(CARTERET, NJ) -- The Borough awarded the bid today for Phase I of the Carteret Ferry Terminal – bulkhead installation, including 131 linear feet of permanent sheeting “bulkhead” with a steel cap and aluminum gangway – to Agate Construction of Clemont, NJ, clearing the way for construction to begin on Carteret’s Ferry Terminal. Agate submitted the lowest bid of six total bids submitted for the project, in the amount of $473,258.
Upon completion of this bulkhead, the NJDOT Office of Maritime Resources will begin approximately 19,500 cubic yards of dredging this summer followed by the Borough’s construction of waterside and landside improvements.
“We are excited to get started on the first phase of the Carteret Ferry Terminal,” said Mayor Dan Reiman. “We have worked tirelessly to bring ferry service to Carteret so our residents and commuters around the region can have a more direct and efficient route to downtown Manhattan and the Financial District.”
NJ Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin acknowledged the important role the Carteret Ferry Terminal will serve in the region’s transportation network.
“Diversifying and expanding our transportation network with this ferry service is crucial to transforming life for Carteret residents and those in surrounding communities, whose contributions are important in sustaining our nation’s most economically productive region here in the North East,” said Speaker Coughlin. “With partnership spanning the federal, state, county, and city levels, it is a great to see this project get past its final hurdle. Soon residents, local businesses, and the regional economy will be reaping the benefits of this investment thanks to Mayor Reiman’s vision.”
The Reiman Administration has brought in over $30 million in grants from the federal and state government towards this Carteret Ferry Terminal, including:
* $2,213,833 from TEA-21 SAFETEA-LU Congressional Priority Earmarks
* $5,037,000 from an NJDOT FY’21 Smart Move Program Grant
* $6,000,000 from a USFTA-NJ 2017 Transit Ferry Boat Grant through NJ Transit
* $1,000,000 from an NJ FY’22 NJT State Budget
* $2,321,640 from FY’22 NJDOT Transportation Trust Fund for Dredging
* $4,426,155 from NJDOT FY’22 Transportation Trust Fund
* $678,973 from NJDOT FY’21 Local Aid
* $750,000 from US ARA Sewer/Water Explain Extension
* $6,000,000 from USDOT for Ferry Terminal Building
Carteret’s ferry service will provide reliable, significantly quicker, and more environmentally-friendly transportation service to New York City, cutting travel times to Manhattan to under an hour, while reducing traffic congestion on the New Jersey Turnpike and approaches to the Holland and Lincoln Tunnels by getting more commuters out of their cars.
The Middlesex County Board of County Commissioners has supported and partnered with Carteret in its efforts to bring Ferry Service to the Borough.
“The Board of County Commissioners is pleased to be working with Carteret to realize its vision of building a state-of-the-art ferry terminal,” said Middlesex County Board of County Commissioners Director Ron Rios. “Adding this terminal will make Middlesex County one of the most connected regions in New Jersey, accessible by train, bus, highways, and in the near future, by water. As a Carteret resident, I’m especially excited to see the positive impact both economically and environmentally this new mass transportation option will make on our community at large.”
Additional benefits of the ferry include:
* Providing reliable and significantly quicker and more environmentally-friendly transportation service to New York City;
* Reducing congestion on the New Jersey Turnpike and roads leading from the Turnpike into the Holland and Lincoln Tunnels;
* Reducing reliance on the automobile in a densely populated area well-suited to the development of robust public transit service;
* Providing redundant transportation service in instances of an emergency or a catastrophic event;
* Providing an affordable, accessible, and dynamic transportation system responsive to current and future customers;
* Protection and improvement of the quality of the natural ecosystem and the human environment;
* Retaining and increasing economic activity and competitiveness;
* Transforming an area of environmental degradation into a catalyst for economic development; and
* Accommodating continued population growth in Carteret and the region;
“Carteret is quickly becoming one of the most desired locations for commuters to call home,” said Mayor Reiman. “New residential and commercial opportunities, combined with our future ferry service, newly constructed Performing Arts and Events Center, upgraded parks, and stable tax rates solidify Carteret as a great place to live, work, and raise a family.”
The Carteret Ferry Terminal is part of Mayor Reiman’s vision to turn Carteret’s waterfront into a popular regional destination, which now includes a waterfront fishing pier, public park, a 185-slip marina, a future events center at the park, and a 2-mile Riverwalk funded through a grant from the NJDEP’s Office of Natural Resource Restoration.
“Our nearly 2 miles of public access along our eastern shoreline, including our ferry, marina, and riverwalk is a remarkable feat for a community that had no public access to the waterfront for over 100 years,” concluded Mayor Reiman.
“While all permits are now in place and necessary funding has been secured for two ferry boats –the waterside and landside improvements – we will continue to seek out additional funding for the intermodal terminal building itself, which would be the next phase of this project,” said Mayor Reiman.
For more information on Carteret’s Ferry Terminal and Waterfront Park, please visit Carteret.net.
