De La Rosa challenges subway competition criteria and urges equity

And two, do you all plan to change this criteria that, you know, we're in competition with the subways?

Because that's always going to be there, right?

We're always going to have the A train, the one train, and we're lucky because we're hearing from council members that have no trains.

But that doesn't mean that the A train at the last stop is functional.

It doesn't mean that it's the best effective way to get anywhere.

And it also means that any blockages that happen from the first stop to the last stop where my community is impacts ridership and impacts the economy.

experience, right?

So is there any plans to change the criteria at this time?

Thank you, Councilmember, and thank you for your ongoing advocacy and willingness to work with us and talk through these items.

Yes, absolutely that we are looking, as I've said, with a fresh set of eyes on many of the opportunities that have been raised, not only through these bills, but many other landings from which we've heard advocacy from different communities.

As it relates to areas in Upper Manhattan, including at the end of Dyckman, and also parts along the Harlem River, we are taking a look because we want to, as I have mentioned, looking at this in a way that's not just our regular NYC ferry service is helpful.

It helps us to allow us to be more creative in how we would provide service.

I think that while the idea of ferry is great and people sort of

click onto it, one of the things we also know is that people are looking for ways to connect with their waterfront.

People are looking for a waterfront transit option, which maybe isn't to get to work every day, but maybe on nice days, it's to go on a nice ride along the river.

Maybe it's to get to Midtown or Lower Manhattan on a weekend.

And I think that our ability through the vision study to take into account some of those different operating models, which are often much less expensive to operate, gives us a lot more opportunity to explore some of them.

So I think that what's different now, and I take the question seriously, you know, we've done two, almost three citywide ferry studies.

When you look back over the last 15 years, what is different?

Looking at this not only as a seven-day commuter, seven-day week, 365-day, all the time commuter-based service.

Yeah.

I will also say that, you know, these maps break my heart.

Like, whether it's the New York City tourism map that thinks that Manhattan ends at 96th Street, or it's the ferry map that forgets that, you know, between the Bronx and lower Manhattan, we have the wonderful upper Manhattan

corridors or parts of the Bronx that are disconnected.

It breaks our heart because we have a lot of communities, a lot of businesses that are depending on that economic activity.

And some of the hardest hit communities that have, you know, suffered through this pandemic, we have some of the largest closure rates for our small businesses.

A ferry could really transform the economic activity in a community, and it could really bring with it jobs and a transformational experience, as I'm sure you all believe, because if not, you wouldn't be doing this work.

But I urge you to look at this map with a lens of equity.

Where are there disconnections that we should be filling in those gaps?

And I'm a partner, and I know that we all are here to help you figure that out.

And, you know, we have a budget process.

We can help figure out where the funds come from.

Thank you.

Thank you.