City Council Majority Leader Shaun Abreu is pushing New York City to flip the switch on ferry service between West Harlem Piers at West 125th Street and Edgewater, New Jersey, arguing the route could whisk World Cup-bound fans to MetLife Stadium and ease some of the usual cross-Hudson pain. Abreu is pitching the idea as a fast, low-cost fix, saying the piers are already in place and that all the city must do is “launch the boats.”
In a letter to City Hall and the NYC Economic Development Corporation, Abreu, who serves as the Council’s majority leader and chair of the transportation committee, wrote that service from 125th to Edgewater “would provide a relief valve, letting fans bypass the George Washington Bridge and the Lincoln and Holland Tunnels entirely,” and that crossings would take under 10 minutes, according to Streetsblog New York City. The outlet also reports that EDC told Streetsblog it “appreciates” the proposal and will “evaluate it thoroughly.”
Funding and timeline
Abreu is urging city officials to chase federal ferry grants and short-term funding windows to get boats running before the tournament. The Department of Transportation’s FY-2026 notice makes roughly $105 million available for passenger ferry projects and about $98 million for electric or low-emitting ferry pilots, with complete proposals due through Grants.gov by 11:59 p.m. Eastern on May 11, 2026, per the Federal Transit Administration. “The city has $10 million from the Federal Transit Administration to use for transit during the games,” Streetsblog New York City reported, which Abreu suggested could help cover start-up costs.
How it could ease choke points
Supporters are leaning on the short hop across the Hudson and the heavy traffic volumes that typically clog the crossings. A route from Edgewater to West Harlem Piers would take under 10 minutes, an estimate outlined by Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine in an amNY op-ed. By contrast, Port Authority traffic counts show the George Washington Bridge handled roughly 3.8 to 4 million car trips and about 21,000 buses per month in 2025, per Port Authority data. MetLife Stadium is set to host eight World Cup matches, including the final, which will pile even more pressure on Hudson crossings and transit options, according to CBS New York.
Ridership and equity
Ferry boosters are also pointing to ridership trends. New York City Economic Development Corporation data show NYC Ferry recorded more than 7.1 million annual boardings in FY24 and then set another record in FY25, a pattern advocates say underscores demand for water transit and falling per-rider subsidies, according to NYCEDC. Backers argue that adding a trans-Hudson link from 125th would extend ferry access into historically underserved West Harlem neighborhoods and create new, car-free connections to jobs across the river.
Whether boats can actually be launched before the first match will hinge on permits, operator contracts and the tight federal grant timeline. For now, the grant window and Abreu’s push have put the idea squarely on the table, and city agencies and EDC have only weeks to sort out logistics and funding before the May 11 federal application cutoff.
