July 7, 2016: Metal Shark to Build Passenger Ferries for New York’s Citywide Ferry System
Jeanerette, LA – July 7, 2016: Louisiana-based shipbuilder Metal Shark has been selected by HNY Ferry Fleet, LLC (a Hornblower company), operator of New York City’s Citywide Ferry Service, to build 26-meter, 149-passenger aluminum high-speed ferries.
Metal Shark will produce a series of ferries at its Franklin, Louisiana shipyard, which recently received a Small Shipyard Grant from the United States Department of Transportation’s Maritime Administration (MARAD) to expand its facilities and shipbuilding capabilities. The 25-acre waterfront facility boasts the necessary technical capability to efficiently produce passenger ferries while meeting the aggressive schedule requirements of the project.
The new Citywide Ferry service is set to launch in the summer of 2017 and will offer affordable travel throughout New York City to waterfront communities that have long been transit starved. A new fleet of passenger ferries operating six routes over 60 miles of waterways will connect New Yorkers and visitors to waterfront communities across the boroughs, servicing over 4.6 million passenger trips annually and integrating into the city’s overall transportation network.
The ferries produced by Metal Shark will utilize an Incat Crowther USCG Subchapter T design that delivers a 25-knot operating speed while reducing environmental impact by incorporating low emission engines and low wake technology. The bicycle and stroller-friendly vessels are ADA-compliant and boast 360-degree views. Passenger amenities include onboard WiFi, power ports for small electronics such as computers and cell phones, and large LED infotainment screens.
“The tremendous support we received from Incat Crowther helped make this project a reality,” according to Carl Wegener, Metal Shark’s director of commercial sales. “The entire collaborative process between Hornblower, Incat Crowther, and Metal Shark has been outstanding, and we’re proud to be a part of one of the largest domestic ferry builds in the past decade.”
“Hornblower conducted an exhaustive amount of market research during the course of their search for builders, and we are honored to have been chosen,” said Metal Shark president Chris Allard. “We are confident in our ability to meet the timeframes and deliver on this challenging and exciting project from the first vessel to the last.”
“It’s full steam ahead for New York City’s first citywide system in over 100 years and a system that will offer a new way to work, live, play,” said Cameron Clark, VP and GM at Hornblower. “We are using the most advanced maritime practices andMetal Shark’s experience delivering large quantities of state-of-the-art vessels under a tight window to ensure that the newest additions to New York Harbor are up and floating before Summer 2017.”
The first new vessel is expected to be delivered in the first quarter of 2017. For more information about Metal Shark, please visit www.metalsharkboats.com.
About Metal Shark
Established in 1986, Gravois Aluminum Boats LLC, and its government/commercial boat entity Metal Shark Boats are leading suppliers of custom boats for defense, law enforcement, and commercial entities. Key customers include the United States Coast Guard, Navy, Air Force, Army, foreign militaries, port operators and pilot associations, fire departments, and commercial entities worldwide. From its two fully self-contained facilities in South Louisiana, Metal Shark produces a wide range of custom monohull and catamaran patrol boats, fireboats, pilot boats, passenger vessels, and other specialty vessels up to 250’.
About Citywide Ferry
Citywide Ferry, operated by Hornblower, is the newest way for New Yorkers and visitors to “Work Live and Play” when the system launches in Summer 2017. Expected to service over 4.6 million passenger trips per year, Citywide Ferry will provide critical transportation links for areas currently underserved by transit and connect them to job centers, tech hubs and schools in New York City.
