The first thing commuters notice when they board the York, a 72-foot ferry bobbing off of Slip Four of the World Financial Center Terminal in downtown Manhattan, is the decidedly unferry-like seating arrangement. Gone are the grim rows of uncomfortable, plastic pews that passengers have scorned for years. In their place are brightly colored upholstered seats lining a quiet, spare room, with small, tear-drop-shaped tables hovering among them. Two sets of bar stools border dual walkways near the stern. To echo one middle-aged man fighting the wind with his briefcase as he boards the catamaran: “It’s like a party boat.”
The York, which officially began operation on Tuesday after a two-year delay, is part of a $5 million investment by Goldman Sachs intended to ease transportation between the bank’s two New York-area buildings: the main tower in Battery Park City and the other across the Hudson River in Jersey City. (The bank has also commissioned a sister boat, called the Jersey, but it wasn’t in service on Thursday afternoon.) Between 9:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Goldman employees can travel for free. “It’s really convenient and really quick, and it sticks to a tight schedule,” says Alvin Mai, a Goldman Sachs programmer who opted for the 5-minute, choppy ride on the York back home to Manhattan before rush hour, instead of taking the Path Train. “For the most part your group is in your building, but you can ferry across the river for some cross-divisional stuff or if they’re giving seminars and stuff that’s only held in one building. ”
Operated by the BillyBey Ferry Co., the boats also serve the general public for $6 a leg and have become assimilated into its New York Waterway fleet, which has carried passengers to such ports as Hoboken, Edgewater, and Port Liberté since the 1980s. The York, the only ferry with an appearance distinct from the others—it has a bright-blue hull, wavy green and blue stripes along both sides, and lacks the words NY Waterway across the bridge—operates nonstop, traversing the direct shot across the Hudson between Manhattan and Jersey City from 6 a.m. to 9:30 p.m.
Many of the journey’s regular riders were unaware of the provenance of their newer, flashier ride. “I was wondering why the other boats didn’t upgrade and it was just this one,” says Kristy Kobryn, a 42-year-old certified public accountant who works at Deloitte. “I’m benefiting, and I don’t even work for Goldman.” Kobryn, on her way home to New Jersey, has commuted on this route since the late-90s. “It’s definitely a step up,” she says. “It’s a nicer ride, it’s more comfortable, it seems a little faster. It’s definitely warmer. And I like their new jackets.”
She’s referring to the BillyBey employees on board who shuffle about the cabin collecting tickets. They’re wearing new, forest-green coats with bright shoulder reflectors and matching ball caps. “It goes with the palette,” says one worker, who proudly gestures at the cushioned seats. Kobryn notes that the color scheme of the ferry’s interior—green-and-blue-striped cushions, with a black carpet and gunmetal gray walls—seems wisely chosen. “It doesn’t look like it’ll get dirty,” she says. “Well, it will get dirty, but we won’t notice.”
