In order to ease the inconvenience of the New York-Metro area's congested roadways due to an increased passenger base, Empire WaterLink (Empire) has leased a building located in downtown South Amboy, N.J. to handle the expansion of its planned fleet of high-speed intermodal ferry operations for airport passengers and parcel airfreight throughout the tri-state area.
The new high-speed low-wake ferries, each with a five-member crew, are capable of carrying 300 passengers plus luggage. In due time, the vessels will operate on an hourly basis to John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) from each terminal - seven days a week, 17 hours a day.
Empire predicts that by next year a scheduled service will operate out of South Amboy at a temporary site, serving the New Jersey counties of Middlesex, Somerset, Hunterdon and lower Union. Subsequent to this, the U.S. government is expected to unveil a $27 million permanent terminal with infrastructure service to both JFK and Manhattan.