Gray Line proposing amphibious vehicle tour on Niagara River

May 29—Gray Line Niagara Falls/Buffalo is looking to add an amphibious boat tour to Niagara County, giving guests a tour that would drift into the Niagara River.

The tour company submitted a proposal to the Village of Lewiston of their planned route and vehicle to use, according to the Lewiston Sentinel. Village trustees have not formally addressed the matter yet and will meet with a Gray Line representative to discuss it further.

The proposed route would start at the One Niagara Welcome Center in Niagara Falls and proceed along the Niagara River on land before entering the river at the Lewiston Landing docks. The 20-minute water portion of the tour would go upriver toward Youngstown before returning to the Lewiston Landing docks to exit the river. The whole tour would take between 60 and 90 minutes.

Verity Folan, a public relations representative with Gray Line, said this proposed tour is in the preliminary stages. Various studies need to be done to determine its viability.

"We had to put in a proposal with Lewiston to get their blessing to move forward with the tests," Folan said. "Until we go through with the tests, we can't put together a business plan."

The vehicle of choice is a Hydra Terra manufactured by Cool Amphibious Manufacturers International LLC, a company that makes amphibious vehicles. Its website specifications state a vehicle weighs 17,000 pounds, is 30 to 40 feet long, 8.5 feet wide, 11.6 feet high, and has a capacity of 30 to 49 passengers plus 2 crew members.

The Hydra Terra differs from other amphibious tour vehicles, like duck boats, since it is newly fabricated to go into the water and not retrofitted for that.

Mayor Anne Welch said they want to accommodate this tour and the people it would bring, feeling it should have a stopover in the village so guests can patronize businesses.

"Anything that bring people into the village is beneficial," she said.

This is not the first amphibious vehicle tour Gray Line has offered, as it offers such options in Halifax, Nova Scotia, California, Massachusetts, Wisconsin, Australia, and the Cayman Islands.