WSF Weekly Report | USCG, WSP, others work with us; SJC Fair ferries; schedule rewrite for SJs

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

A message from Steve

We work closely – and often – with the U.S. Coast Guard to ensure that our ferry system is safe and secure. Our partnership allows our passengers and crew to travel with confidence, knowing they’re in good hands. As the lead federal maritime law enforcement agency, the USCG enforces regulations to keep our waters safe and responds to emergencies. The Coast Guard also oversees the integrity of our operations and conducts regular inspections of our vessels.

 I met with 13th Coast Guard District Commander Rear Adm. Charles Fosse (center) and some members of his team Tuesday at their downtown Seattle office in the Henry M. Jackson Federal Building.

In addition to the U.S. Coast Guard, Washington State Patrol and multiple local law enforcement agencies help to safeguard our operations. We opened the doors to our Eagle Harbor Maintenance Facility for two days last month so officers could participate in a training exercise at our Bainbridge Island shipyard and aboard Chetzemoka.

We are in constant communications with the U.S. Coast Guard and always looking for ways to improve our safety and security. On Tuesday, Aug. 20, we will hold our annual security exercise, working closely with the USCG and WSP, along with several local response agencies. We will be training to respond to an active threat scenario at our Port Townsend terminal while the route’s vessel is tied up at the dock for scheduled cancellations due to extreme tidal conditions that morning. People in the area should expect many first responders and may hear simulated gunfire and sirens.

The Coast Guard is an essential partner of ours and we are profoundly grateful for their steadfast dedication to safeguarding our maritime community.

Interisland service during San Juan County Fair

As I have said before, we know our service levels are not where any of us would like them to be. We’re working hard to provide increased and more reliable service, but also understand the impact cancellations have on the communities we serve, especially during major events like the San Juan County Fair. That’s why we’ve taken concrete steps to keep the interisland boat running for the duration of the fair. Through Sunday, Aug. 18, we are over-crewing Tillikum, the vessel operating interisland service, and have arranged for accommodations in Friday Harbor to ensure standby employees are readily available for service. We’re also in contact with Paraclete Charters and various forms of air transportation should we need to quickly shuttle crewmembers between Anacortes and San Juan Island. While we don’t have the resources to do this all the time, we are committed to working with local communities to make our service more resilient and reliable, especially when it matters most.

We also have extra staffing at our terminals and the supervisors in Anacortes have prepared a backup schedule to ensure continuity of service if, despite our efforts, Tillikum goes out of service.

Anacortes/San Juan Islands route schedule rewrite online open house

You have about a week left to visit the online open house on our Anacortes/San Juan Islands route schedule rewrite process. There you will find draft timetables developed by a community task force and an opportunity to weigh in on the proposed changes. The open house will be online through Friday, Aug. 23.

The current schedules for our Anacortes/San Juan Islands route have not been updated in 10-15 years. They need to be revised to improve on-time performance and reliability, and to align with the vehicle reservations program that started in 2015.

Taking our sustainability and environmental journey to the next level

We are proud to be the first ferry system to be selected to participate in the Federal Transit Administration’s Environmental and Sustainability Management System Training and Technical Assistance Program. Through this hands-on program, FTA will help us develop and launch an environmental and sustainability management system in line with standard 14001 of the International Organization for Standardization.

Environmental stewardship and sustainability are integral parts of our agency’s Strategic Plan.

Golf tournament supporting maritime scholarships

Many of you probably know by now that I’m passionate about developing our next generation of mariners. They’re the key in making our ferry system healthy in the long term. The Council of American Master Mariners’ Bob Magee Memorial Golf Tournament raises money for the Youth Maritime Training Association. CAMM’s Seattle/Pacific Northwest Chapter is looking for golfers, sponsors and donors for the Thursday, Aug. 29, event that supports scholarships for local high school students.

Sailing stats for week of Aug. 5-11

For the week of Aug. 5-11, we completed 95.8% of our 2,829 scheduled sailings. We were able to replace 2 of our 120 canceled sailings that were due to crewing (68%), a vessel being out of service (8%) and schedule resets (22%), when a boat is so far behind schedule, we cancel a sailing to get it back on schedule, providing predictability for customers.

Customer kudos

RAVE to the Washington State Department of Transportation folks for keeping us islanders updated with the volatile ferry schedules. Whether we like the news or not, we appreciate your work. Just know we regulars DO appreciate your exceptional efforts as well as all the state’s ferry team for keeping us informed and safe.”

-Anacortes/San Juan Islands route customer in The Seattle Times