NEW YORK (1010 WINS/WCBS 880) — Advocates rallied on Sunday afternoon at Canarsie Pier to call for Mayor Eric Adams to bring NYC Ferry service to the east Brooklyn neighborhood, an effort they say would provide more transit options to residents and potential visitors, and one that the former Brooklyn borough president once supported.
“It’d make everybody’s life in Canarsie easier. I mean, you just have one train, it's 20 minutes to take a bus to the train,” Canarsie resident Dorothy told 1010 WINS/WCBS 880. “Having a ferry here would help immensely with the traffic.”
These experiences in the New York City transit desert—which is off only one train line, the L—are not singular, and the community has been pushing for a ferry connection since the transit option was introduced in 2017.
For some, including Bayview Resident Association President Sheryl Boyce, closing the transit gap in Canarsie is a matter of accessibility.
“Most train stations lack elevators, making it nearly impossible for people like me who use walkers to get around,” Boyce said. “This ferry not only benefits those looking for another route to Manhattan, but it also greatly benefits people with disabilities. We’ve been waiting too long for action on this issue.”
The Canarsie Improvement Association has collected over 6,000 petition signatures in the last seven years to fight for a ferry stop, and City Hall has been expanding the ferry network through the Adams administration’s “Ferry Forward” program, yet “no plans” have been made to connect Canarsie.
“We welcome New Yorkers’ advocacy and excitement about NYC Ferry and the recognition about the critical part it plays in our communities,” City Hall spokesperson Adrien Lesser said in a statement Sunday. “While we currently have no plans for expansion, our focus is on making our current service more accessible, equitable, and financially sustainable.”
Executive director of the Canarsie Merchant Association Norine Medas told 1010 WINS/WCBS 880 that the mayor’s lack of action will not squander the fight to connect the neighborhood, which she says would bring tourists to Canarise’s diverse restaurants and businesses.
“There’s lots to see here in Canarsie,” Medas said. “So thank you, Mr. Mayor. You have no plans, but that won't stop us from asking. We enjoy the waterfront, and we want to be able to explore.”
When he served as borough president, Adams was a vocal advocate of the NYC Ferry reaching Canarsie, noting that it was an important step toward transit equity.
“My pursuits of ferry service to Canarsie—a community in true need of transit equity—as well as a ferry connection between Brooklyn and Staten Island are as strong as ever,” Adams said in a 2019 statement regarding then-Mayor Bill de Blasio’s expansion of the network to Coney Island.
Flossy Organization founder Jibreel Jalloh told 1010 WINS that Adams' change in position once he ascended to mayor is a “slap in the face,” especially amid revelations of other major investments along the waterfront. He hopes rallying can push the mayor to “follow through” on his prior promises.
“Eric Adams has said that Canarsie deserves a ferry,” Jalloh said. “Fast forward, he’s now the mayor, and we’ve been pushing and petitioning and asking and demanding that he finally connects Canarsie to the system … but he just hasn’t responded, so we’re coming out again.”
According to the Flossy Organization, historical records available at the Brooklyn Public Library confirm an active service line from Canarsie to the Rockaways existed in the 1900s, another route that would provide access to important recreation for the east Brooklyn residents.
“Right across the Jamaica Bay, there’s a Rockaway Parkway stop,” Jalloh said. “And currently, if you’re in Canarsie, to get to the beach you have to take two buses, two trains.”
Adams recently announced an NYC Ferry summer route to the Rockaways that launches out of Greenpoint and Long Island City in Queens.