A ferry could finally be in the works for Coney Island.
It depends on whether the city council greenlights a bill introduced by Council Member Justin Brannan that would require city agencies to conduct a study on a potential ferry service in the nabe.
The proposed law would require Department of Transportation commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez to open a study and report on the feasibility of a Coney Island ferry, with help from the Department of Small Business Services and the New York City Economic Development Corporation.
“I’m officially resurrecting the push for an ocean side Coney ferry with service from Steeplechase Pier to Manhattan,” Brannan said on X. “I fought to bring an express ferry back to Bay Ridge and it’s been a game changer. Now it’s time to finally make the Coney ferry a reality.”
Brannan’s bill encourages the city to consider potential terminal sites in walkable locations for southern Brooklynites, whether by constructing a new facility or converting an existing facility. It further considers placing a terminal the Steeplechase Pier near West 16th Street and at other potential sites in the waters of the Coney Island Channel and on the ocean side of the peninsula.
The proposal breathed new life into the fight for a ferry for many Coney Islanders. Advocates have long petitioned for an oceanside ferry that could increase accessibility to Manhattan. Their fire was extinguished a bit in 2022 when plans for a ferry on the creekside were paused indefinitely. City officials had discovered a significant sand shift on the floor of the creek, which posed a safety and navigation risk, and said that constructing a ferry landing at any of the proposed sites would have cost at least five times as much as a standard ferry landing.
Residents pushed back that same year, with cries like “We deserve a ferry.”
One of those cries came from Craig Hammerman, co-president of Coney Islanders for an Oceanside Ferry, a pro-ferry advocacy group.
“The city has previously found that Coney Island is worthy of a ferry service and we’re in full agreement with the city. For all the same reasons that were justified on the creek side location, they’re just as justified for the oceanside project,” he told Brooklyn Paper.
If the law is passed, the city would also have to evaluate possible logistical challenges—existing channels, piers, and routes—that could interfere with introducing the Coney Island ferry and propose solutions to said challenges. Rodriguez would then have to submit the findings to Mayor Eric Adams and Speaker of the Council Adrienne Adams within a year of the law being passed.
Hammerman considers the law good news for locals. But he hopes the community can play a larger participatory role than in previous years, increasing their chance of actually enjoying a Coney Island ferry.
“This [law] is tremendous news because it’s really the only path forward we have,” Hammerman said. “There’s ample opportunity for the community to be involved moving forward. It’s time to start writing the next chapter for Coney Island.”
