Passenger ferry service between Sag Harbor and Greenport may just be available sometime in the near future if both the Sag Harbor Village Board and Hampton Jitney President Geoffrey Lynch can work out the details. The idea is not new. In fact, “The Peconic Jitney,” served this function ten years ago but was discontinued for economic reasons. Mr. Lynch is now seeking a 5-year contract to restart the service. He hopes to give the residents and visitors of both forks some new options to get from Greenport to Sag Harbor or vis-à-vis new quicker, carless options.
The proposal is for just the seasonal months, concluding by Columbus Day (in mid-October).
Optimists of the process to approve this carless passenger ferry option are hoping to have service begin on June 2, 2022. Although as of now there are no locations for loading and unloading of passengers under contract.
The reported plan from Long Wharf, Sag Harbor to Mitchell Point, Greenport, includes having seven round trips, Mondays through Thursdays with six on Sunday and eight on Fridays and Saturdays. The fees for the proposed 53-passenger ferry will be $37 for an adult round trip, or $30 for children 12 and under. There will be one-way fares available that will cost between $20 and $15. The proposal also mentions additional $5 “bike,” charge. The idea is to have the ferry run every two hours from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.
The trip from Long Wharf to Mitchell Park in Greenport would take about 45 minutes. The ferry would leave Sag Harbor every two hours between 10 a.m. and 10 p.m. Concerns about the increasing cost of fuel and rainy weather will be factors Mr. Lynch and his staff have to calculate into their operating business plan.
There are reports that the independent operators of both the South Ferry and North Ferry are not excited about the plan. Their thinking is this ferry service even without cars will hurt their bottom line.
At the moment Peconic Jitney still needs a unique specific franchise license from the Suffolk County Legislature along with authorization from both Greenport and Sag Harbor villages to launch.
The economics of the ferry option between Greenport and Sag Harbor will not save the traveler money. With a round trip car ferry cost of about $60, using the passenger ferry for a family of 4 can cost $134 dollars and up. The passenger ferry (45mins) will knock off hours of travel time. It will be a wonderful option for adventure to both day visitors and residents alike.
