Buffalo Rising Online

Jul 25th 2006, 3:36pm By queenseyes

Now here's an idea: Rick Smith (Rigidized Metals) wants to see a boat taxi on the Buffalo River. He wants to see it so badly that he recently worked with two students at Buffalo State to design a fully functioning water taxi (senior design project). Rigidized Metals supplied the materials from their plant and within a short period of time - consisting of many long nights - the project was finished.

How many times do we all say, "Wouldn't it be great if Buffalo had..."? Well Rick decided that actions speak larger than words and saw the project through to completion. He's even tested out the water taxi and is currently waiting for approval from the Coast Guard to operate it. The taxi holds six passengers, six bikes and a captain. The type of boat is called a 6-pack and this one runs on four batteries, which propel the craft to 3.3 knots. It's not fast, but it's safe and gets the job done. So where does a Buffalo River Taxi launch from... and where does it land?

Rick's idea is to launch the boat from the Miss Buffalo landing over by The Hatch Restaurant. There are already gates that open to the water... the only thing that needs to be added is some sort of ramp (made of rigidized metals maybe?). The taxi would leave for the far shore where the Coast Guard landing pad is located. And guess what? That is where the bike trail begins that winds through the outer harbor.

Imagine riding your bike down to the inner harbor and loading it into a mini water ferry that would take you to the outer harbor? Brilliant! For all you wise guys out there: This is not the solution to getting people to the outer harbor... it is a fun way to utilize our waterfront that does not cost a ton of money. Once you get to the outer harbor it is an easy ride to the Slip Aweigh Restaurant and/or the Tifft Nature Preserve. Rick is coordinating with a number of different groups to build a fleet of these water taxis. He's been meeting with the Coast Guard, the NFTA, Bruce Fischer and Joel Giambra and so far everyone has been very open to the idea.

The three-minute ride requires a licensed captain, and get this: The Cotter Fireboat captains have volunteered to take on some shifts until regulars are in place. As a matter of fact, Rick is looking for people who may want to take the 4-6 week captains course.

Rick says that this is just the beginning. This could lead to canoe and kayak rentals on the Coast Guard side of the river. The puzzle pieces have always been there, it's up to us to put them together. Stay tuned for more on Buffalo's River Taxi!