STEVE SHANE, PRESIDENT OF RIOC, PROVIDED THE FOLLOWING RESPONSE IN REGARD TO ROOSEVELT ISLAND FERRY SERVICE INQUIRY:
RIOC has been supportive of ferry service proposals for a long time.
The owners of the Octagon are well down the road in the permitting
process with the Coast Guard, Army Corp. of Engineers and the City for
the dock and future route approval. RIOC has supported the application
and arranged for the Mayor’s Office of Emergency Management to support
also as an additional means of egress for disaster planning purposes.
A ferry terminal at the transportation hub (tram and subway stations)
would be ideal, but faces large hurdles with Coast Guard, Army Corp.,
etc. West channel currents make service very dicey.
TOM FOX, PRESIDENT OF NY WATER TAXI , HAS ALSO RESPONDED SAYING THAT COUNCILWOMAN JESSICA LAPPIN IS A CHAMPION OF THE PROPOSAL TO PROVIDE FERRY SERVICE TO ROOSEVELT ISLAND.