Res 0538-2018

By Council Member Holden Whereas, LaGuardia Airport is the twentieth busiest airport in the United States according to data collected by the Federal Aviation Administration, serving over two million passengers per month; and Whereas, LaGuardia Airport employs over 11,000 people who commute from Western Queens, East Harlem, Upper Manhattan, and the Bronx according to a 2013 study conducted by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology; and Whereas, Traffic congestion on the roads and highways leading to LaGuardia Airport is so severe that the Transportation Security Administration has advised passengers to allow themselves at least two hours in order to travel to the airport; and Whereas, LaGuardia Airport is not currently accessible through the Metropolitan Transportation Authority subway service; and Whereas, LaGuardia Airport is the only major airport under the purview of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey that is not accessible by train; and Whereas, Governor Andrew Cuomo's plan to renovate LaGuardia Airport includes a ferry terminal to be located at the Marine Air Terminal; and Whereas, Renovations on LaGuardia Airport are scheduled to be completed by 2021; and Whereas, The Queens Borough Board supports the addition of the Marine Air Terminal ferry terminal and expanded ferry service to LaGuardia Airport; and Whereas, The New York City Economic Development Corporation, in a 2013 study of citywide ferry service, projected that a ferry to LaGuardia Airport Marine Air Terminal could have a potential daily ridership of over 800 people; and Whereas, expanded NYC Ferry service to LaGuardia Airport would provide an alternative, affordable mode of transportation for the tens of thousands of people who use LaGuardia Airport on a daily basis; and Whereas, NYC Ferry service is provided by Hornblower Cruises & Events through a contract managed by the New York City Economic Development Corporation; now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the Council of the City of New York calls on the New York City Economic Development Corporation to expand NYC Ferry service to LaGuardia Airport. LS #7523 9/10/2018 AW 1 2