
MV John F. Kennedy | Introduction
Later, the citywide ferry's Stapleton route was relegated to an unfunded plan, leaving Staten Island with no stops on the new system. With the opening of NYC Ferry in 2017, politicians and Staten Island residents again advocated bringing more ferry service to Staten Island, including adding one ferry each to Manhattan and Brooklyn, a stop on the South Shore, and extra stops on the Whitehall–St. George ferry. In April 2017, Oddo announced a tentative agreement with NY Waterway to possibly implement a fast route from St. George to Midtown Manhattan in 2018. The ferry would go to West Midtown Ferry Terminal, as opposed to East 34th Street.
Staten Island Ferry | Midtown fast ferry service
George terminal was also the site of two minor ramming incidents. On July 1, 2009, at 7:09 pm EDT, "John J. Marchi" lost power and hit a pier at full speed, resulting in 15 minor injuries. The boat was cited as having a history of electrical problems since being put into service in 2005. A similar incident at the same location occurred on May 8, 2010, at 9:20 am EDT. As the then-recently-rebuilt "Andrew J. Barberi" approached the dock, the reverse thrust failed to respond; and the boat could not slow down. Thirty-seven of the 252 passengers on board were injured.
Staten Island Ferry | 21st century
The city-owned Staten Island Ferry remains a separate entity. In addition, the ferry service would add 155 jobs to the New York Harbor area. Due to the lack of concrete plans for any NYC Ferry routes to Staten Island, there have been tentative agreements with other ferry services to provide fast-ferry service between Staten Island and Manhattan, supplementing the city-owned route there. In April 2017, Staten Island Borough President James Oddo negotiated with NY Waterway to provide service between St. George Terminal and West Midtown Ferry Terminal. In September of the same year, private developers on the South Shore of Staten Island also negotiated with SeaStreak to run a separate fast ferry route from the South Shore to Lower Manhattan.
NYC Ferry | Other ferries
This list contains all stations currently open on the Staten Island Railway (SIR). All active SIR stations are located on the Main Line, which spans from the St. George Ferry Terminal to Tottenville. Stations tend to be built either above ground level on embankments or are open-cut stations built below ground level, but open to the sky.
List of Staten Island Railway stations | Main Line
Clifton is a Staten Island Railway station in the neighborhood of Clifton, Staten Island, New York. This station was the original terminal of the Staten Island Railway from 1860 until 1886. The station was known as Vanderbilt's Landing, and was used as a transfer point for passengers going to Manhattan via ferries to South Ferry.
Clifton station (Staten Island Railway) | Introduction
Atlantic and Nassau stations are now closed and demolished. The 14-mile trip to the St. George Terminal takes 42 minutes. Tottenville is served by the local buses. Express bus service to and from Manhattan is provided by the . Though no highways pass through the neighborhood, NY Route 440 and Korean War Veterans Parkway (formerly known as Richmond Parkway) are located nearby.
Tottenville, Staten Island | Transportation
Efforts to revive the Staten Island-to-Midtown ferry persisted; and in 2013, city councilman James Oddo advocated for a revival of fast ferry service to Staten Island as part of his campaign to become that borough's president. After Oddo's election as borough president, he pushed New York City mayor Bill de Blasio to consider a Staten Island fast ferry as part of de Blasio's proposed Citywide Ferry Service (later renamed NYC Ferry). At the time, the new system's only proposed ferry stop on Staten Island was at Stapleton, which was already adequately served by the Whitehall–St. George route. Citywide Ferry Service was not planning to serve transit-deprived South Shore.
Staten Island Ferry | Midtown fast ferry service
Staten Island has a short, direct connection to the national rail network. Trains enter from New Jersey by way of the Arthur Kill Vertical Lift Bridge, which was reopened in 2006. They serve the Staten Island Transfer Station at Fresh Kills Landfill, which handles municipal solid waste for the borough, and the refurbished, Howland Hook Marine Terminal. The latter has a new intermodal rail yard and can handle 425,000 containers a year. It is part of the Port Authority's ExpressRail system and is served by the Staten Island Railroad with a connection via Conrail Shared Assets Operations Chemical Coast to both CSX and Norfolk Southern.
Rail freight transportation in New York City and Long Island | Staten Island
The Whitehall Terminal burned down in a fire in 1991, and was completely rebuilt and rededicated in February 2005 as a major integrated transportation hub.
