The Port of New York and New Jersey is the

port district A port authority (less commonly a port district) is a governmental or quasi-governmental public authority for a special-purpose district usually formed by a legislative body (or bodies) to operate ports and other transportation infrastructure. ...

of the New York-Newark metropolitan area, encompassing the region within approximately a

radius In classical geometry, a radius (: radii or radiuses) of a circle or sphere is any of the line segments from its Centre (geometry), center to its perimeter, and in more modern usage, it is also their length. The radius of a regular polygon is th ...

of the Statue of Liberty National Monument. It includes the system of navigable waterways in the New York–New Jersey Harbor Estuary, which runs along over of shoreline in the vicinity of

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

and northeastern New Jersey, and is considered one of the largest

natural harbor A harbor (American English), or harbour (Commonwealth English; see spelling differences), is a sheltered body of water where ships, boats, and barges can be moored. The term ''harbor'' is often used interchangeably with ''port'', which is ...

s in the world. Having long been the busiest port on the East Coast it became the busiest port by maritime

cargo In transportation, cargo refers to goods transported by land, water or air, while freight refers to its conveyance. In economics, freight refers to goods transported at a freight rate for commercial gain. The term cargo is also used in cas ...

volume in the United States in 2022 and is a major economic engine for the region. The region's airports make the port the nation's top gateway for international flights and its busiest center for overall passenger and

air freight Air cargo is any property carried or to be carried in an aircraft. Air cargo comprises air freight, air express and airmail. Aircraft types Different cargo can be transported by passenger, cargo or combi aircraft: * Passenger aircraft use th ...

flights. There are two foreign-trade zones (FTZ) within the port.

Geography

Port district

Encompassing an area within an approximate radius of the Statue of Liberty National Monument, the port district comprises all or part of seventeen counties in the region. The nine that are completely within the district are Hudson,

Bergen Bergen (, ) is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestland county on the Western Norway, west coast of Norway. Bergen is the list of towns and cities in Norway, second-largest city in Norway after the capital Oslo. By May 20 ...

Essex Essex ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East of England, and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, the North Sea to the east, Kent across the Thames Estuary to the ...

, Union (in New Jersey), and the five boroughs of New York City, which are coterminous with the counties of New York,

Bronx The Bronx ( ) is the northernmost of the five Boroughs of New York City, boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It shares a land border with Westchester County, New York, West ...

, Kings,

Queens Queens is the largest by area of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. Located near the western end of Long Island, it is bordered by the ...

, and Richmond. Abutting sections of Passaic,

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, former county in South East England, now mainly within Greater London. Its boundaries largely followed three rivers: the River Thames, Thames in the south, the River Lea, Le ...

Monmouth Monmouth ( or ; ) is a market town and community (Wales), community in Monmouthshire, Wales, situated on where the River Monnow joins the River Wye, from the Wales–England border. The population in the 2011 census was 10,508, rising from 8 ...

, Morris, and

Somerset Somerset ( , ), Archaism, archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east ...

in New Jersey, and Nassau, Westchester, and Rockland in New York are also within the district.

Waterways

Bodies of water

New York Harbor New York Harbor is a bay that covers all of the Upper Bay. It is at the mouth of the Hudson River near the East River tidal estuary on the East Coast of the United States. New York Harbor is generally synonymous with Upper New York Bay, ...

is one of the world's largest

s."Port in a Storm: The Port of New York in World War II"
, Joseph F. Meany Jr. ''& al.'', NY State Museum, 1992–1998. The

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the ...

is to the southeast of the port. The sea at the entrance to the port is called the New York Bight; it lies between the peninsulas of Sandy Hook and Rockaway. In Lower New York Bay and its western arm,

Raritan Bay Raritan Bay is a bay located at the southern portion of Lower New York Bay between the U.S. states of New York and New Jersey and is part of the New York Bight. The bay is bounded on the northwest by New York's Staten Island, on the west b ...

, vessels orient themselves for passage to the west into Arthur Kill or

Raritan River The Raritan River is a river of the U.S. state of New Jersey. Its Drainage basin, watershed drains much of the mountainous areas in the North Jersey, northern and Central Jersey, central sections of the state, emptying into the Raritan Bay near ...

or to the north to The Narrows. To the east lies the Rockaway Inlet, which leads to Jamaica Bay. The Narrows connects to the

Upper New York Bay New York Harbor is a bay that covers all of the Upper Bay. It is at the mouth of the Hudson River near the East River tidal estuary on the East Coast of the United States. New York Harbor is generally synonymous with Upper New York Bay ...

at the mouth of the

Hudson River The Hudson River, historically the North River, is a river that flows from north to south largely through eastern New York (state), New York state. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains at Henderson Lake (New York), Henderson Lake in the ...

, which is sometimes (particularly in navigation) called the North River. Large ships are able to navigate upstream to the Port of Albany-Rensselaer. To the west lies

Kill van Kull __NOTOC__ The Kill Van Kull is a tidal strait between Staten Island, New York (state), New York, and Bayonne, New Jersey, Bayonne, New Jersey, in the United States. It is approximately long and wide and connects Newark Bay with Upper New York ...

, the

strait A strait is a water body connecting two seas or water basins. The surface water is, for the most part, at the same elevation on both sides and flows through the strait in both directions, even though the topography generally constricts the ...

leading to Newark Bay, fed by the

Passaic River The Passaic River ( or ) is a river, approximately long, in North Jersey, northern New Jersey. The river in its upper course flows in a highly circuitous route, meandering through the swamp lowlands between the ridge hills of rural and suburb ...

and

Hackensack River The Hackensack River is a river, about 45 miles (72 km) long, in the U.S. states of New York and New Jersey, emptying into Newark Bay, a back chamber of New York Harbor. The watershed of the river includes part of the suburban ar ...

, and the northern entrance of Arthur Kill. The Gowanus Canal and Buttermilk Channel are entered from the east. The

East River The East River is a saltwater Estuary, tidal estuary or strait in New York City. The waterway, which is not a river despite its name, connects Upper New York Bay on its south end to Long Island Sound on its north end. It separates Long Island, ...

is a broad strait that travels north to Newtown Creek and the

Harlem River The Harlem River is an tidal strait in New York City, flowing between the Hudson River and the East River and separating the island of Manhattan from the Bronx on the United States mainland. The northern stretch, also called the Spuyten Duyvi ...

