Washington State Ferries

This article is about the ferry system operated on Puget Sound by the state of Washington. For ferry systems in Washington state operated by other entities, see Ferries in Washington State.
Washington State Ferries
Locale Washington
Waterway Puget Sound, Salish Sea
Transit type Ferry
Owner Washington State Department of Transportation
Operator Washington State Department of Transportation
Began operation June 1, 1951 (1951-06-01)
No. of lines 10
No. of vessels 22 (2 under construction)
No. of terminals 20
Daily ridership 61,745 (2013)
Website wsdot.wa.gov/ferries

Washington State Ferries (WSF) is a government agency that operates automobile and passenger ferry service in the U.S. state of Washington as part of the Washington State Department of Transportation. It runs ten routes serving 20 terminals located around Puget Sound and in the San Juan Islands, designated as part of the state highway system. The agency maintains the largest fleet of ferries in the United States at 22 vessels, carrying 23 million passengers in 2014.[1] As of 2014, it was the largest ferry operator in the United States,[2] and the fourth-largest ferry system in the world.[1]

History

The ferry system has its origins in the "mosquito fleet", a collection of small steamer lines serving the Puget Sound area during the later part of the nineteenth century and early part of the 20th century. By the beginning of the 1930s, two lines remained: the Puget Sound Navigation Company (known as the Black Ball Line) and the Kitsap County Transportation Company. A strike in 1935 forced the KCTC to close, leaving only the Black Ball Line.[3]

Toward the end of the 1940s the Black Ball Line wanted to increase its fares, to compensate for increased wage demands from the ferry workers' unions, but the state refused to allow this, and so the Black Ball Line shut down. In 1951, the state bought nearly all of Black Ball's ferry assets for $5 million (Black Ball retained five vessels of its fleet).[4] The state intended to run ferry service only until cross-sound bridges could be built, but these were never approved, and the Washington State Department of Transportation runs the system to this day.

Routes

A map showing the routes operated by Washington State Ferries in comparison with state highways in Washington. Click for more detail.
Route name Terminals State route designation[5] Annual Ridership[6] Annual Vehicles Carried[6] Notes
Anacortes–Sidney BC Sidney, British Columbia Friday Harbor, San Juan Island Anacortes
SR 20 Spur		 120,269 41,861
  • Reservations recommended
  • Only route that operates internationally
  • Route does not operate in Winter
Anacortes–San Juan Islands Friday Harbor, San Juan Island 1,974,239 909,195
  • Reservations recommended
  • Not all trips serve all island terminals.
Lopez Island
Shaw Island
Orcas Island
Interisland Friday Harbor, San Juan Island Orcas Island Shaw Island Lopez Island
  • Fare free service for eastbound vehicles and passengers
  • Vehicles traveling westbound (Lopez -> Shaw -> Orcas -> FH) must pay a fare.
Port Townsend–Coupeville Port Townsend Coupeville, Whidbey Island SR 20 787,391 362,203
  • Reservations recommended
Mukilteo–Clinton Clinton, Whidbey Island Mukilteo SR 525 4,113,029 2,237,947
Edmonds–Kingston Kingston Edmonds SR 104 4,103,307 2,124,721
Seattle–Bainbridge Island Winslow, Bainbridge Island Seattle (Colman Dock) SR 305 6,361,927 1,957,700
Seattle–Bremerton Bremerton Seattle (Colman Dock) SR 304 2,659,813 670,688
Fauntleroy–Vashon Vashon Island West Seattle (Fauntleroy) SR 160 2,925,008 1,722,982
  • All three services operated together as a "triangle route."
Fauntleroy–Southworth Southworth West Seattle (Fauntleroy)
Southworth–Vashon Southworth Vashon Island 174,990 88,114
Point Defiance–Tahlequah Tahlequah, Vashon Island Tacoma (Point Defiance) SR 163 768,574 450,258

Fleet

Washington State Ferry Tacoma
The Hyak in Rich Passage heading to Bremerton, WA.

