After years of trying to predict when regular ferry service will resume, Washington State Ferries is now acknowledging what most regular users are probably already wondering. The idea is that normal service will not be possible until the new boats are put into service in the next four to five years.
This means the route between Seattle and Bremerton. Fauntleroy, Southworth, Vashon. And Port Townsend and Coupeville will each be operated indefinitely with one fewer boat than originally intended. This also means that other lines, like Edmonds to Kingston, are likely to continue seeing intermittent service cuts, despite WSF’s declaration last year.
Additional trips may be added as crew and boats become available, but you should not expect them. Under this new plan with lowered expectations, WSF’s goal is to fulfill 95% of the trips, which is below his previous goal of 99%.
These are all changes from last year. WSF estimated in early 2023 that it could resume full service to both the Southworth and Bremerton lines by the fall. That timeline was pushed back to 2024 last summer.
The latest version does not include a specific date, indicating that even the ministry’s relatively conservative estimates were too optimistic.
“With another year to go by before we move away from the pandemic and WSF better understanding some of the systemic challenges related to crew and vessel availability, we will continue to operate all routes to full capacity,” the ministry said. It is clear that returning to service will take longer,” the ministry said in its service contingency plan. It was released on Thursday.
The change comes as WSF updates its plans for the new year and felt it was the most appropriate course of action, spokeswoman Dana Waugh said.
The twin challenges of manpower shortages and aging fleets remain proving to be significant.
Staffing levels remain below WSF’s projected needs at all levels due to retirements, resignations, and coronavirus-related layoffs. Particularly difficult is finding licensed mates and captains, who are in high demand around the world and require years of training. The number of employees on deck and in the engine room is also below required levels.
The system is basically staffed to meet the Coast Guard’s minimum requirements, so every time someone calls in it means a trip is interrupted, but they don’t want workers to come in sick. Now that it’s gone, this kind of situation is happening more often than before. Over the next five years, 50% of the most qualified deck and engine crews will be eligible for retirement, so it will continue to be difficult to keep up with the attrition. WSF estimates that nearly 100 deck officer and able-bodied seafarer positions will need to be permanently filled each year.
WSF will begin its recruitment campaign next week. In his supplemental budget proposal, Gov. Jay Inslee is proposing about $20 million to increase hiring and make it easier for deckhands to advance to the ranks of officers and captains. The department plans to gradually increase staffing levels over the next two years.
Even if sufficient manpower is added, the condition of the system’s vessels will not improve and may continue to worsen until early 2028, when the first of at least five new vessels is scheduled to come into service. There is sex.
The state estimates it will need 26 boats. There are currently only 21 members, half of whom are over 30 years old and 5 of whom are over 50 years old.
WSF previously estimated that 16 to 18 of the vessels were ready to sail at any given time, while the remaining vessels were undergoing routine maintenance work. But in recent years, those estimates have proven too optimistic after hard landings, broken propellers, and groundings.
“Given the aging of the fleet and the long history of deferred ship maintenance, WSF has planned for a baseline of 15 vessels in service, with up to 17 vessels available for part of the year. “We believe this is the most reasonable prediction for the next four ships in many years,” department officials wrote.
The state hasn’t launched a new ferry since 2018, when Vigar Shipyards completed the M/V Suquamish. The hope at the time was to extend the state’s contract with Vigor for five new hybrid electric ferries, with the first ferries entering service as early as 2021, but negotiations broke down.
Without a clear replacement for Vigar, the state changed its law last year to expand the search for a new contractor beyond just Washington state. The ministry hopes to conclude the contract this summer and deliver at least one new boat by February 2028.
There is little lawmakers can do to speed up that schedule.
“I want to promise you that we will get the boats sooner,” Sen. Marco Rias, D-Edmonds, said in a media availability Thursday. “I think it’s really realistic that in this global supply chain situation that we’re in, this workforce situation that we’re in, there’s not a very good chance that we’re going to be able to get boats faster. I think we need to think about it.”
Non-traditional solutions are also beginning to emerge. A group of residents of the San Juan Islands Run your own interisland service And Inslee suggested exploring the feasibility of passenger-only service on the national ferry route. Additionally, the state could continue to fund the expansion of Kitsap Transit service between Bremerton and Seattle.
“The state should do everything humanely possible to restore more reliable service to boats,” Inslee said at a Thursday news conference. “Do everything humanly possible, as quickly as humanly possible.”