, turning east at

Hell Gate Hell Gate is a narrow tidal strait in the East River in New York City. It separates Astoria, Queens, Astoria, Queens, from Randall's and Wards Islands in Manhattan. Etymology The name "Hell Gate" is a corruption of the Low German or Dutch la ...

before opening to

Long Island Sound Long Island Sound is a sound (geography), marine sound and tidal estuary of the Atlantic Ocean. It lies predominantly between the U.S. state of Connecticut to the north and Long Island in New York (state), New York to the south. From west to east, ...

, which provides an outlet to the open sea.

Channels

The port consists of a complex of approximately of shipping channels, as well as anchorages and

port A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Hamburg, Manch ...

facilities.Chapter 11
, New York Harbor and Approaches

, 35th Edition, 2006
Office of Coast Survey
,

NOAA The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA ) is an American scientific and regulatory agency charged with forecasting weather, monitoring oceanic and atmospheric conditions, charting the seas, conducting deep-sea exploratio ...

. Most vessels require pilotage, and larger vessels require

tugboat A tugboat or tug is a marine vessel that manoeuvres other vessels by pushing or pulling them, with direct contact or a tow line. These boats typically tug ships in circumstances where they cannot or should not move under their own power, suc ...

assistance for the sharper channel turns. The

Ambrose Ambrose of Milan (; 4 April 397), venerated as Saint Ambrose, was a theologian and statesman who served as Bishop of Milan from 374 to 397. He expressed himself prominently as a public figure, fiercely promoting Roman Christianity against Ari ...

leads from the sea to the Upper Bay, where it becomes the Anchorage Channel. Connecting channels are the Bay Ridge, the Red Hook, the Buttermilk, the Claremont, the Port Jersey, the Kill Van Kull, the Newark Bay, the Port Newark, the Elizabeth, and the Arthur Kill. Anchorages are known as Stapleton, Bay Ridge and Gravesend. The natural depth of the harbor is about , but it was deepened over the years, to a controlling depth of about in 1880.Interview
with Kate Ascher on her book, ''The Works: Anatomy of a City'' , GothamGazette.com, February 13, 2006. By 1891, the Main Ship Channel was minimally deep. Following the

Rivers and Harbors Act of 1899 The Rivers and Harbors Appropriation Act of 1899 is the oldest federal environmental law in the United States. The Act makes it a misdemeanor to discharge refuse matter of any kind into the navigable waters, or tributaries thereof, of the Unite ...

over $1.2 million of initial funding was appropriated for the dredging of 40 ft (12.2 m)-deep channels at Bay Ridge, Red Hook, and Sandy Hook. In 1914, Ambrose Channel became the main entrance to the port, at deep and wide. During World War II the main channel was dredged to deep to accommodate larger ships up to Panamax size. In 2016, the Army Corps of Engineers completed a $2.1 billion dredging project, deepening harbor channels to in order to accommodate Post-Panamax container vessels, which can pass through the widened

Panama Canal The Panama Canal () is an artificial waterway in Panama that connects the Caribbean Sea with the Pacific Ocean. It cuts across the narrowest point of the Isthmus of Panama, and is a Channel (geography), conduit for maritime trade between th ...

as well as the

Suez Canal The Suez Canal (; , ') is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, Indo-Mediterranean, connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea through the Isthmus of Suez and dividing Africa and Asia (and by extension, the Sinai Peninsula from the rest ...

.Why Deepen the Port?
, USACE.Dredging Fleet Deepening NY/NJ Harbor
, PortViews, Vol. 2, No. 3 October 2003, PANYNJ. This has been a source of environmental concern along channels connecting the container facilities in Port Newark to the Atlantic. PCBs and other pollutants lay in a blanket just underneath the soil.Dredging In New York Harbor – Economy vs. Environment?
, ''Gotham Gazette'', April 2006. In June 2009 it was announced that 200,000 cubic yards of dredged PCBs would be "cleaned" and stored en masse at the site of the former Yankee Stadium and at Brooklyn Bridge Park. In many areas the sandy bottom has been excavated down to rock and now requires blasting. Dredging equipment then picks up the rock and disposes of it. At one point in 2005, there were 70 pieces of dredging equipment working to deepen channels, the largest fleet of dredging equipment anywhere in the world. The channel of the Hudson is the Anchorage Channel and is approximately 50 feet deep in the midpoint of Upper Bay. A project to replace two water mains between Brooklyn and Staten Island, which will eventually allowing for dredging of the channel to nearly , was begun in April 2012. The Army Corps has recommended that most channels in the port be maintained at 50 feet deep. Dredging of the canals to 50 feet was completed in August 2016. The channels also include bridges that limit the heights of vessels that can use the harbor. The Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge has a clearance of at mean high water. The Brooklyn Bridge has of clearance, while the

Bayonne Bridge The Bayonne Bridge is an Through arch bridge, arch bridge that spans the Kill Van Kull between Staten Island, New York (state), New York, and Bayonne, New Jersey, Bayonne, New Jersey, United States. It carries New York State Route 440 and ...

has been raised from to .

Pilotage

The Sandy Hook Pilots are licensed

maritime pilot A maritime pilot, marine pilot, harbor pilot, port pilot, ship pilot, or simply pilot, is a mariner who has specific knowledge of an often dangerous or congested waterway, such as harbors or river mouths. Maritime pilots know local details s ...

s that go aboard oceangoing vessels, passenger liners, freighters, and tankers and are responsible for the navigation of larger ships through port district.

History

Early history

The

estuary An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime enviro ...

was originally the territory of the

Lenape The Lenape (, , ; ), also called the Lenni Lenape and Delaware people, are an Indigenous peoples of the Northeastern Woodlands, Indigenous people of the Northeastern Woodlands, who live in the United States and Canada. The Lenape's historica ...