As of 2016, there are 22 ferries on Puget Sound operated by the state.[7] The largest vessels in this fleet carry up to 2500 passengers and 202 vehicles. They are painted in a distinctive white and green trim paint scheme, and feature double-ended open vehicle decks and bridges at each end so that they do not need to turn around.

The ferry fleet consists of the following vessels:[7]

Washington State Ferries Current fleet
Ferry Name Class Year Built (Rebuilt) Auto Capacity Passenger Capacity Speed (knots) Notes
MV Klahowya Evergreen State 1958 (1995) 87 792 13
MV Tillikum Evergreen State 1959 (1994) 87 1061 13 Standby vessel.
MV Hyak Super 1967 144 2000 17
MV Kaleetan Super 1967 (2005) 144 2000 17
MV Yakima Super 1967 (2005) 144 2000 17
MV Elwha Super 1967 (1991) 144 1069 20 Upgraded to meet SOLAS standards for Sidney, BC route in 1990.
MV Spokane Jumbo 1972 (2004) 188 2000 18
MV Walla Walla Jumbo 1973 (2003) 188 2000 18
MV Issaquah Issaquah 130 1979 (1989) 124 1200 16 Auto capacity increased in 1989.
MV Kitsap Issaquah 130 1980 (1992) 124 1200 16 Auto capacity increased in 1992.
MV Kittitas Issaquah 130 1980 (1990) 124 1200 16 Auto capacity increased in 1990.
MV Cathlamet Issaquah 130 1981 (1993) 124 1200 16 Auto capacity increased in 1993.
MV Chelan Issaquah 130 1981 (2005) 124 1076 16 Upgraded to meet SOLAS standards for Sidney, BC route in 2005.
Auto capacity increased in 2001.
MV Sealth Issaquah 100 1982 90 1200 16
MV Tacoma Jumbo Mark II 1997 202 2500 18
MV Wenatchee Jumbo Mark II 1998 202 2500 18
MV Puyallup Jumbo Mark II 1999 202 2500 18
MV Chetzemoka Kwa-di Tabil 2010 64 750 15
MV Salish Kwa-di Tabil 2011 64 750 15
MV Kennewick Kwa-di Tabil 2011 64 750 15
MV Tokitae Olympic 2014 144 1500 17
MV Samish Olympic 2015 144 1500 17
MV Chimacum Olympic 2017 144 1500 17 Under construction. Expected to be delivered in early 2017.
MV Suquamish Olympic 2018 144 1500 17 Under construction. Expected to be delivered in Fall 2018.

Retired vessels

MV Illahee was one of the Steel Electric class ferries which were retired in 2007.
MV Kalakala was retired in 1967

Since the beginning of state-run ferry service in 1951, WSF has retired many vessels as they have become older, too expensive to operate or maintain, or have become too small to provide adequate ferry service. WSF owned passenger-only vessels between 1985 and 2009, but after discontinuing its two passenger-only routes in the 2000s, WSF has sold its passenger-only ferries to other operators.

Below is a list of ferries that WSF has retired since 1951. Unless otherwise noted, all vessels introduced in 1951 were acquired from the Black Ball Line when the state took over the company's routes and ferryboats in Puget Sound.

