LRG

Your ideas sound great to me, however, it remains to be seen what Staten Islanders think of it and how much they clamor for it. A side effect of this would be that the SI Ferry would become virtually redundant, perhaps running one boat an hour, mostly for tourists, which would be a shame; I really love the ferry's leisurely trip, great views and well maintained terminals. There would be no obvious advantage to taking the "free" ferry, since people will need to enter fare controls in either Manhattan or SI to get on the train, so they will probably start charging people to ride the ferry as well.