Local Congressman Leads Charge to Save Newburgh-Beacon Ferry

The MTA recently discontinued service of the popular ferry permanently after 20 years.

The Newburgh-Beacon Ferry was a ferry service crossing the Hudson River that connected Newburgh with Beacon in Hudson Valley. It carried passengers between the two cities during rush hour, primarily transporting commuters from the west side of the river at Newburgh to the commuter train station on the east side at Beacon where they could catch Metro-North Hudson Line service to Grand Central Terminal and other points in New York City.

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NY Waterway operated the ferry under contract from the Metropolitan Transportation (MTA); it still operates the Haverstraw-Ossining Ferry downstream. Service began in 2005 after the Newburgh-Beacon Bridge had, 42 years earlier, rendered over two centuries of ferry service obsolete.

The Beacon terminal was at a dock immediately adjacent to the station; the Newburgh terminal was at the south end of Front Street. The fare was $1.75 per person and the trip across the river takes approximately ten minutes. The ferry was suspended and replaced with buses in January 2025, and the MTA announced in July 2025 that service would be discontinued permanently.

Pat Ryan Leading Charge to Save Ferry

According to a press release, Congressman Pat Ryan is continuing his fierce fight to save the Newburgh-Beacon Ferry. After the Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA) announced plans to permanently discontinue the ferry earlier this month, Congressman Ryan immediately sounded the alarm on their “reckless abandonment” of Hudson Valley commuters.

He joined more than 200 community members and bipartisan elected officials in demanding the MTA reverse course and save the Newburgh-Beacon Ferry. Now, in advance of today’s MTA board meeting, Congressman Ryan is leading bipartisan local elected officials from across the Hudson Valley, slamming the MTA’s betrayal of public trust, lifting up the voices of the people they represent and demanding better for Hudson Valley commuters and communities.

“The closure of the Newburgh-Beacon Ferry is yet another example of our Hudson Valley community paying into a NYC-centric system and getting almost nothing in return,” said Congressman Pat Ryan. “The Hudson Valley is rightly outraged – the MTA should be adding more transit options and lowering costs, not taking away the limited options we do have.

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The MTA discontinuing this ferry service – and ignoring the impassioned, continuous pleas of our community – is a reckless abandonment of the people it’s supposed to serve, turning its back on the Hudson Valley yet again,while happily taking our tax dollars. Hudson Valley commuters deserve better than this betrayal of public trust and I’ll fight like hell with leaders across our entire community to get this service restored, whatever it takes.”  Read more here.