INTERVIEW Establishing waterborne transit in New York City Hornblower Group’s Timothy O’Brien tells Lindsay James how New York City’s ferry network has evolved into a defining feature of its transportation system Since it launched in 2017, NYC Ferry has fundamentally transformed the way New Yorkers travel throughout the city and how they experience its more than 500 miles of waterfront. Hornblower Group, the founding operator of NYC Ferry, has been responsible for building, delivering and operating the entire municipal fleet on behalf of the city. Today, that fleet totals 38 vessels operating across five routes, serving all five boroughs. “It’s hard to believe now, but early on there was a question of whether New Yorkers would embrace waterborne transit,” says Timothy O’Brien, senior vice president of ferries and transportation at Hornblower Group. “Today, we carry nearly eight million passengers per year and have served over 50 million passengers to date.” NYC Ferry’s growth has come with significant operational and financial milestones. Over the past three years, the company has achieved record passenger numbers and all-time highs in farebox revenue, while reducing its per-rider “At Hornblower, we make captains and engineers every day” 84
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