Staten Island Ferry Whitehall Terminal | Introduction
The Staten Island Railway (SIR) opened in stages in 1860. It was necessary to have a direct connection between the new railroad trains and the infrequent ferries to and from Manhattan, but this turned out to be difficult during the beginning of operation. The ferries serving Vanderbilt's Landing were owned by George Law, who operated a competing ferry service called the New York and Staten Island Steam Ferry. Afterwards, Vanderbilt tried to operate a ferry service between Manhattan and Staten Island that would rival Law's ferry service. Vanderbilt started construction on his plan for a central dock on the island, but he abandoned the scheme after a storm destroyed the timber work.
Staten Island Ferry | Staten Island Railway era
GCT New York at Howland Hook Marine Terminal () is located at the mouth of the Arthur Kill at Newark Bay on Staten Island, a borough of New York City. Its on dock ExpressRail facility consists of seven tracks which connect to the adjacent Arlington Yard, from which trains travel over the Arthur Kill Lift Bridge to connect to the Chemical Coast line at Elizabeth. Staten Island does not originate or terminate trains, but cars from the terminal are attached onto other trains. The North Shore branch of the Staten Island Railway was originally opened in 1860 and was operated by the Baltimore and Ohio between Cranford, New Jersey and the Saint George Terminal.
ExpressRail | ExpressRail Staten Island
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority operates a number of bus routes in Staten Island, New York, United States. Some of them are the direct descendants of streetcar lines (see list of streetcar lines in Staten Island). Departures are given below by loading bay.
St. George Terminal | New York City Bus
Staten Island is a borough of New York City. Staten Island may also refer to:
Staten Island (disambiguation) | Introduction
In 1998, bus lanes were created on the eastern part of the Staten Island Expressway near the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge; they were extended west to Todt Hill Road/Slosson Avenue in 2005. In 2008, the bus lanes were opened to high-occupancy vehicles during rush hours.
Interstate 278 | Staten Island Expressway
The ferry service from St. George to 39th Street in Sunset Park, Brooklyn, became city-operated on November 1, 1906, as provided for by the 1903 law transferring ownership of that route to the city. Its Brooklyn terminus was located near the Brooklyn, Bath and West End Railroad's former 39th Street terminal, but as that railroad had been converted into the West End subway line, the Brooklyn ferry now primarily served industrial interests in Sunset Park. Mayor George McClellan, elected as Low's successor in 1903, and Docks Commissioner Maurice Featherson were initially skeptical of the acquisition; but despite their objections, the Sinking Funds Commission approved the private line's acquisition in 1905.
Staten Island Ferry | City ownership and ferries to other destinations
The Staten Island Railway (formerly known as the "Staten Island Rapid Transit") is a rapid transit system on Staten Island, New York. Its operator has been the Metropolitan Transportation Authority of New York since 1971, whereas prior to that year it was owned by the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad.
List of Staten Island Railway stations | Introduction
The railroad line was still intact from Cranford Junction to Arlington.
History of the Staten Island Railway | Decline: 1971–2000
By the 1900s, Staten Islanders were becoming dissatisfied with the railway-operated ferry service to Manhattan, which they felt was unsafe. The turning point came on June 14, 1901, when the CNJ ferry "Mauch Chunk" struck the B&O ferryboat "Northfield II" as the latter was leaving the ferry port at Whitehall, tearing a hole through the middle of "Northfield". Damaged beyond repair, "Northfield II" sank within ten minutes, ending up near the modern South Street Seaport. Out of 995 passengers aboard, only four or five were killed. The dead were not recovered for several days, and one man's body drifted around the southern tip of Manhattan and across the Hudson River.
Staten Island Ferry | End of Staten Island Railway era
The North Shore section of Staten Island is best served by public transportation. The Castleton Bus Depot at Castleton and Jewett Avenues is the main depot, and the Meredith Avenue Depot on the West Shore also holds buses for North Shore routes. The Staten Island Railway South Shore Branch has stops in Saint George, Tompkinsville, Stapleton, and Clifton. The North Shore was previously served by the North Shore Branch of the Staten Island Railway. The North Shore is also home to the Staten Island Ferry.
