Bridgeport & Port Jefferson Ferry

The Bridgeport & Port Jefferson Steamboat Company, commonly referred to as the Bridgeport & Port Jefferson Ferry is a ferry company that operates passenger and vehicle ferry service across Long Island Sound, between the city of Bridgeport, Connecticut and the Long Island village of Port Jefferson, New York. Founded in 1883, it is one of the oldest continuously-operating ferry companies in the United States.

The MV Park City crossing Long Island Sound during the summer of 2016
WaterwayLong Island Sound
Transit typePassenger and automobile ferry
RouteBridgeport, Connecticut - Port Jefferson, New York
Carriespassengers, bicycles, motorcycles, cars, trucks, and buses of all sizes
OwnerMcAllister Towing and Transportation Co., Inc.
Began operation1883
Travel time1 hour and 15 minutes, one way
No. of vessels3
No. of terminals2
Yearly ridership1,000,000 (2019)
Yearly vehicles400,000 (2019)
Websitewww.88844ferry.com

Service

The Bridgeport & Port Jefferson Ferry operates between Port Jefferson, NY and Bridgeport, CT, and the service currently consists of three vessels and two terminals. Each vessel contains a dual-level car deck with capacity ranging from 85 to 120, with capacity often selling out on summer weekends and holiday sailing periods. Onboard amenities include a bar (branded the Steamboat Lounge), food service, restrooms, and both indoor and outdoor seating.

Travel time across Long Island Sound is approximately 1 hour and 15 minutes.

History

The first ferry service began in 1872 and proved popular.[1] The Bridgeport & Port Jefferson Steamboat Company was subsequently founded in 1883 by several backers, including entrepreneur P.T. Barnum,[2] and Port Jefferson seaman Charles E. Tooker.[3] The ferry company originally operated steamship service, but the acquisition of the Martha's Vineyard in 1968 ended steamship service. Since then, the company has been referred to in signage and conversation as the Bridgeport & Port Jefferson Ferry, but the term Steamboat Company is still used legally.

Since 1980, the President has been Brian McAllister who also owns one hundred percent of the company's shares.[4] The McAllisters purchased the company in 1960 from Joseph Tooker, Charles Tooker's grandson.[5]

During the 1980s, the ferry company offered year-round service for the first time in company's history. The entrances of the Grand Republic (not to be confused with the current Grand Republic, built in 2003) and the Park City into service in 1983 and 1986, respectively, were each met with skyrocketing ridership.

In 1999, with the entrance of the PT Barnum into service, the ferry company began operating hourly, three-vessel service on weekends, holidays, and during the summer.[6] The ferry company still operates only two vessels on off-season weekdays and during periods of vessel maintenance, with departures every 90 minutes. A new Grand Republic entered service in 2003, while the old one was sold to Cross Sound Ferry and renamed the Mary Ellen.

On May 29, 2009, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit upheld a United States District Court for the District of Connecticut ruling that the Bridgeport Port Authority was unconstitutionally collecting taxes from the ferry company and passengers and using the tax money for purposes other than for the benefit of the ferry company and passengers.[4] The port authority was ordered to pay the ferry company $1.1 million in damages.[7]

In 2013, the ferry company unveiled plans to move its Bridgeport dock across Bridgeport Harbor to a new and larger terminal on Seaview Avenue at the former site of Turbana Corporation.[8] The city approved the plan in April 2014, and the new terminal was slated to open in 2020, however due to delays owing to environmental and legal issues and the COVID-19 pandemic, construction on the new terminal has yet to commence as of 2023.[9]

In June 2016, the Bridgeport & Port Jefferson Ferry made significant changes to its ticketing system. Tickets were for many years purchased while on board the vessel (at a purser's booth) and turned in to a crew member before walking or driving off. However, in June 2016, the new ticket system was implemented, where tickets are purchased and turned in before boarding the vessel. Tickets are sold online, over the phone, and inside the terminals. The new tickets contain bar codes, which are scanned prior to boarding, and can also be displayed over a cell phone or mobile device.[10]

In January 2023, Eastern Shipbuilding Group in Panama City, Florida, began cutting steel for a new ferryboat for the Bridgeport & Port Jefferson Ferry; a keel authentication ceremony was held for it on March 9, 2023. A name for the vessel has not been announced, but the vessel is expected to be delivered in March 2024. The new ferry's design is based on that of the PT Barnum and Grand Republic. [11]

Ports

The distance between the two ports is approximately 18 miles (29 km). The average crossing is one hour and fifteen minutes in duration.

