North Ferry line clogs Greenport streets as U.S. Open traffic builds

North Fork commuters trying to reach the South Fork were stuck in a sand trap before sunrise Tuesday as U.S. Open traffic began clogging the East End.

Video shot by a driver leaving Greenport showed a line of vehicles backed up to the Welcome to Greenport sign on Route 25 as frustrated motorists waited to board the North Ferry. The backup also drew several sharp complaints on Facebook from residents and commuters.

The first ferry to Shelter Island departs around 5:30 a.m., but one resident said the ferry line had stretched on Wiggins Street nearly to Sixth Street by about 5:35 a.m. An hour later, that the line had backed up nearly a mile past Mills Canvas on Main Road, another commenter wrote the Residents for Greenport group page.

Greenport Mayor Kevin Steussi said Tuesday’s logjam reflects a broader traffic issue.

“The village of Greenport and entire North Fork have become the bypass for South Side tractor trailer and commuter traffic on the North Ferry, with the U.S. Open this week we’ve seen an already big problem worsen significantly,” he told The Suffolk Times.

The early-morning gridlock comes despite a $3.1 million project to revamp the North Ferry queue, expanding the staging area from one lane to five lanes. The project was designed to more than double the number of vehicles the queue can hold, from 36 to 74, and reduce ferry-related backups in the surrounding neighborhood, The Suffolk Times previously reported.

Bridg Hunt, the general manager for North Ferry, said all lanes were open as of 6 a.m. He did admit some lanes were closed Monday from 5 to 9 a.m. because of “scheduling confusion.”

“It’s a perfect storm. The South Fork is gridlocked because of the U.S. Open and the Shelter Island Highway Department is doing work on the roads for the upcoming 10k this Saturday,” Mr. Hunt told the Shelter Island Reporter, sister paper of The Suffolk Times. “We heard of a woman in Southampton who was so locked in, she took the South Ferry, crossed the Island, took the North Ferry to Greenport, and then drove around to Hampton Bays.”

Others questioned why ferry officials had not added earlier service during the hectic week.

“We are starting some of our boats ahead of their normal schedules,” Mr. Hunt said. “We’re running boats starting at 5 a.m. and then the next boat is 5:15.”

As of 11 a.m., North Ferry-bound traffic remained backed up to Ninth Street, according to Mayor Stuessi. The evening commute is not expected to be any better.

“The bad news is of course the inconvenience. The good news is that we’re running and moving cars and people,” Mr. Hunt said.

Southold Town police warned motorists to expect significantly heavier traffic throughout the East End this week, with visitors traveling to the U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club and the Mattituck Lions Strawberry Festival.

“We put out our message board directing motorists heading the ferry to use Ninth Street, so that they’re not trying to cut up Eighth, Seventh, and Sixth,” Chief Steve Grattan said, “which creates more confusion and traffic problems and frustration for those who are only in line.”

The golf tournament tees off Thursday and concludes Sunday, Father’s Day. The Strawberry Festival begins Wednesday and runs through Sunday. Chief Grattan expects the weekend to be even busier traffice-wise.

“Just plan ahead and expect delays,” he said.

Mr. Steussi said Greenport has pressed North Ferry to revamp its pricing model.

“The village has made requests of North Ferry company in recent years to reconsider rates for large trucks so as to disincentivize them from using the north fork as a bypass to Hamptons traffic,” the mayor said.