, a seasonally migrational people who would relocate summer encampments along its shore and use its waterways for transport and fishing. Many of the tidal

salt marshes A salt marsh, saltmarsh or salting, also known as a coastal salt marsh or a tidal marsh, is a coastal ecosystem in the upper coastal intertidal zone between land and open Seawater, saltwater or brackish water that is regularly flooded by the ti ...

supported vast oyster banks that remained a major source of food for the region until the end of the 19th century, by which time contamination and landfilling had obliterated most of them. The first recorded European visit was that of Giovanni da Verrazzano, who anchored in The Narrows in 1524. For the next hundred years, the region was visited sporadically by ships on fishing trips and slave raids. European colonization began after

Henry Hudson Henry Hudson ( 1565 – disappeared 23 June 1611) was an English sea explorer and navigator during the early 17th century, best known for his explorations of present-day Canada and parts of the Northeastern United States. In 1607 and 16 ...

's 1609 exploration of the region with the establishment of

New Amsterdam New Amsterdam (, ) was a 17th-century Dutch Empire, Dutch settlement established at the southern tip of Manhattan Island that served as the seat of the colonial government in New Netherland. The initial trading ''Factory (trading post), fac ...

, the capital of the Dutch province of

New Netherland New Netherland () was a colony of the Dutch Republic located on the East Coast of what is now the United States. The claimed territories extended from the Delmarva Peninsula to Cape Cod. Settlements were established in what became the states ...

at the tip of

Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...

. The British colonial era saw a concerted effort to expand the port in the

triangular trade Triangular trade or triangle trade is trade between three ports or regions. Triangular trade usually evolves when a region has export commodities that are not required in the region from which its major imports come. It has been used to offset ...

between

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

, and

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

with a concentration of wharves along the mouth of the

. After the Battle of Brooklyn, the

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...

controlled the harbor for the duration of

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was the armed conflict that comprised the final eight years of the broader American Revolution, in which Am ...

, and

prison ship A prison ship, is a current or former seagoing vessel that has been modified to become a place of substantive detention for convicts, prisoner of war, prisoners of war or civilian internees. Some prison ships were hulk (ship type), hulked. W ...

s housed thousands at Wallabout Bay.

19th century

In the early 19th century, the

Erie Canal The Erie Canal is a historic canal in upstate New York that runs east–west between the Hudson River and Lake Erie. Completed in 1825, the canal was the first navigability, navigable waterway connecting the Atlantic Ocean to the Great Lakes, ...

(often used for

grain A grain is a small, hard, dry fruit (caryopsis) – with or without an attached husk, hull layer – harvested for human or animal consumption. A grain crop is a grain-producing plant. The two main types of commercial grain crops are cereals and ...

) and

Morris Canal The Morris Canal (1829–1924) was a toll road, common carrier Anthracite, anthracite coal canal across North Jersey, northern New Jersey that connected the two industrial canals in Easton, Pennsylvania across the Delaware River from its weste ...

(mostly used for

anthracite Anthracite, also known as hard coal and black coal, is a hard, compact variety of coal that has a lustre (mineralogy)#Submetallic lustre, submetallic lustre. It has the highest carbon content, the fewest impurities, and the highest energy densit ...

) gave the port access to the American interior, leading to

transshipment Transshipment, trans-shipment or transhipment is the shipment of goods or containers to an intermediate destination, then to another destination. One possible reason for transshipment is to change the means of transport during the journey (e.g. ...

operations, manufacturing, and

industrialization Industrialisation (British English, UK) American and British English spelling differences, or industrialization (American English, US) is the period of social and economic change that transforms a human group from an agrarian society into an i ...

. The invention of the

steam engine A steam engine is a heat engine that performs Work (physics), mechanical work using steam as its working fluid. The steam engine uses the force produced by steam pressure to push a piston back and forth inside a Cylinder (locomotive), cyl ...

led to expansion of the railroads and vast terminals along the western banks of the

, complemented by an extensive network of

ferries A ferry is a boat or ship that transports passengers, and occasionally vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A small passenger ferry with multiple stops, like those in Venice, Italy, is sometimes referred to as a water taxi or water bus. ...

and carfloats, with a large cluster along the

. The era of the

ocean liner An ocean liner is a type of passenger ship primarily used for transportation across seas or oceans. Ocean liners may also carry cargo or mail, and may sometimes be used for other purposes (such as for pleasure cruises or as hospital ships). The ...

around the turn of the 20th century led to the creation of berths at North River piers and Hoboken. This coincided with the

immigration Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not usual residents or where they do not possess nationality in order to settle as Permanent residency, permanent residents. Commuting, Commuter ...

of millions, processed at Castle Clinton and later at

Ellis Island Ellis Island is an island in New York Harbor, within the U.S. states of New Jersey and New York (state), New York. Owned by the U.S. government, Ellis Island was once the busiest immigrant inspection and processing station in the United State ...

, some staying in the region, others boarding barges, ships, and trains to points across the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. In 1910, the port was the busiest in the world.

20th century

During the World Wars the waterfront supported

shipyards A shipyard, also called a dockyard or boatyard, is a place where ships are built and repaired. These can be yachts, military vessels, cruise liners or other cargo or passenger ships. Compared to shipyards, which are sometimes more involved ...

and military installations such as the

Federal Shipbuilding and Drydock Company The Federal Shipbuilding and Drydock Company was a United States shipyard in New Jersey active from 1917 to 1948. It was founded during World War I to build ships for the United States Shipping Board. Unlike many shipyards, it remained active duri ...

and the

Brooklyn Navy Yard The Brooklyn Navy Yard (originally known as the New York Navy Yard) is a shipyard and industrial complex in northwest Brooklyn in New York City, New York (state), New York, U.S. The Navy Yard is located on the East River in Wallabout Bay, a se ...

and played an important role in troop transport as a Port of Embarkation. The mid-century also saw the construction of major highways such as the

Belt Parkway The Belt Parkway is the name given to a series of controlled-access highway, controlled-access Parkways in New York, parkways that form a belt-like circle around the Borough (New York City), New York City boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens. The Belt ...

, East River Drive, and Major Deegan Expressway along parts of the shoreline. After the end of

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, the 1919 New York City Harbor Strike shut down the port for weeks. The era of the longshoreman, captured in the classic film ''

On the Waterfront ''On the Waterfront'' is a 1954 American crime drama film, directed by Elia Kazan and written by Budd Schulberg. It stars Marlon Brando, and features Karl Malden, Lee J. Cobb, Rod Steiger, Pat Henning and Eva Marie Saint in her film de ...

