||| FROM SAN JUAN COUNTY COMMUNICATIONS |||
San Juan County Council issued a request to the Washington State Governor’s Office for a ‘State of Emergency’ and ‘executive relief’ from ferry service disruptions. The 180-day interim proposal outlined a plan for financing local marine transportation alternatives that would attempt to mitigate the significant impacts on the County’s economy and its ability to deliver essential public services, as well as significant transportation challenges experienced by residents and visitors.
The County requested $995,670.00 in financial support from the State in three areas:
- Interisland passenger only water taxi service $ 279,450.00
- Anacortes / San Juan Islands passenger only ferry service $ 659,295.00
- On-call essential/critical services barge transportation $ 56,925.00
Local Ferry Data
Council developed this funding request based on several key pieces of local data, including:
- An internal County Government ferry impacts review regarding effects ferry service disruptions have upon the delivery of essential public services
- Statistics from the Community Water Taxi Survey – both the 2024 survey and their year-to-date ridership data
- Survey results from Transition Lopez that explore the establishment of a fossil-free local shuttle service on Lopez Island.
This data reveals that island residents, businesses, and the County’s ability to provide essential public services are suffering from increasing disruptions to ferry service.
Response from the State
Due to a variety of factors, the State did not issue a State of Emergency or grant Council’s funding requests. WSF reports that they continue to achieve more than 90% reliability across the system – including on the Anacortes / San Juans Islands route.
The Governor’s Office and WSF recognize ferry service deficiencies in the San Juans and thus are encouraging the San Juan County Council to develop a legislative ask for the upcoming legislative session that will begin in January of 2025. They recommend developing an ask utilizing the evidence base that the County has gathered in recent months to address the ongoing deficiencies in service on our State marine highway.
On Saturday, August 24, 2024, Governor Inslee will travel to San Juan Island to meet with representatives of the County and Town Councils, County staff, and the Ferry Advisory Committee for further discussion of the islands’ ongoing ferry crisis.
“We as a County government are acutely aware of the struggles our locals and visitors are experiencing due to ferry service disruptions, and we see impacts to our own ability to serve the public,” said Council Chair Jane Fuller. “We are in ongoing discussions with the Governor’s office, our state legislators, and local community stakeholders to seek solutions to these impactful disruptions, while at the same time exploring the role our County government can play in supporting interim measures.”
Next Steps
Council is grateful for the continued support of 40th district legislators and will continue to work together to coordinate and strengthen messaging around the need for reliable ferry service in the San Juans. The Council’s next regularly scheduled meeting is August 27 where they be discussing the development of a new legislative ask for the forthcoming legislative session.
The Council Chair is currently in the process of establishing an external Transportation Working Group comprised of representatives from Chambers, Ports, non-profits, and other local entities. This group will be tasked with identifying local solutions to transportation issues that can be explored by the County government.
All San Juan County residents are encouraged to participate in the State’s online public open house through August 23rd to provide local input on the draft ferry schedule re-write for the Anacortes / San Juans route. WSF is hopeful that an updated schedule will significantly help on-time performance and minimize “reset cancellations.” The new schedule will go into effect in January 2025.
The County will release additional updates as they become available. Learn more about the County’s ferry advocacy efforts on the Engage page: https://engage.
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Kudos to County Council, and particularly Chair Fuller, for the well-documented emergency relief request. Hopefully, in 2025, with a new governor, state budget, legislative lobbyist and the continued support of our legislative team we’ll see more support coming our way. What’s also needed to support a passenger-only ferry and reduce car-dependence in the Islands is an integrated land-side transportation plan.