Bay Ridge

Kids had ‘ferry’ good time on Lunchbox boat

June 22, 2017 By Paula Katinas Brooklyn Daily Eagle
In one of the more exciting moments during the ferry ride, the students got a close-up view of the Statue of Liberty. Photos by Kreg Holt
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A group of second graders from Bay Ridge got the thrill of their young lives on Wednesday when they were treated to a ride on one of the NYC Ferry vessels traveling from the 69th Street Pier to Manhattan. Dozens of children enjoyed a relaxing ride aboard the Lunchbox, one of the ferries in the city’s recently launched South Brooklyn route.

And it was only fitting that the students get to see the Lunchbox up close, since it was a Bay Ridge second grader who came up with the name for the 26-meter, aluminum-built ferry.

Students from P.S. 170 and P.S. 102 were invited by officials from the New York City Economic Development Corporation to take a ride on Lunchbox.

During the ride from Bay Ridge to lower Manhattan, the kids saw some special sights from their vantage point in New York Harbor, including landmarks like Statue of Liberty and the Freedom Tower.

Earlier this year, the city held a boat-naming contest and invited second-graders attending schools located near ferry landings to take part. The students aboard Wednesday’s ride were chosen the winners of the competition. Their winning suggestions included: “Lunchbox,” “The Friendship Express,” “McShiny” and “Owl’s Head.”

Ali Rabah, a student at P.S. 170, is credited with coming up with the name “Lunchbox,” according to WNYC, which reported on the contest. “I was looking at the lunchboxes. Then I just came up with the name ‘Lunchbox,’” he told WNYC.

Another student, Jannat Moughal, told WNYC that the name makes perfect sense. “You can put different foods in a lunch box and there’s different people from different countries in New York. Therefore, if you put different people together on a ferry boat, you make a lunch box,” the clever student told WNYC.

Their teacher is Michelle Goh.

The city focused on second-graders for the ferry-naming contest because second grade is the point at which young students start to learn all about the history of New York City’s waterways, according to the EDC.

The names are of the ferries are officially registered with the U.S. Coast Guard.

The South Brooklyn route, which began operating June 1, includes stops at the 69th Street pier, the Brooklyn Army Terminal in Sunset Park, Brooklyn Bridge Park Pier 6 near Atlantic Avenue, Brooklyn Bridge Park Pier 1 in DUMBO and Pier 11 on Wall Street.

NY1 reported on Thursday that 45,000 passengers have taken the ferry on the South Brooklyn route since it was launched on June 1.

The city’s ferry system will eventually include six lines linking Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan and the Bronx on the East River.

A one-way trip on the ferry costs $2.75, the same amount as a subway ride.

For more information and for ferry schedules, visit the NYC Ferry website: ferry.nyc/.

 

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