'', faded by the 1970s as much of the waterfront became obsolete due to changing transportation patterns. The nation's first facility for container shipping, which became the

prototype A prototype is an early sample, model, or release of a product built to test a concept or process. It is a term used in a variety of contexts, including semantics, design, electronics, and Software prototyping, software programming. A prototype ...

, opened in 1962. Expanded intermodal freight transport systems and the

Interstate Highway System The Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways, commonly known as the Interstate Highway System, or the Eisenhower Interstate System, is a network of controlled-access highways that forms part of the National Hi ...

effected a shift to new terminals at Newark Bay. Since the 1980s, sections of waterfront in the traditional harbor have been being redeveloped to include public access to the water's edge, with the creation of

linear park A linear park is a type of park that is significantly longer than it is wide. These linear parks are strips of public land running along canals, rivers, streams, defensive walls, electrical lines, or highways and Esplanade, shorelines. Examples o ...

greenways such as Hudson River Park,

Hudson River Waterfront Walkway The Hudson River Waterfront Walkway, also known as the Hudson River Walkway, is a promenade along the Hudson Waterfront in New Jersey. The ongoing and incomplete project located on Kill van Kull and the western shore of Upper New York Bay and t ...

, and Brooklyn Bridge Park.

21st century

The '' CMA CGM'' ''

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. (October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), also known as Teddy or T.R., was the 26th president of the United States, serving from 1901 to 1909. Roosevelt previously was involved in New York (state), New York politics, incl ...

,'' the largest ship to call at an East Coast port'','' passed under the raised

in July 2017. Two larger ships MSC Cristina and the MSC Virgo landed in 2021.

Jurisdiction and regulation

Responsibilities within the port are divided among all levels of government, from municipal to federal, as well as public and private agencies. Established in 1921, the bi-state

Port Authority of New York and New Jersey The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, (PANYNJ; stylized, in logo since 2020, as Port Authority NY NJ) is a joint venture between the U.S. states of New York (state), New York and New Jersey, established in 1921 through an interstate c ...

, in addition to overseeing maritime facilities, is responsible for the vehicular crossings and the

rapid transit Rapid transit or mass rapid transit (MRT) or heavy rail, commonly referred to as metro, is a type of high-capacity public transport that is generally built in urban areas. A grade separation, grade separated rapid transit line below ground su ...

system between New York and

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

, several of the region's airports, and other transportation and real estate development projects. The Port Authority maintains its own police force, as does the Waterfront Commission, created in 1953 to investigate, prosecute, and prevent criminal activity.Waterfront Commission of New York Harbor
(WCNYH) The

United States Army Corps of Engineers The United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) is the military engineering branch of the United States Army. A direct reporting unit (DRU), it has three primary mission areas: Engineer Regiment, military construction, and civil wo ...

, which has been involved in harbor maintenance since about 1826, when Congress passed an omnibus rivers and harbors act,Chapter 3
, River and Harbor Improvement
''History of the Waterways of the Atlantic Coast of the United States''
, Publication Number NWS 83-10, January 1983, USACE. is responsible for bulkhead and channel maintenance. The

United States Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and Admiralty law, law enforcement military branch, service branch of the armed forces of the United States. It is one of the country's eight Uniformed services ...

deals with issues such as floatable debris, spills, vessel rescues, and counter-terrorism.U.S. Coast Guard Sector New York Homepage
. Both states, and some municipal governments (New York City, in particular), maintain maritime police units. The

United States Park Police The United States Park Police (USPP) is the oldest uniformed federal law enforcement agency in the United States. It functions as a full-service law enforcement agency with responsibilities and jurisdiction in those National Park Service areas ...

monitors federal properties. The

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an List of federal agencies in the United States, agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government, within the US Department of the Interior. The service manages all List ...

oversees some of the region's historic sites,

nature reserve A nature reserve (also known as a wildlife refuge, wildlife sanctuary, biosphere reserve or bioreserve, natural or nature preserve, or nature conservation area) is a protected area of importance for flora, fauna, funga, or features of geologic ...

s, and parks. The port is a

port of entry In general, a port of entry (POE) is a place where one may lawfully enter a country. It typically has border control, border security staff and facilities to check passports and visas and to inspect luggage to assure that contraband is not impo ...

. The United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) regulate international imports and passenger arrivals. The "green lane" program, in which trusted shippers have fewer containers inspected.The Docks of New York
, ''The New Yorker'', June 19, 2006. There are two foreign trade zones in the port: FTZ 1, the first in the nation, established in 1937, on the New York side of the port; and FTZ 49, on the New Jersey side. In March 2006, some of the passenger facilities management was to be transferred to

Dubai Ports World DP World is a multinational corporation, multinational logistics company based in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. It specialises in cargo logistics, port terminal operations, maritime services and free trade zones. Formed in 2005 by the merger of D ...

. There was considerable controversy over security and ownership by a foreign corporation, particularly one of Arab origin, of a U.S. port operation, despite the fact that the operator was British-based P&O Ports.Fact Sheet on Acquisition of P&O Ports by DP World
, American Association of Port Authorities, 2006. DP World later sold P&O's American operations to

American International Group American International Group, Inc. (AIG) is an American multinational finance and insurance corporation with operations in more than 80 countries and jurisdictions. As of 2023, AIG employed 25,200 people. The company operates through three core ...

's asset management division, Global Investment Group, for an undisclosed sum. The Seamen's Church Institute of New York and New Jersey, the

Teamsters The International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT) is a trade union, labor union in the United States and Canada. Formed in 1903 by the merger of the Team Drivers International Union and the Teamsters National Union, the union now represents a di ...

, and the International Longshoremen's Association assist and represent some of the port's

mariner A sailor, seaman, mariner, or seafarer is a person who works aboard a watercraft as part of its crew, and may work in any one of a number of different fields that are related to the operation and maintenance of a ship. While the term ''sailor' ...

s and dockworkers.

Cargo infrastructure

Airports

The airports in the Port of New York and New Jersey combine to create the largest airport system in the United States, the second in the world in terms of passenger traffic, and the first in the world in terms of total flight operations. JFK air freight cargo operations make it the busiest in the US.