North Shore, Staten Island | Transportation
By 1967, all other ferries in New York City had closed due to competition from automobile traffic, and the St. George to Whitehall route was the only ferry in the city. It remained as such until the 1980s, when other ferry routes were restarted. Off-peak service was reduced in 1967, but two months later that service was restored. However, due to the mid-1970s New York City fiscal crisis, night service ended on July 1, 1975, with alternate service being provided by the Fourth Avenue subway. Night service was restored in the 1980s after two boats, comprising the current "Austen" class, were ordered specifically for off-peak and night voyages.
Staten Island Ferry | Decline and recovery
The Long Island City Ferry Terminal is located at the north end of Gantry Plaza State Park. It is served by the Astoria route in both directions.
List of NYC Ferry stops | Long Island City
Staten Island Railway's Clifton station is three stops from the Staten Island Ferry at St. George. Clifton is also served by the buses along Bay Street, the buses along Tompkins Avenue, the buses along Targee Street/Van Duzer Street, and the buses along Vanderbilt Avenue. Starting in August 2018, express bus service to and from Manhattan is also provided by the route. Due to increased traffic congestion in Clifton, the Staten Island Transportation Task Force and Co-Chairs New York City Department of Transportation (DOT) Commissioner Iris Weinshall and Department of City Planning (DCP) Director Amanda Burden have acted to relieve the congestion in the area.
Clifton, Staten Island | Transportation
There is an active passenger ferry terminal at the southern tip of Whitehall Street: the Whitehall Terminal, which serves the Staten Island Ferry. However, its facilities in use have shifted over the decade, as have the destinations served. The original Whitehall Terminal served Brooklyn, Governors Island, Staten Island, and Jersey City, New Jersey, and it was originally served mainly by the Interborough Rapid Transit Company's elevated train lines at South Ferry station. Furthermore, the terminal once served vehicular traffic. However, the subways have replaced the els, and cars now use fixed crossings such as the Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel. The structure was renovated in the 1950s and reopened in 1956.
Whitehall Street | Transportation
These boats entered service in 1986. By the late 1980s, ferries had again become a popular mode of transport in the area. In 1991, seventy companies expressed interest in bidding for the rights to operate new ferries across the city. This list of potential bidders was reduced to three companies by 1993. One of these ferries was to be a ferry from Staten Island to midtown Manhattan; this new ferry would travel at top speeds of , as opposed to the existing Whitehall-to-St. George ferry's . New York Fast Ferry was ultimately selected to run a ferry from St. George to East 34th Street in Midtown Manhattan, starting service in January 1997 with about 1,650 commuters a day using the service.
Staten Island Ferry | Decline and recovery
The Staten Island Railway (SIR) is the only rapid transit line in the New York City borough of Staten Island. It is owned by the Staten Island Rapid Transit Operating Authority (SIRTOA), a subsidiary of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, and operated by the New York City Transit Authority Department of Subways. SIR operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week, providing local service between St. George and Tottenville, along the east side of the island. There is no direct rail link between the SIR and the New York City Subway system, but SIR riders do receive a free transfer to New York City Transit bus and subway lines, and the line is included on official New York City Subway maps.
Staten Island Railway | Introduction
The schedules and the five-cent fare for the ferry were maintained. In 1963, Perth Amboy ferry service was discontinued.
History of the Staten Island Railway | Transfer of ferry service: 1947–1948
The reopening of the Whitehall Terminal took place on February 2005.
Staten Island Ferry Whitehall Terminal | New terminal
A new ferry and rail terminal at the St. George site (then called St. George's Landing) and an extension of the Staten Island Railway (then called Staten Island Rapid Transit or SIRT) north from Vanderbilt's Landing (today's Clifton Station) had been proposed in the 1870s by the owners of the Staten Island Railroad, George Law, Cornelius Vanderbilt, and Erastus Wiman, to replace the various ferry sites on the north and east shores of Staten Island. St. George was selected due to it being the closest point from Staten Island to Manhattan, approximately a distance. The name of the terminal and the local neighborhood were renamed to St.
St. George Terminal | History
On February 7, 2005, a completely renovated and modernized terminal, designed by architect Frederic Schwartz, was dedicated, along with the new two-acre Peter Minuit Plaza in the Battery. The terminal contains connections to the New York City Subway's South Ferry/Whitehall Street station complex, as well as to buses and taxis. A "gateway to the city", set against the backdrop of Manhattan's greatest buildings on one side and the river on the other, the design was created to imbue the terminal "with a strong sense of civic presence". In his remarks at the terminal's dedication, Mayor Michael Bloomberg stated that "You can walk into this spectacular terminal day or night and feel like you're part of the city ...