Bridgeport

The ferry is located at 330 Water Street on the western bank of Bridgeport Harbor. It is within walking distance of the Arena at Harbor Yard, the Ballpark at Harbor Yard, the Barnum Museum, the Metro-North station, the main GBTA Bus Station, the Klein Memorial Auditorium, and most of downtown. In 2004 a new car loading ramp was installed featuring AASHTO HS-20 truck capacity.[12] The aforementioned proposed new terminal will be located on the opposite side of Bridgeport harbor in Bridgeport’s East End neighborhood off Seaview Avenue at the former site of Turbana Corporation. The ferry company plans to operate either a shuttle or water taxi between the new terminal and downtown.

Port Jefferson

The ferry is located at 102 West Broadway at the head of the harbor. A large gold leaf statue of an eagle was erected on the corner of East Broadway and NY 25A in 2002, replacing one of Thomas Jefferson. Directly across from the dock, it is a monument for victims of 9/11.[13] The ferry is approximately one mile north of the Port Jefferson LIRR station.[14]

Current fleet

There are currently three vessels in service.[2][15] Each vessel is configured similarly, with a dual-level car deck ranging in capacity from 85 to 120. Each vessel has a second deck above the car deck containing a small outdoor area with a handicapped elevator near the back, a large passenger cabin in the middle, with restrooms, seating and a snack bar, and a cocktail lounge (for passengers 21 and over) near the front. A third level contains more outdoor seating, as well as the bridge and helm. All three vessels have elevators from the car deck to the second and third levels, located near the back of each vessel. Each vessel is capable of traveling at speeds of 16 knots (18 mph).

MV Park City

The MV Park City was built in 1986 by Offshore Shipbuilding in Palatka, Florida at a cost of $5 million. She is 280 feet (85 m) long and 47 feet (14 m) wide with capacity for 85 cars.

In 2010, the Park City was re-powered with Caterpillar engines certified to EPA Tier 2 emissions standards, and in 2012 she received a complete refurbishment of her main passenger cabin and a new elevator for handicapped passengers; the 2012 renovation made the Park City ADA-compliant. [16]

MV P.T. Barnum

The MV PT Barnum was built in 1999 by Eastern Shipbuilding Group Panama City, Florida. It is 300 feet (91 m) long and 52 feet (16 m) wide, and is named after the ferry company's co-founder, Bridgeport circus impresario PT Barnum. She is capable of carrying 120 cars and was constructed at a cost of $14 million.

MV Grand Republic

The MV Grand Republic was built in 2003 by Eastern Shipbuilding Group in Panama City, FL, and was built to the same specifications as the PT Barnum. Like the PT Barnum, the Grand Republic is 300 feet long and 52 feet wide and has capacity for 120 cars.

Former fleet
  • Grand Republic The name Grand Republic was previously used for an older and slightly smaller vessel built in 1983. It was built in 1983 (The ferry company's centennial) by Offshore Shipbuilding in Palatka, FL, who would also build the MV Park City 3 years later (The two boats were built to similar but not identical specifications). It was 280 feet long and 44 feet wide with capacity for 85 cars. It was sold to Cross Sound Ferry in March 2003, who renamed it the Mary Ellen and placed it back in service on their route between New London, Connecticut and Orient, New York that June, where it remains in service as of 2023.
  • SS Martha's Vineyard - Before the (1983) Grand Republic, this steel-hulled, diesel-powered ship ran seasonally (no winter service) with six round trips a day from 1968. It was built in Bath, Maine in 1923, and was previously used by the Woods Hole, Martha's Vineyard, and Nantucket Steamship Authority. She had capacity for 35 cars. It was sold in late 1985 to Massachusetts Bay Lines while the MV Park City was under construction. Massachusetts Bay Lines intended to convert her into a dinner cruise ship, but never did, and the Martha's Vineyard was ultimately scrapped in 1990.[17]
  • Catskill - The Catskill was built in 1924 to replace the Nonowantuc, and was the first steel-hulled vessel in the company's history. It was named after the Catskill mountains in upstate New York. It was sold 1968 after the Martha's Vineyard was bought.[18]
  • Park City - A previous Park City served from 1898 through 1951. Its name was derived from the city of Bridgeport's nickname. Built for $50,000, 28 feet (8.5 m) wide/150 feet (46 m) long 898 gross tons, 800 horsepower, 15 knots. Coal (hard)powered.[19]
  • Nonowantuc - The first vessel in the Bridgeport & Port Jefferson Ferry's history, serving from 1883 to 1924. It was slightly smaller than the 1898 Park City, but also featured masts if the boilers failed.[19]
  • The 1898 Park City Ferry on a postcard
    The 1898 Park City Ferry on a postcard
  • The MV PT Barnum at Port Jefferson Harbor
    The MV PT Barnum at Port Jefferson Harbor
  • Port Jefferson Harbor
    Port Jefferson Harbor
  • Satellite image of Bridgeport & Port Jefferson
    Satellite image of Bridgeport & Port Jefferson
  • The renovated cabin of the MV Park City
    The renovated cabin of the MV Park City
  • Bridgeport Harbor Dock
    Bridgeport Harbor Dock