FedEx Express FedEx Express is a major American cargo airline based in Memphis, Tennessee, United States. As of 2023, it is the world's List of largest airlines, largest cargo airline in terms of fleet size and freight tons flown. It is the namesake and leadi ...

, the world's busiest

cargo airline Cargo airlines (or air freight carriers, and derivatives of these names) are airlines mainly dedicated to the transport of air cargo, cargo by air. Some cargo airlines are divisions or subsidiaries of larger passenger airlines. In 2018, airli ...

, uses

Newark Liberty International Airport Newark Liberty International Airport is a major international airport serving the New York metropolitan area. The airport straddles the boundary between the cities of Newark, New Jersey, Newark in Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County and E ...

as its regional hub.

Container terminals

There are four

container terminal A container port, container terminal, or intermodal terminal is a facility where cargo containers are transshipped between different transport vehicles, for onward transportation. The transshipment may be between container ships and land v ...

s in the port: * Howland Hook Marine Terminal * Port Jersey Marine Terminal * Port Newark-Elizabeth Marine Terminal * Red Hook Marine Terminal Terminals are leased to different

port operator A port operator is a port authority or company that contracts with the port authority to move cargo through a port at a contracted minimum level of productivity. They may be state-owned (particularly for port authorities) or privately run. The wo ...

s, such as A. P. Moller-Maersk Group, American Stevedoring, NYCT, and Global Marine Terminal. In June 2010, the

agreed to purchase from

Bayonne Bayonne () is a city in southwestern France near the France–Spain border, Spanish border. It is a communes of France, commune and one of two subprefectures in France, subprefectures in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques departments of France, departm ...

of land at the Military Ocean Terminal at Bayonne, indicating that additional container port facilities would be created. The agency is expected to develop a terminal capable of handling the larger container ships to be in service once the new, wider

opens in 2014, some of which would not have passed under the original

at the

. A project to raise to the roadway of the bridge within the existing arch was completed in May, 2019. New York - New Jersey container port traffic

The terminal's combined volume makes it the largest on the East Coast, and the third busiest in the

. In 2023, it handled a cargo volume of over 7.8 million TEUs, benefitting post-Panamax from the expansion of the

. As of 2023, the terminals experienced a more severe reduction in cargo volume compared to California seaports, resulting in the

Port of Los Angeles The Port of Los Angeles is a seaport managed by the Los Angeles Harbor Department, a unit of the Los Angeles, City of Los Angeles. It occupies of land and water with of waterfront and adjoins the separate Port of Long Beach. Promoted as "Amer ...

reclaiming its position as the nation's busiest.

ExpressRail

ExpressRail ExpressRail is a network of on- or near-dock rail yards supporting intermodal freight transport at the major container terminals of the Port of New York and New Jersey. The development of dockside trackage and rail yards for transloading has bee ...

is the rail network supporting

intermodal freight transport Intermodal freight transport involves the transportation of freight in an intermodal container or vehicle, using multiple modes of transportation (e.g., rail, ship, aircraft, and truck), without any handling of the freight itself when changing ...

at the major

container terminals A container port, container terminal, or intermodal terminal is a facility where Intermodal container, cargo containers are transshipment, transshipped between Intermodal freight transport, different transport vehicles, for onward transportati ...

of the port. The development of dockside trackage and railyards for

transloading Transloading, also known as cross-docking, is the process of transferring a shipment from one mode of transportation to another. It is most commonly employed when one mode cannot be used for the entire trip, such as when goods must be shipped in ...

has been overseen by the

which works in partnership other public and private stakeholders. Various switching and terminal railroads, including the Conrail Shared Assets Operations (CRCX) on the Chemical Coast Secondary connect to the East Coast rail freight network carriers

Norfolk Southern The Norfolk Southern Railway is a Class I freight railroad operating in the Eastern United States. Headquartered in Atlanta, the company was formed in 1982 with the merger of the Norfolk and Western Railway and Southern Railway. The comp ...

(NS),

CSX Transportation CSX Transportation , known colloquially as simply CSX, is a Class I freight railroad company operating in the Eastern United States and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. Operating about 21,000 route miles () of track, it is the lead ...

(CSX), and

Canadian Pacific The Canadian Pacific Railway () , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canadian Pacific Kansas City, Canadian Pacific Ka ...

(CP). The network is partially financed by a surcharge on all containers passing through the port by train or truck.

Bulk cargo and marine transfer

Small tankers unload in Newtown Creek jeh

While most

consumer goods A final good or consumer good is a final product ready for sale that is used by the consumer to satisfy current wants or needs, unlike an intermediate good, which is used to produce other goods. A microwave oven or a bicycle is a final good. W ...

are transported in

containers A container is any receptacle or enclosure for holding a product used in storage, packaging, and transportation, including shipping. Things kept inside of a container are protected on several sides by being inside of its structure. The term ...

, other

commodities In economics, a commodity is an economic good, usually a resource, that specifically has full or substantial fungibility: that is, the market treats instances of the good as equivalent or nearly so with no regard to who produced them. Th ...

such as

petroleum Petroleum, also known as crude oil or simply oil, is a naturally occurring, yellowish-black liquid chemical mixture found in geological formations, consisting mainly of hydrocarbons. The term ''petroleum'' refers both to naturally occurring un ...

and

scrap metal Scrap consists of recyclable materials, usually metals, left over from product manufacturing and consumption, such as parts of vehicles, building supplies, and surplus materials. Unlike waste, scrap can have monetary value, especially recover ...

are handled at facilities for

marine transfer operations Marine Transfer Operations are conducted at many ports around the world between tanker ships, barges, and marine terminals. Specifically, once the marine vessel is secure at the dock a loading arm or transfer hose is connected between a valve hea ...

bulk cargo Bulk cargo is Product (business), product cargo that is transported packaging, unpackaged in large quantities. Description Bulk cargo refers to material in either liquid or granular, particulate (as a mass of relatively small solids) form, ...

