I recently attended the Arcade Fire concert at Randall's Island and really enjoyed the experience until the trip back. There were plenty of food vendors and urinals and the lines were minimal. The grounds were well kept and the sound system was awesome. I had read that taking the NY Waterway ferry from East 34th st was the way to go, so I did just that. The ferry ran service every hour on the half hour for $20 ($25 day of show), so I found that very convenient and chose to arrive at a little later time. The show started at 3:30pm and ferry service began at 2:30pm. I took the 4:30pm ferry and it was filled to capacity. The ride was very enjoyable. The problem occured after the concert ended and it was time to leave. There was only one ferry to take what I would guess to be at least 3 or 4 full ferry loads of people back to 34th st. After the first ferry filled up, it left with an estimated hour wait until it returned for another load. Security guards at the ferry entrance were suggesting (urging) people to ditch the ferry and take the foot bridge back to Manhattan to catch a cab or bus from Harlem. Although I had to wait for almost an hour for the ferry to return, I was fortunate to be in the front of the second load and was able to get on. When we left there were countless people still stranded. Also, there were signs stating that the last ferry out was at 11:30pm. It was already almost midnight and I'd assume that the ferry was not going to return. My question is this, Why would NY Waterway not send enough ferries to take ALL of the people, that they collected money from and transported there, back to 34th Street? Be warned and tell anybody that you know, if you are going to Randall's Island for an event, find other means of transportation until NY Waterway considers people over profits!
Pros: great space for outdoor concert
Cons: NY Waterway ferry service back to Manhattan
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