References
  1. "Powered by Google Docs". Retrieved 2011-03-02.
  2. Cavanaugh, Jack (August 1, 1999). "The View From/Bridgeport; With Ridership Rising, Ferry Gets a New Ship". The New York Times. Retrieved 2011-03-02.
  3. "Crossing the Sound, the ferry's history in photographs". Northshoreoflongisland.com. 2007-02-23. Archived from the original on 2017-08-02. Retrieved 2011-03-02.
  4. "Docket No. 08-3886-cv. - BRIDGEPORT AND PORT JEFFERSON STEAMBOAT COMPANY v. BRIDGEPORT PORT AUTHORITY - US 2nd Circuit". Caselaw.findlaw.com. Retrieved 2011-03-02.
  5. Witkowski, Mary K.; Williams, Bruce (2001). Bridgeport on the Sound - Google Books. ISBN 9780738508627. Retrieved 2011-03-02.
  6. Company, The Bridgeport & Port Jefferson Steamboat. "The Bridgeport & Port Jefferson Steamboat Company > About Us > A Look at the Fleet". www.88844ferry.com. Retrieved 6 May 2018.
  7. "Ferry Company Awarded Fees In Court Fight–Now What?". onlyinbridgeport.com. Retrieved 6 May 2018.
  8. Burgeson, John (8 May 2012). "City warming up to idea Port Jeff ferry move". Connecticut Post. Retrieved 6 May 2018.
  9. Lockhart, Brian (15 April 2014). "Ferry to move across Bridgeport Harbor". Connecticut Post. Retrieved 6 May 2018.
  10. Company, The Bridgeport & Port Jefferson Steamboat. "Dockside Ticketing at the Ferry!". www.88844ferry.com. Retrieved 6 May 2018.
  11. "Eastern Hosts Keel Authentication for New Bridgeport-Port Jefferson Ferry". www.marinelink.com. Retrieved 27 June 2023.
  12. "Microsoft Word - Newsletter Page 1 - 0404.doc" (PDF). Retrieved 2011-03-02.
  13. Fischler, Marcelle S. (June 30, 2002). "Long Island Journal; Tug of War Over a Monument". The New York Times. Retrieved 2011-03-02.
  14. Archived July 18, 2010, at the Wayback Machine
  15. "Ferries Built in the U.S. since WWII". Shipbuildinghistory.com. 2009-10-06. Archived from the original on 2012-11-17. Retrieved 2011-03-02.
  16. Burgeson, John (15 April 2012). "Ferry gets refitted with new elevator, amenities". Connecticut Post. Retrieved 6 May 2018.
  17. "Final Chapter: The Islander and Other Bygone Ferries". 1 August 2010. Retrieved 6 May 2018.
  18. A. Kisselgof. "Final chapter: The Islander and other bygone ferries". US-MA: Mvmagazine.com. Retrieved 2011-03-02.
  19. Long Island Genealogy. "The legendary Park City of The Bridgeport & Port Jefferson Steamboat Company". Longislandgenealogy.com. Retrieved 2011-03-02.
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