, and

break bulk cargo In shipping, break-bulk, breakbulk, or break bulk cargo, also called general cargo, are goods that are stowed on board ships in individually counted units. Traditionally, the large numbers of items are recorded on distinct bill of lading, bil ...

throughout the port, many along its straits and canals. At some locations,

water pollution Water pollution (or aquatic pollution) is the contamination of Body of water, water bodies, with a negative impact on their uses. It is usually a result of human activities. Water bodies include lakes, rivers, oceans, aquifers, reservoirs and ...

has led to inclusion on the list of Superfund sites in the United States. * Arthur Kill, along its shore the Bayway Refinery and the Chemical Coast *

at Constable Hook * Gowanus Canal in South Brooklyn * Newtown Creek,

at Greenpoint and Hunter's Point *

from Newark Bay to Passaic * South Brooklyn Marine Terminal

Car float and Cross-Harbor Rail Tunnel

At one time, nearly 600,000 railcars were transferred annually by barge between the region's extensive rail facilities. Today, approximately 1,600 cars are "floated" on the remaining

car float A railroad car float or rail barge is a specialised form of Lighter (barge), lighter with railway tracks mounted on its deck used to move rolling stock across water obstacles, or to locations they could not otherwise go. An unpowered barge, it i ...

in the port. The New York New Jersey Rail, LLC transfers freight cars across the Upper Bay between the Greenville Yard in

Jersey City Jersey City is the List of municipalities in New Jersey, second-most populous

and the

65th Street Yard The 65th Street Yard, also Bay Ridge Rail Yard, is a rail yard on the Upper New York Bay in Sunset Park, Brooklyn, Sunset Park and Bay Ridge, Brooklyn. Equipped with two transfer bridges which allow rail cars to be loaded and unloaded onto car ...

and the Bush Terminal Yard in

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

. At the Greenville end,

operates through Conrail's North Jersey Shared Assets Area along the National Docks Secondary. At

, end connections are made to the New York and Atlantic Railway's Bay Ridge Branch and the South Brooklyn Railway. The crossing takes approximately 45 minutes. The equivalent truck trip would be 35 to long. Freight rail has never used the New York Tunnel Extension under the

Hudson Palisades The Palisades, also called the New Jersey Palisades or the Hudson River Palisades, are a line of steep cliffs along the west side of the lower Hudson River in Northeastern New Jersey and Southeastern New York in the United States. The cliffs s ...

, and

due to electrified lines and lack of

ventilation Ventilation may refer to: * Ventilation (physiology), the movement of air between the environment and the lungs via inhalation and exhalation ** Mechanical ventilation, in medicine, using artificial methods to assist breathing *** Respirator, a ma ...

. Overland travel crosses the

140 miles (225 km) to the north using a right of way known as the Selkirk hurdle. The Cross-Harbor Rail Tunnel is a proposed rail

tunnel A tunnel is an underground or undersea passageway. It is dug through surrounding soil, earth or rock, or laid under water, and is usually completely enclosed except for the two portals common at each end, though there may be access and ve ...

under the Upper Bay. The western portal would be located at the Greenville Yard, while the eastern portal is undetermined and a source of controversy. In May 2010, the Port Authority announced that it would purchase the Greenville Yard and build a new barge-to-rail facility there, as well as improve the existing railcar float system. The barge-to-rail facility is expected to handle an estimated 60,000 to 90,000 containers of solid waste per year from New York City, eliminating up to 360,000 trash truck trips a year. The authority's board authorized $118.1 million for the project. The National Docks Secondary rail line is being upgraded in anticipation of expanded volumes. In September 2014, the PANYNJ announced a $356 million capital project to upgrade and expand the facility, including Roll-on/roll-off operations. Expected to be operational about July 2016, an initial capacity of at least 125,000 cargo container lifts a year is projected.

Port Inland Distribution Network

The Port Inland Distribution Network involves new or expanded transportation systems for redistribution by barge and rail for the shipped goods and containers that are delivered at area ports in an effort to curtail the use of trucks and their burden on the environment, traffic, and highway systems. The

(PANYNJ),

New Jersey Department of Transportation The New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT) is the agency responsible for transportation issues and policy in New Jersey, including maintaining and operating the state's highway and public road system, planning and developing transport ...

(NJDOT), and Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission (DVRPC), are involved in initiatives to review and develop this network. To instantiate PIDN, the PANYNJ signed an agreement November 29, 2003 with the Port of Albany to provide twice weekly barge service. By 2014, the service had been discontinued. In 2018, service between Newark and Brooklyn to Port of Davisville in Rhode Island was initiated.

America's Marine Highway

America's Marine Highway is a similar

United States Department of Transportation The United States Department of Transportation (USDOT or DOT) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government. It is headed by the secretary of transportation, who reports directly to the president of the United States a ...

initiative to capitalize on U.S. waterways for the transport of goods. In 2016, MARAD made a grant of $1.6 million to improve the terminal at Red Hook as part of the Marine Highway program. Barges carrying containers on a route between Red Hook and Newark began operation in September 2016. In 2010, a private sector service provider began short sea shipping of aggregate products with a

barge A barge is typically a flat-bottomed boat, flat-bottomed vessel which does not have its own means of mechanical propulsion. Original use was on inland waterways, while modern use is on both inland and ocean, marine water environments. The firs ...

service between Tremley Point, Linden on the Arthur Kill and the Port of Salem to address a critical, yet weak link in freight transport with ports in the

Delaware Valley The Philadelphia metropolitan area, also known as Greater Philadelphia and informally called the Delaware Valley, the Philadelphia tri-state area, and locally and colloquially Philly–Jersey–Delaware, is a major metropolitan area in the Nor ...

Cruise terminals and ferries

Cruise terminals

The golden age of the

North Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the Age of Discovery, it was known for ...

lasted from the end of the 19th century to the post–

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

period, after which innovations in air travel became commercially viable. Many berths for the great ships that lined the

North River (Hudson River) North River () is an alternative name for the southernmost portion of the Hudson River in the vicinity of New York City and Gateway Region, northeastern New Jersey in the United States. History Name In the early 17th century, the entire wat ...

were more or less abandoned by the 1970s. Nowadays most travel is recreational. While many cruises are to points in the

Caribbean The Caribbean ( , ; ; ; ) is a region in the middle of the Americas centered around the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, mostly overlapping with the West Indies. Bordered by North America to the north, Central America ...

and to the Southern Hemisphere, there are also ships calling at the port that sail transatlantically, notably with a scheduled service to Southampton, England. The passenger

cruise ship Cruise ships are large passenger ships used mainly for vacationing. Unlike ocean liners, which are used for transport, cruise ships typically embark on round-trip voyages to various ports of call, where passengers may go on Tourism, tours k ...

