November 4, 2008
Circle Line Uptown to remain biggest of Circle Lines*
Although the New York Water Taxi made headlines Monday for its acquisition of Circle Line Downtown, its uptown rival isn’t breaking a sweat.
Andreas Sappok, the general manager of Circle Line Uptown told NewYorkology that the merger will probably only have a “minor impact” on his 63-year-old Hudson River-based harbor cruise company, which carried more than 1 million passengers in the past year.
By comparison, the Water Taxi last year doubled its business and climbed to only 500,000 passengers with 10 boats, the company’s chief executive officer told the Daily News.
Circle Line Uptown, which is formally called Circle Line Sightseeing Cruises, is also known as Circle Line 42 since its boats dock where West 42nd Street meets the Hudson. Decades ago Circle Line split into uptown and downtown factions, with downtown running the boats to the Statue of Liberty.
Sappok noted that it was after the 2001 terror attacks — and the closure of the Statue of Liberty — that led the downtown company to branch out to harbor cruises and the more prominent use of the “Circle Line” name. To witness the confusion, check out the website for circleline.com.
Adding to the mixup, in 2003, Circle Line 42 sold its downtown Pier 16 operations and a speedboat to Circle Line Downtown. (That speedboat, now called the Shark, was part of the two-boat Water Taxi deal.)
Asked late Monday if he hoped the merger would make the name game go away, Sappok laughed. “That will probably make things a little bit easier,” he said, noting he got phone calls all day from reporters who had no idea there are two Circle Line companies.
But the New York Times interview with Fox hints the name may remain:Water Taxi, which operates commuter boats around the harbor, will use the acquisition to build up its tour business, said Tom Fox, its president. The name will help, he said, dismissing the notion that he would not dispose of a brand synonymous with not one, but two sightseeing services.
Regardless of what happens to the name, Sappok said Circle Line Uptown will absolutely remain the biggest ferry company in the harbor, operating nine boats, including the Beast speedboat. In September, the company christened a new ferry, the Manhattan, and two more are half-way through construction: the Brooklyn and Queens. Those will replace two existing boats, keeping Circle Line Uptown at nine, Sappok said.
Update: After this story was published, a NY Waterway spokesman pointed out (in the comments on this post) that his company has more boat and carries more passengers. Details here.
Other ferry companies in the harbor include NY Waterway, which operates as a commuter and tourism company, as well as Statue Cruises, which won the exclusive Statue of Liberty route as of January 1.
Of note: The Daily News story also notes that skyscraper developer Douglas Durst owns a stake in the Water Taxi business.
(*The headline of this story was changed from the original “Circle Line Uptown to remain biggest NY ferry company” after NY Waterway provided details of its operations.)
November 4, 2008 9:11 PM in Downtown, Midtown, Tours, Transportology
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