MTA will add a ferry line during the L train shutdown

The MTA revealed last week that it will add a ferry line between North Williamsburg and the East Village to try to help pick up some of the traffic expected when the L train shuts down between Manhattan and Brooklyn for tunnel repairs next year.

About 225,000 New Yorkers currently cross from Brooklyn to Manhattan each day. With the shutdown expected to last for 15 months, many of them are wondering how, exactly, they’ll get from home to work come April of next year. The suggestions so far from the MTA have left people less than enthusiastic.

But now, according to local news site Brooklyner, the MTA and DOT will set up a new, temporary ferry line across the East River for the duration of the track work.

“According to the presentation, temporary ferry service during the shutdown will run 6:00 am-Midnight Sunday through Thursday, with a potential for extended hours until 2:00 am on Saturday and Sundays, pending coordination with the NYC Department of Parks and Recreation,” reporter Paul Stremple wrote last week.

Stremple noted that the ferry will depart from the North Williamsburg ferry platform between 5th and 6th Streets and land at Stuvesant Cove Park, runs from 20th to 23rd Streets on the other side of the river.

But don’t expect the new ferry make too much of an impact on the travel landscape. During rush hour, the MTA plans to run eight boats per hour, which adds up to about 1,2000 riders. That’s about the same as just one L train each hour.

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