terminals in the port are located in the traditional, or "inner", harbor. Collectively the cruise terminals in the Port of New York and New Jersey are the sixth busiest in the United States and 16th busiest in the world for passenger travel. * Cape Liberty Cruise Port, MOTBY, Upper Bay * Brooklyn Cruise Terminal, Buttermilk Channel, Upper Bay * New York Passenger Ship Terminal,

Ferries and sightseeing

There has been continuous

ferry A ferry is a boat or ship that transports passengers, and occasionally vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A small passenger ferry with multiple stops, like those in Venice, Italy, is sometimes referred to as a water taxi or water bus ...

service between

Staten Island Staten Island ( ) is the southernmost of the boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Richmond County and situated at the southernmost point of New York (state), New York. The borough is separated from the ad ...

and

Lower Manhattan Lower Manhattan, also known as Downtown Manhattan or Downtown New York City, is the southernmost part of the Boroughs of New York City, New York City borough of Manhattan. The neighborhood is History of New York City, the historical birthplace o ...

since the 18th century. Travelling across the Upper Bay between South Ferry and St. George Ferry Terminal, the free

Staten Island Ferry The Staten Island Ferry is a fare-free passenger ferry route operated by the New York City Department of Transportation. The ferry's single route runs through New York Harbor between the Boroughs of New York City, New York City boroughs of Manh ...

transports on average 75,000 passengers per day. Service on the East River ended in the early 20th century and on the Hudson River in the 1960s. It has been restored and grown significantly since the 1980s providing regular service to points in

, mostly below 42nd Street. Major terminals are Hoboken Terminal, Battery Park City Ferry Terminal at World Financial Center, Paulus Hook Ferry Terminal, Weehawken Port Imperial, Pier 11/Wall Street, West Midtown Ferry Terminal, and the East 34th Street Ferry Landing. There also are numerous ferry slips that each serve one route only, including the historic Fulton Ferry. In addition to regular and rush hour routes, there are excursions, trips, and seasonal service to Gateway National Recreation Area beaches. Sightseeing boats circumnavigate

or make excursions into the

. * Circle Line Downtown * Circle Line Sightseeing * Ellis Island and Liberty Island * Governor's Island Ferry (seasonal) * Liberty Water Taxi * New York Water Taxi *

NYC Ferry NYC Ferry is a public network of ferry routes in New York City operated by Hornblower Cruises. , there are six routes, as well as one seasonal route, connecting 25 ferry piers across all five boroughs. NYC Ferry has the largest passenger fleet ...

* NY Waterway * New York Beach Ferry * SeaStreak *

Lights and lighthouses

There are both historic and modern lighthouses throughout the port, some of which have been decommissioned * Ambrose Light, Lower Bay (dismantled 2008) * Bergen Point Light, Newark Bay (replaced) * Blackwell Island Light,

Roosevelt Island Roosevelt Island is an island in New York City's East River, within the Borough (New York City), borough of Manhattan. It lies between Manhattan Island to the west, and the borough of Queens, on Long Island, to the east. It is about long, wit ...

(retired 1940) * Chapel Hill Rear Range Light, Sandy Hook Bay (deactivated 1957) * Conover Beacon (front range light), Leonardo * Coney Island (Nortons Point) Light, Lower New York Bay, Sea Gate, Brooklyn * Elm Tree Beacon Light, The Narrows,

New Dorp, Staten Island New Dorp ( ) is a neighborhood on the South Shore, Staten Island, South Shore of Staten Island, New York City, United States. New Dorp is bounded by Mill Road on the southeast, Tysens Lane on the southwest, Amboy and Richmond Roads on the northw ...

* Execution Rocks Light,

* Fort Tompkins Light, The Narrows,

(retired) * Fort Wadsworth Light, The Narrows,

* Great Beds Light,

, South Amboy * Kings Point Light,

, Great Neck * Kingsborough Community College Light,

Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn Sheepshead Bay is a neighborhood in southern Brooklyn, New York City. It is bounded by Ocean Parkway to the west; Avenue T and Kings Highway to the north; Nostrand Avenue and Gerritsen Avenue to the east; and the Atlantic Ocean to the south. ...

* Little Gull Island Light,

* Little Red Lighthouse (Jeffrey's Hook Lighthouse), Fort Washington,

* Navesink Twin Lights, Sandy Hook Bay, Highlands * New Dorp Light, The Narrows,

Swash Channel (retired) * North Brother Island Light,

* Old Orchard Shoal Light, Gedney Channel, Lower Bay * Princes Bay Light,

Robbins Reef Light The Robbins Reef Light Station is a sparkplug lighthouse located off Constable Hook in Bayonne, Hudson County, New Jersey, United States, along the west side of Main Channel, Upper New York Bay. Note that although the light is clearly shown o ...

, Constable Hook, Upper Bay * Romer Shoal Light, Lower Bay near Sandy Hook Bay * Sandy Hook Light, Sandy Hook * Staten Island Light Lighthouse Hill, Staten Island *

Statue of Liberty The Statue of Liberty (''Liberty Enlightening the World''; ) is a colossal neoclassical sculpture on Liberty Island in New York Harbor, within New York City. The copper-clad statue, a gift to the United States from the people of French Thir ...

Liberty Island Liberty Island is a federally owned island in Upper New York Bay in the northeastern United States. Its most notable feature is the Statue of Liberty (''Liberty Enlightening the World''), a large statue by Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi that was ...

