WSF Weekly Report | Summer is over; off-season rates to kick in; lifesaving award for Samish crew; kudo for SJs inter-island crew

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

A message from Steve

Our busy summer season ended Saturday, and I send my deepest gratitude to my colleagues for their hard work in getting millions of people to their destinations safely. I also thank our customers for their continued patience with canceled sailings and late departures. Ridership over the peak travel period was up by 150,000 compared to last year, showing the growing demand for our services. The warmer months bring more leisure travelers, who are vital to the economies of the communities we serve. But the increase in riders can also cause delays that affect commuters heading to work, school and other essential appointments, which can be especially frustrating while we are not back to pre-pandemic service levels. We are providing as much service as possible with the staff and resources we have. We have smoother waters ahead, but that will take time.

Systemwide ridership for our summer season (June 16 to Sept. 21) totaled more than 6.42 million, up from 6.27 million in 2023 (June 18 to Sept. 23).

We have seen some signs of improvement though. From January through August, we completed 98.2% of our scheduled 96,937 sailings. That’s an increase from 97.8% over the same period last year. Canceled sailings during that time dropped from 2,315 in 2023 to 1,805 this year. While these numbers show progress, we understand even one canceled sailing is frustrating. We’re still in recovery, and our team is working hard to further improve.

Recap of this week’s virtual public meetings

Thank you to everyone who joined our virtual public meetings on Tuesday and Wednesday. We started both meetings with updates on our busy summer travel, work on the Wenatchee, workforce training, service recovery and terminal construction. Most of the time was spent answering questions from the audience. More than 300 people joined the meetings, which were our third this year and first ever in the fall. We usually hold these at the start of the year and before summer. If you missed it, recordings are available on our community participation webpage.

Several directors and I were available to answer questions from attendees during the virtual public meetings.

Classroom on the Water

Our new Classroom on the Water program got underway last week. We hosted several Maritime High School students for three days of hands-on marine training. Designed to help with our staffing shortages and inspire the next generation of mariners, this initiative turns our ferries into real-world classrooms. The program was developed in partnership with Highline Public Schools and Northwest Maritime. Maritime High’s first senior class will graduate in June 2025, and they will have entry-level credentials to work for us or in other maritime jobs. This is one of many career pipelines we’ve created recently to help people grow, plan for retirements and prepare for our future.

Capt. Patrick Tuohy shows a group of Maritime High School students around the Tacoma wheelhouse. Photo courtesy Northwest Maritime.

Students from Maritime High School explore the Issaquah engine room. Photo courtesy Northwest Maritime.

Fare changes begin Wednesday, Oct. 1

You may notice changes in our fares in the new month. On Tuesday, Oct. 1, new rates set by the Washington State Transportation Commission to meet legislatively-directed farebox recovery goals will go into effect. It’s also the first day with no peak season surcharge for vehicles, which will resume May 1, 2025. Use our online calendar to calculate your fares for the days you’ll be traveling.

The peak season surcharge for our vehicle and driver fares will end for the year after Monday, Sept. 30.

Samish crew earns Lifesaving Award for March rescue

Four of our deck crew members received Lifesaving Awards at the Governor’s Industrial Safety and Health Conference Tuesday in Tacoma. Chief Mate Justin McCaughan, Able-Bodied Sailor David Wickland, and Ordinary Sailors Justin Higgins and Brandon Torres were working aboard the Samish on March 9 when they helped rescue six boaters near Decatur Island in rough weather. After hearing a distress call, the crew moved the ferry to block the wind and waves from reaching the 37-foot cabin cruiser, which was taking on water. They then launched a rescue boat and brought four people aboard, giving them care. The other two stayed on their vessel with two dogs so the U.S. Coast Guard could escort them back to Anacortes. No one was seriously hurt. The Lifesaving Award recognizes Washington state employees covered by industrial insurance for performing urgent, hands-on lifesaving actions while on duty.

Our Samish crew assists in the rescue of boaters aboard a vessel that was damaged in rough seas off the San Juan Islands earlier this year. Photo courtesy Victoria Compton.

Week Without Driving

Millions of people across the country, including those with disabilities, seniors, youth and individuals facing financial challenges, don’t have the option to drive. For them, our ferries and other public transit services, biking, walking, carpooling or rideshares are essential, not optional. To experience what it’s like to live without a car and raise awareness for more inclusive transportation, consider joining the Week Without Driving challenge from Sept. 30 to Oct. 8! Disability Rights Washington started this challenge in 2021 and took it national last year by partnering with America Walks. 

Colman Dock project architect NBBJ honored at awards ceremony

The design our new flagship Seattle terminal was honored at an American Institute of Architects award ceremony last week. AIA’s Washington Council presented our Colman Dock project architect NBJJ with one of its 2024 Civic Design Awards. This recognition celebrates design excellence in publicly funded projects in our state. Our Mukilteo terminal project also received this award in 2021. Congratulations to NBBJ!

NBBJ’s Beatrice Tang and Nick McDaniel with our Director of Terminal Engineering David Sowers and Architect Ron Matyjas at the AIA Washington Council awards ceremony last week at Pier 55.

Sailing stats for week of Sept. 16-22

For the week of Sept. 16-22, we completed 97.2% of our 2,825 scheduled sailings. Of our 79 cancellations, 57 were due to crewing, 14 for schedule resets (when a boat is so far behind schedule, we cancel a sailing to get it back on schedule, providing predictability for customers) and 12 because of tidal currents.

Customer kudos

“I take the ferry many times a week…up to 5 times a week, and every one of the crew of the interisland ferries are absolutely wonderful. They are kind, efficient, and as a juvenile probation counselor that needs to travel to youth emergencies, they also value safety. Inter-Island workers are the best and Tilly is my favorite boat.”  –-San Juans’ interisland route customer