WSF Weekly Report | High school students learn about ferry work

||| FROM STEVE NEVEY for WASHINGTON STATE FERRIES |||

A message from Steve

I remember talking to my high school career counselor about my desire to work on ships. She laughed and asked why I would want to do that, then handed me a job poster for one of the local carpet factories. Finding the poster uninspiring, I went to the town’s library – this was before Google existed. I found a pamphlet advising that I contact all the shipping companies offering maritime college scholarships and express my interest. I wrote at least 30 letters and ended up receiving a scholarship to attend Warsash Maritime School, training on Chevron ships. All that to say, for an industry desperate to attract young people, it took a lot of perseverance on my part, and I sometimes reflect on how it should have been easier.

That’s why I am excited about the things happening at WSF. We are working with partners in the region’s maritime community to attract young people and remove barriers. We’re collaborating with Maritime High School and Seattle Maritime Academy to provide Running Start opportunities for maritime interns. We are also working with the Northwest Maritime Center to create learning experiences at sea for middle and high school youth.

Capt. Janel Offley hosted interested students from Wishkah High School aboard Walla Walla yesterday. In addition to touring the vessel, the students got to participate in a mock fire drill.

One idea we’re developing is “summer school at sea,” where we would literally have a classroom in a ferry’s passenger cabin, with kids completing learning projects in a summer school-type setting. This week we opened our Eagle Harbor Maintenance Facility to high schoolers so they could see our workshops there and get a behind-the-scenes vessel tour, giving them a perspective on a range of careers available at WSF.

These initiatives are designed to inspire and support the next generation of maritime professionals, making their path smoother and more accessible. I am thrilled to be part of this effort to cultivate a passion for maritime careers among young people, ensuring they have the opportunities and guidance that were hard for me to find.

Career day for high schoolers

We hosted our second annual career day for high school students at our Eagle Harbor Maintenance Facility Tuesday. More than 100 students from Bainbridge, Enumclaw, Foster, Kent-Meridian, North Kitsap, North Mason, Lincoln and South Kitsap high schools saw firsthand what it’s like to work in maritime and trades. While we continue to actively recruit and hire new workers and train existing employees to fill key positions, we must also look to bring long-term stability to our workforce by attracting high school graduates into lifelong careers with us. Thank you to our communications team and Eagle Harbor staff who worked hard to put on the event. It’s no easy feat to host that many people at an active shipyard.

Please contact our communications team if you know a school or young adult organization that would be interested in participating in this event in the future.

Career day attendees listen to Pipe Shop Foreperson Derreck Stoutenberg during a tour of the various trade shops at our Eagle Harbor Maintenance Facility.

Capt. Heather Kelleher talks with students in the Sealth wheelhouse.

Staff Chief Engineer Chris Blasko shows high schoolers around the Sealth engine room.

Chief Mate Brett Wheeler shows students how heavy an oxygen tank weighs during a vessel crew firefighting gear demonstration.

Memorial Day weekend ferry travel

Because of our recent recruiting, hiring and training efforts, we completed 99.1% of sailings scheduled in January through April of this year, up from 97.8% during the first four months of 2023. That’s great news as we enter our busy summer season. In fact, we expect nearly 350,000 riders this weekend. People boarding a ferry in a vehicle for Memorial Day travel should plan for long waits. The busiest sailings will be westbound (or onto an island) today through Saturday, May 23-25, and eastbound (or off island) Saturday through Monday, May 25-27. Wait times are much shorter for early morning and late-night sailings. There is plenty of walk-on capacity on all our sailings with minimal to no wait. Holiday sailings are marked on the sailing schedules for each route.

I want to thank hardworking employees from all across WSF serving this holiday weekend to ensure customers get to their destinations safely and efficiently. We still have a lot of work to do to strengthen and stabilize our workforce and our fleet, but these employees continue to deliver for the people of this state.

Travelers can download the WSDOT mobile app for up-to-the-minute service information, including rider alerts and a real-time map to track the boats. Before heading to a terminal or boarding, customers are encouraged to check terminal conditions. We also offer vehicle reservations on our Anacortes/San Juan Islands and Port Townsend/Coupeville routes. People using state highways to get to the ferry terminal should plan for potential holiday travel backups and delays. Real-time traffic information is available on the WSDOT traffic app for mobile devices or online using the updated WSDOT travel map feature.

WTS Puget Sound Chapter tours Colman Dock

We hosted a group from the Women’s Transportation Seminar Puget Sound Chapter on a walking tour of our Seattle multimodal terminal yesterday. Our Colman Dock project won the WTS Puget Sound Innovative Transportation Solution Award in March. The award honors an innovative transportation project led by a woman, non-binary person or team of women/non-binary people. An estimated 150 women have been involved in our Seattle terminal project. Staff from the Seattle Department of Transportation led the group on a visit to their Marion Street Pedestrian Bridge, which goes over Alaskan Way, connecting our terminal to downtown Seattle.

Deputy Assistant Secretary Nicole McIntosh (second from the left in bottom row), who played a key role in our Colman Dock project, lead the WTS tour of our Seattle multimodal terminal.

Sailing stats for week of May 13-19

To provide an update on where we are with service across our system, I will include sailing statistics for the previous week in each Weekly Update. For the week of May 13-19, we completed 99.4% of our scheduled sailings. We were able to replace eight of our 26 canceled sailings, which were due to crewing (54%), a vessel being out of service (12%) and schedule resets (27%), when a boat is so far behind schedule, we cancel a sailing to get it back on schedule, providing predictability for customers.

Customer kudos

“My wife and I would like to compliment the 2nd Mate’s staff for their help on the 12:20 pm ferry from Bainbridge Island to Seattle. The locking mechanism for our car broke as we were getting out of our car and we were unable to get back into the car. We notified the 2nd Mate’s office of our problem and they immediately sent staff to our car to assess the problem. The staff worked diligently for at least 30 minutes, using clearly well-honed skills, and were finally able to gain entry to our car just as we arrived at Colman Dock. Throughout the process the Chimacum staff were courteous and professional. My wife and I commend the staff for their expert help and the WSF system for recruiting such able staff.”

-Seattle/Bainbridge route customer