NEW YORK (77WABC) — The Staten Island Ferry for now is running less frequently during rush hours due to a spike in coronavirus infections among crew members.
The New York Times reporting through July 26, ferries will run at 20-minute intervals between 6 and 9 a.m. and 4 and 8 p.m., adding five minutes to usual wait times. The changes mean three boats will run per hour, as opposed to the usual four. At all other hours, ferries will maintain a 30-minute schedule.
A spokesperson for the transportation department said cancellations are possible overnight because of a crew shortage.
But Roland Rexha, secretary-treasurer of the Marine Engineers Beneficial Association, the union that represents ferry maritime workers, said the staff shortages were not in fact due solely to Covid. “The shortages are a direct result of woefully low wages and high competition in maritime jobs,” he said.
A Transportation Department spokesman did not say how many employees were out because of the virus according to city records, but acknowledged that a nationwide shortage of marine workers, along with rising Covid cases among workers in critical roles, was affecting the ferry service.