, Upper Bay (until 1902) * Stepping Stones Light,

, near City Island * Stony Point light,

* Throgs Neck Light, Throggs Neck,

(decommissioned) * Titanic Memorial, South Street Seaport,

* West Bank Light, Ambrose Channel, Lower Bay (range front) * Whitestone Point Light, Whitestone Point, southerly side of

Land reclamation and ocean dumping

Channelization and landfilling began in the colonial era and continued well into the 20th century. The expansion of the land area of Lower Manhattan through encroachment began in the 17th-century Dutch settlement of

and continued into 20th century. Early materials were

shellfish Shellfish, in colloquial and fisheries usage, are exoskeleton-bearing Aquatic animal, aquatic invertebrates used as Human food, food, including various species of Mollusca, molluscs, crustaceans, and echinoderms. Although most kinds of shellfish ...

and other refuse, and later construction debris from projects such as the

New York City Subway The New York City Subway is a rapid transit system in New York City serving the New York City boroughs, boroughs of Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, and the Bronx. It is owned by the government of New York City and leased to the New York City Tr ...

and Pennsylvania Station. Rubble from the bombing of London was transported for

ballast Ballast is dense material used as a weight to provide stability to a vehicle or structure. Ballast, other than cargo, may be placed in a vehicle, often a ship or the gondola of a balloon or airship, to provide stability. A compartment within ...

during

. New land has been created throughout the port, including large swaths that are now

Battery Park City Battery Park City is a mainly residential planned community and neighborhood on the west side of the southern tip of the island of Manhattan in New York City. It is bounded by the Hudson River on the west, the Hudson River shoreline on the nor ...

Liberty State Park Liberty State Park (LSP) is a park in the U.S. state of New Jersey, located on Upper New York Bay in Jersey City, New Jersey, Jersey City opposite Liberty Island and Ellis Island. The park opened in 1976 to coincide with United States Bicenten ...

, Flushing Meadows–Corona Park, and the

Meadowlands Sports Complex The Meadowlands Sports Complex is a sports complex located in East Rutherford, New Jersey, United States. The facility is owned and operated by the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority (NJSEA). It is named for the New Jersey Meadowlands ...

. From 1924 until 1986, sewerage sludge was hauled by

and barge to a point offshore in the

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the Age of Discovery, it was known for se ...

. From 1986 to 1992 it was dumped at a site 106 nautical miles from Atlantic City, after which ocean dumping was banned. Barges were also used to transport waste to Fresh Kills Landfill, the world's largest, which operated from 1948 to 1991. Both operations were known to be detrimental to

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated continental island in southeastern New York (state), New York state, extending into the Atlantic Ocean. It constitutes a significant share of the New York metropolitan area in both population and land are ...

and

Jersey Shore The Jersey Shore, commonly called the Shore by locals, is the coast, coastal region of the U.S. state of New Jersey. The term encompasses about of shore, oceanfront bordering the Atlantic Ocean, from Perth Amboy, New Jersey, Perth Amboy in the n ...

beaches, notably the 1987 Syringe Tide.

Shipwrecks and abandoned boats

The port has many sunken ships, some of which can be seen, others that lie on the floor of the ports waterways. The Staten Island boat graveyard is a marine scrapyard located in the Arthur Kill near the Fresh Kills Landfill, on the West Shore of

Tourism and recreation

Harbor-related historic sites, promenades, and nature preserves within the port district include: * South Street Seaport * USS ''Intrepid'' Sea, Air & Space Museum (Pier 86) * Gateway National Recreation Area * Statue of Liberty National Monument, Ellis Island and Liberty Island and Governor's Island * Hudson River Park,

, Brooklyn Bridge Park *

and Communipaw Terminal *

Battery Park The Battery, formerly known as Battery Park, is a public park located at the southern tip of Manhattan#Manhattan Island, Manhattan Island in New York City facing New York Harbor. The park is bounded by Battery Place on the north, with Bowling ...

and Castle Clinton * Hackensack Meadowlands, Riverwalk, and Environment Center * Pier 63,

New York Central Railroad 69th Street Transfer Bridge The 69th Street Transfer Bridge, part of the West Side Line of the New York Central Railroad, was a dock for car floats which allowed the transfer of railroad cars from the rail line to car floats which crossed the Hudson River to the Weeha ...

, and 79th Street Boat Basin * Gantry Plaza State Park * Manhattan Waterfront Greenway * Hoboken Terminal * City Island

Economy

In 2010, 4,811 ships entered the harbor carrying over 32.2 million metric tons of

valued at over $175 billion. In 2010, the New York-New Jersey Port industry supported: # 170,770 direct jobs # 279,200 total jobs in the NY-NJ region # Nearly $11.6 billion in personal income # Over $37.1 billion in business income # Almost $5.2 billion in federal, state and local tax revenues # Local and State Tax Revenue: $1.6 billion # Federal Tax Revenue: $3.6 billion Approximately 3.2 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU) of containers and 700,000 automobiles are handled per year. In the first half of 2014, the port handled 1,583,449 containers, a 35,000-container increase above the six-month record set in 2012, while the port handled a monthly record of 306,805 containers in October 2014. In 2014, the port handled 3,342,286 containers and 393,931 automobiles. In January through June 2015, the top 10 imports that went through the port of New York and New Jersey were: # Petroleum: $6.78 billion # Appliances: $3.80 billion # Vehicles: $2.59 billion # Plastics: $1.72 billion # Electronics: $1.46 billion # Chemicals: $1.45 billion # Oils and perfumes: $928.7 million # Pharmaceuticals: $897.5 million # Optical and photographic: $801.8 million # Pearls and precious gems and metals: $562.4 million

References

External links

Official homepage

PANYNJ Rail terminal and intermodal facilities

Port Master Plan 2050

New York Sector for US Coast Guard (Home Port website)
* *
New York-New Jersey Harbor & Estuary Program

Maritime Association of the Port of New York and New Jersey
(Schedule of latest ship departures and related information)
NY Times 2004 slide show of port facilities and activities
*

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Port Of New York And New Jersey Ferry transportation in New Jersey Geography of New Jersey Geography of New York City Port Authority of New York and New Jersey New York And New Jersey New York And New Jersey New York And New Jersey Regions of New Jersey Tourism in New Jersey Water transportation in New Jersey Water transportation in New York (state) Water transportation in New York City Foreign trade zones of the United States Air pollution in New York City

Geography

Port district

Waterways

Bodies of water

Channels

Pilotage

History

Early history

19th century

20th century

21st century

Jurisdiction and regulation

Cargo infrastructure

Airports

Container terminals

ExpressRail

Bulk cargo and marine transfer

Car float and Cross-Harbor Rail Tunnel

Port Inland Distribution Network

America's Marine Highway

Cruise terminals and ferries

Cruise terminals

Ferries and sightseeing

Lights and lighthouses

Land reclamation and ocean dumping

Shipwrecks and abandoned boats

Tourism and recreation

Economy

See also

References

External links