WASHINGTON — New York ferries are getting $22 million from the feds to pay for repairs and upgrades at Governors Island and the Rockaways, the US Transportation Department is announcing today.

The aid comes through the Hurricane Sandy relief package that Congress approved and President Obama enacted.

The money will go to help keep ferry service operating in the Rockaways, fix the waiting room at the Battery Maritime Building, and pay for cleanup on Governors Island.

Rep. Nita Lowey (D-Westchester), a member of the House Appropriations Committee, helped secure the aid, calling the ferries a “lifeline for thousands of commuters.”