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If getting to LaGuardia Airport or Citi Field has ever left you cursing the traffic gods—or your Uber receipt—some much-needed relief might finally be sailing in.
In a letter to Mayor Eric Adams and Queens Borough President Donovan Richards Jr., Mets owner and hedge-fund billionaire Steve Cohen pitched the idea of adding two new NYC Ferry stops: one for LaGuardia and one for the Mets' baseball stadium, Bloomberg News first reported. His argument? With congestion only getting worse in the area, ferry service is a “key part of mitigating parking and traffic issues.”
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Cohen’s request arrives with some heavy-hitting backup: the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, LaGuardia Gateway Partners, and NYCFC, whose new stadium is set to open in 2027 in nearby Willets Point, all signed the letter. With a flood of new foot traffic heading to the neighborhood thanks to the stadium, an $800 million Arthur Ashe Stadium renovation and a proposed $8 billion casino project at Citi Field, the demand for alternative transit is clear.
Though the ferry system—operated by Hornblower and overseen by the city’s Economic Development Corporation—currently connects all five boroughs, it hasn’t yet reached Flushing Bay. That could change if taxpayer-backed funding is secured. While the base fare for a ferry ride is currently $4.50, each ride is still subsidized by city dollars—to the tune of about $8.55 per passenger as of 2023, according to NYC EDC. That’s down from nearly $13 in previous years, but it’s still a hefty cost-per-rider, especially compared to buses and subways.
Still, critics caution that ferries may be more flash than fix. Their low capacity, minimal integration with the subway and bus systems and the need for multiple transfers (especially at LGA) make them a scenic but imperfect solution. As one transit analyst warned back in 2022: “Every complex problem has a solution that is simple, neat—and wrong.”
For now, there are some other ways to dodge the travel chaos. Seastreak’s private ferry to Citi Field runs from Staten Island and New Jersey, complete with cocktails and skyline views. Uber also launched a flat-rate $18 fare from Manhattan to LaGuardia last fall.
Is ferry service to LGA and the Mets’ home field a stroke of transit genius—or just another splashy distraction from real mass transit investment? Only time (and tide) will tell.