Water Taxi Makes a New Stop in River North

By Camela Furry in Miscellaneous on Jul 29, 2009 4:00PM

Starting Monday morning River North residents heading to the Loop have a new option for their weekday commute. The Water Taxi will be making a new stop along the River Walk at the edge of Erie Park between North Larrabee and West Erie, in addition to the stops at Michigan Avenue and Union Station. Ald. Brendan Reilly (42nd) plugged it as the “first ever residential-oriented stop” and told the Tribune it would “ease downtown congestion at no cost to the city.”

The Water Taxi is operated by Shoreline Sightseeing who is spending about $20,000 on the new Erie Street stop. Shoreline told the Tribune the “custom-built T-Boat named ‘Blue Dog’ runs at 12 m.p.h. with a maximum capacity of 94 passengers”.

"It's a great idea," said Matt Sokol, a manager at the Motel Bar just three blocks away, “It's glamorous, like Venice."

You can add some glamour to your commute and catch a ride on Blue Dog Monday through Friday during morning and evening rush hours only. The morning commute trips run from 7:10 to 9:10 a.m. for $1, and the evening trips run from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. for $3. [Tribune]