Staten Island Ferry | Whitehall Terminal
The bridge's drawspan was , the fixed spans were , and there were clear waterways of on either side of the draw, making the bridge wide. The bridge was above the low water mark. Construction of the draw needed 656 tons of iron, and 85 tons were needed for each of the approaches. Trains were planned to start running on the bridge by September 1, but because the approaches were not finished, this was delayed until January 1, 1890, when the first train from St. George to Cranford Junction crossed the bridge. Because the land for the approaches was low and swampy, of elevated structure was built; on Staten Island and in New Jersey.
History of the Staten Island Railway | Extension to New Jersey
The cash fare is $2.75, the same fare as the New York City Subway and MTA buses. Fares are paid on entry and exit only at St. George and Tompkinsville. Rides not originating or terminating at St. George or Tompkinsville are free. Fares are payable by MetroCard or OMNY. Since the card enables free transfers for a continuous ride on the subway and bus systems, for many more riders there is effectively no fare for riding the SIR. Riders can also transfer between a Staten Island bus, the SIR and a Manhattan bus (or subway) near South Ferry. Because of this, the SIR's 2001 farebox recovery ratio was 0.16; for every dollar of expense, 16 cents was recovered in fares (the lowest ratio of MTA agencies).
Staten Island Railway | Fare
There are eight ferry boats currently in service, from four classes—"Kennedy", "Barberi", "Austen", and "Molinari".
Staten Island Ferry | Current
Due to the city's financial crisis in the mid-1970s, Mayor Abraham Beame submitted a proposal to increase the fare in July 1975. On August 4, 1975, the fare was increased to 25 cents for a round trip, collected in one direction only. The fare increase was intended to earn the ferry service an extra $1.35 million in annual revenue.
Staten Island Ferry | Fares
The platform is smaller than most others in the system, having only of surface area, and it was originally served from two stairs leading from the Staten Island Ferry's Whitehall Terminal. The radius of the curve is only , meaning that the platform curves approximately 77.5 degrees between its front and back ends. The platform accommodates the first five cars of a train, but the rear five cars of a 10-car 1 train cannot load or unload. In addition, spray nozzles are required to lubricate the track to reduce the friction caused by the tight curve, which slows train operation and generates a loud metallic scraping noise.
South Ferry/Whitehall Street station | Station features
On October 15, 2003, at 3:21 p.m., the Staten Island Ferry vessel "Andrew J. Barberi" crashed full-speed into a concrete maintenance pier at the St. George Terminal in Upper New York Bay. Eleven people were killed and 70 injured, some critically. Pilot Richard J. Smith and New York City ferry director Patrick Ryan pleaded guilty and were jailed for seaman's manslaughter – Smith was piloting under impairment from painkillers, and Ryan failed to enforce the city rule requiring two pilots in the wheelhouse during docking.
2003 Staten Island Ferry crash | Introduction
George maintenance facility until its maiden voyage on April 4, 2006. Since delivery, the ferries have been beset by frequent breakdowns, with 58 such incidents from 2008 to 2014; almost half of these breakdowns have been on "Guy V. Molinari".
Staten Island Ferry | "Molinari" class
Representative for several Staten Island districts, who later became a borough president of Staten Island. It was delivered in September 2004. The second ferry was named for State Senator John Marchi, who represented Staten Island for fifty years and delivered January 5, 2005. The third ferry, "Spirit of America", was delivered September 16, 2005 and scheduled to be put into service on October 25, to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the municipal takeover of the Staten Island Ferry from the B&O railroad. Mechanical problems on the "Molinari"-class ferries and legal proceedings kept "Spirit of America" sidelined at the Staten Island Ferry's St.
Staten Island Ferry | "Molinari" class
Commuters testified that trains were missing connections to ferry boats and that some trains were being held at the St. George Terminal during rush hour to wait for two boatloads of passengers. Previously, they said, the trains pulled out with only one boatload of passengers. On September 13, 1948, the SIRT agreed to add four trains and to extend the schedule of four others. On January 5, 1949, the PSC recommended the SIRT restore the service cut; if it refused, the PSC would order the SIRT to restore the service. Hall suggested lowering the fare to 10 cents or a 20-cent round trip to make the service more competitive with the buses on the island.
History of the Staten Island Railway | Service cuts and the discontinuation of service: 1948–1953