In an effort to keep the region moving, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey is exploring the possibility of drones being used to transport cargo across the Hudson River.

Port Authority officials gathered with members of other agencies and stakeholders for a test run on Wednesday.

“This is a historic first time flight,” Nate Bazydlo, Customer Service Success Manager for NUAIR, said.

NUAIR, is New York City based nonprofit that works with public agencies like the Port Authority to help them use drones.

Bazydlo and other organization leaders helped facilitate a test flight of a drone flight from one side of the Hudson River to the other — the first time a drone has flown in the heavily regulated airspace.

The aim was to make sure drone use can be safely regulated in the airspace above the Hudson River, which is regulated by the Federal Aviation Administration.

“To really understand what it takes to do a drone cargo flight through restricted airspace across the Hudson River,” Seth Wainer, Port Authority Director for innovation, said.

Officials used a fully autonomous drone — meaning a human is not controlling it. A pilot was on standby at a control center for safety purposes.

“Because this is an extremely busy airspace, but there’s also marine vessels as well. And there’s the ferry transport — the Staten Island ferries that bring people back and forth,” he said.

After taking off from the New Jersey side of the Hudson River, the drone flew around Manhattan to a landing site in Brooklyn and then back to Jersey City — all while carrying cargo in the form of girl scout cookies. The flight was a complete success.

If all goes as planned, Bazydlo says in several years much bigger drones would be used to transport cargo weighing 100 pounds or more.

“You really begin to realize the benefits which are threefold,” he said. “You can do this more safely, you can do it quicker and you can do it, better to the environment so it’s cleaner.”