Harbor Charger, the Trust for Governors Island's new hybrid ferry The Trust for Governors Island/Timothy Schenck
Ro-Pax

Trust for Governors Island takes delivery of hybrid ferry

Jens Karsten

New York City-based non-profit the Trust for Governors Island (TGI) recently welcomed a new hybrid diesel-electric Ro-Pax ferry to its fleet of vessels.

TGI said the US$33 mil­lion Harbor Charger is the first hybrid-elec­tric pub­lic fer­ry in New York State and has the abil­i­ty to trav­el at speeds up to 66 per cent faster than cur­rent fer­ries.

The battery-equipped Harbor Charger, which will replace TGI's 1956-built diesel-powered ferry Lt. Samuel S. Coursen, will be used to transport both residents and tourists to and from Governors Island in Manhattan. Charging infrastructure has also been put up at various points to support the ferry's daily operations.

Harbor Charger was designed by the Elliott Bay Design Group of Seattle and built by Conrad Shipyard in Louisiana. The ferry can transport up to 1,200 passengers plus 30 vehicles at cruising speed of between 10 and 12 knots.

The vessel's hybrid propulsion arrangement was provided by Siemens Energy.