Water Taxi abandons all East River commuters

The Water Taxi sent out a follow up e-mail yesterday, making it clear it's not just Red Hook left high and dry for the winter, but also the other stops on its East River service:

New York Water Taxi regretfully announces the suspension of commuter service on the East River from 1/1/08 to 5/1/08. As you may know, NYWT took over the service in 2003, on short notice, when it was abandoned by another operator. We have added new stops and worked tirelessly to make the run economically viable.

This year, for the first time, the service broke even during the spring, summer and fall when tourists used the commuter service for sightseeing and visitors traveling to and from Water Taxi Beach.

However, fuel prices have doubled since the beginning of 2007 and during the winter months ridership on the East River commuter service decreases approximately 30%. Therefore, it is not economically viable to operate the service during the winter months.

We apologize for the inconvenience that this service suspension will undoubtedly cause. NYWT will resume the service on May 1, 2008. ...

Earlier: Water Taxi's Christmas Eve special

Labels: brooklyn, red hook

- posted by Amy @ 12/21/2007 08:58:00 AM