Washington State Ferries Retired fleet[8]
Ferry Name Class Year Built (Rebuilt) Year in service Year Retired Auto Capacity Passenger Capacity Notes
MV Chippewa None 1900 (1928/ 1932) 1951 1964 52 950 Converted to a car ferry in 1926
MV Leschi None 1913 1951 1967 40 453 Previously owned by King County and used on Lake Washington
SS San Mateo None 1922 1951 1969 50 659 Purchased by PSN in 1941
SS Shasta None 1922 1951 1958 55 468 Purchased by PSN in 1941
MV Rosario None 1923 (1931) 1951 1951 33 312
MV Kitsap (1925) None 1925 1951 1961 32 325
MV Crosline None 1925 (1947) 1951 1967 30 300 Purchased by the state in 1947
MV Kehloken Wood Electric 1926 1951 1972 50 770 Purchased by PSN in 1940
MV Kalakala None 1926 (1935) 1951 1967 110 1943 Originally built as MV Peralta in 1926; rebuilt as Kalakala in 1935 using Peralta's hull
MV Enetai Steel Electric 1927 1951 1967 90 1500 Purchased by PSN in 1940 and converted to a single-ended ferry
MV Willapa Steel Electric 1927 1951 1967 90 1500 Purchased by PSN in 1940 and converted to a single-ended ferry
MV Chetzemoka (1927) Wood Electric 1927 1951 1973 50 400 Purchased by PSN in 1938
MV Quinault Steel Electric 1927 (1958/ 1985) 1951 2007 59 616 Purchased by PSN in 1940
MV Illahee Steel Electric 1927 (1958/ 1986) 1951 2007 59 616 Purchased by PSN in 1940
MV Nisqually Steel Electric 1927 (1958/ 1987) 1951 2007 59 616 Purchased by PSN in 1940
MV Klickitat Steel Electric 1927 (1981) 1951 2007 64 412 Purchased by PSN in 1940
MV Klahanie Wood Electric 1928 1951 1972 50 601 Purchased by PSN in 1940
MV Skansonia None 1929 1951 1969 32 465 Operated under a state contract since 1940 after the Tacoma Narrows Bridge collapsed
MV Vashon None 1930 1951 1980 50 646
MV Olympic None 1938 1954 1993 55 605 Purchased by WSF in 1954
MV Rhododendron None 1947 (1990) 1954 2012 48 546 Purchased by WSF in 1954, sold to Atlantic Capes Fisheries in 2013
MV Evergreen State Evergreen State 1954 (1988) 1954 2016 87 854
MV Kulshan None 1954 1970 1982 65 350 Purchased by WSF in 1970, sold in 1982 and renamed MV Governor
MV Hiyu None 1967 1967 2016 34 199
MV Tyee None 1985 1985 2003 0 250 Operating as M/V Glacier Express in Kenai Fjords National Park, Alaska as of 2013[9][10]
MV Kalama Skagit/ Kalama 1989 1989 2009 0 230 Sold in 2011
MV Skagit Skagit/ Kalama 1989 1989 2009 0 230 Sold in 2011; capsized on July 18, 2012
MV Chinook Passenger-Only Fast Ferry 1998 1998 2008 0 350 Sold to Golden Gate Ferries, renamed MV Golden Gate
MV Snohomish Passenger-Only Fast Ferry 1999 1999 2008 0 350 Sold to Golden Gate Ferries, renamed MV Napa

Other ferries

There are several other publicly operated, private, and passenger-only ferries in Washington state.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "WSDOT Ferries Division (WSF) – Nation's Largest Ferry System" (PDF). Washington State Department of Transportation. February 2014. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-02-05. Retrieved 2016-08-11.
  2. ↑ Kenneth Button, Henry Vega, Peter Nijkamp, eds. (2010), A Dictionary of Transport Analysis, Edward Elgar Publishing, p. 158, ISBN 9781849804714
  3. ↑ History of Washington State Ferry system, wsdot.com, retrieved March 15, 2008
  4. ↑ Washington State Ferries begins operations on June 1, 1951, HistoryLink.org, retrieved March 15, 2008
  5. ↑ 2004-2005 Official State Highway Map, Washington State Department of Transportation, retrieved March 15, 2008
  6. 1 2 "WSDOT Ferries Division- overview and fact sheet" (PDF). Washington State Department of Transportation. February 2016. Retrieved July 17, 2016.
  7. 1 2 Washington State Ferries - Our Fleet, wsdot.com, Retrieved November 4, 2012
  8. ↑ "The Ghost Fleet of Washington State Ferries". EvergreenFleet.com. Retrieved 5 November 2012.
  9. ↑ M/V Tyee, Evergreen Fleet, retrieved 2013-06-28
  10. ↑ Our fleet of vessels, Major Marine Tours, retrieved 2013-06-28
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