WSF Weekly Report | Waste management; Colman Dock; WSDOT Worker Memorial; Kudo

At Washington State Ferries, we are privileged to sail daily through the picturesque waters of the Salish Sea, enveloped by its breathtaking scenery. Preserving this environment for future generations is integral to our mission. That’s why we take immense pride in our Sustainability Action Plan (PDF 1.6MB), which outlines our commitment to environmental stewardship and sustainability.

While we are still hyper-focused on resolving our crew challenges and delivering new boats, in today’s update, we are excited to share news regarding the rollout of our Waste Management and Reduction Plan. This plan is one of the keys to move us towards our goal of zero waste by outlining our current state, the challenges we face and the actions we plan to take over the coming years. We look forward to working with internal and external partners, including our customers, waste service providers, vendors and communities we serve to reduce our use of plastics and other materials, reuse and recycle, and increase composting of food waste, as well as getting unsold galley food into the hands of those in need.

We took a big step forward today in our journey to achieve zero waste. Timed with the United Nations’ International Day of Zero Waste on March 30 and this week’s Food Waste Prevention Week, we released our Waste Management and Reduction Plan (PDF 3.3MB). The plan outlines specific actions to address the many challenges involved in reducing waste. It was developed with input from staff across our system, particularly those who work as our eyes and ears aboard our vessels and at our terminals. And of course, all our employees will be working together to implement this plan. Congratulations and thank you to Kevin Bartoy, Seth Stark and their teams for their work in leading these efforts!

A recent audit of all waste generated by the three ferries serving our Seattle terminal over a 24-hour period totaled more than 1,100 pounds of landfill-bound waste and comingled recycling.

Engineering & Public Works Roadshow showcases Colman Dock

The national Engineering & Public Works Roadshow made a stop at our new flagship Seattle terminal yesterday to celebrate our Colman Dock construction project. The facility was built in stages to prevent disruption in ferry service and keep people and goods moving throughout the seven-year undertaking. The new terminal building partially opened in 2019 and completed in 2022. The entry building along Alaskan Way and elevated pedestrian walkway debuted late last year. The Roadshow is a joint project of the American Council of Engineering Companies, American Public Works Association and American Society of Civil Engineers spotlighting what successful infrastructure investment means for the nation’s economy, jobs, the environment and our future. Congratulations to the Colman Dock team!

Secretary of Transportation Roger Millar, former president of the ASCE Transportation and Development Institute, speaks during the Engineering & Public Works Roadshow event at Colman Dock yesterday.

Terminal Engineering Director David Sowers and Secretary of Transportation Roger Millar with an award from the Engineering & Public Works Roadshow in recognition of engineering and public works excellence for our Seattle Multimodal Terminal at Colman Dock Project.

WSF at WSDOT Worker Memorial

Our agency held its annual Worker Memorial in Olympia Tuesday to honor workers killed or injured on the job. Bosun Derrick Fant and Ordinary Sailor Nanette Hearns represented the Ferries Division in the WSDOT Honor Guard. They were among the 14 agency employees that lined up to honor the families of the fallen workers as they entered. Thank you to Nanette and Derrick for representing us well!

A line of work zone traffic cones and roses was set up for each of the 61 fallen WSDOT workers at our agency’s main lobby in Olympia Tuesday.

Bosun Derrick Fant and Ordinary Sailor Nanette Hearns were among 14 WSDOT workers in this year’s WSDOT Honor Guard.

Distracted Driving Awareness Month

April is Distracted Driving Awareness Month and a good time to remind our customers to be safe, attentive drivers on our vessels and at our terminals, where many of our employees work right in the middle of lanes of traffic. A particular concern is the use of cell phones while driving. Please remember that as an extension of the state highway system, all state laws on distracted driving apply on our ferry system.

When driving onto a vessel, it’s important to be attentive, make eye contact with our employees and look at where they’re directing you.

Hosting more high schoolers aboard our vessels

As I mentioned last week, getting kids interested in maritime careers is important as we build a workforce pipeline from “middle school to the pilothouse.” That cannot happen unless they get the chance to be out in our fleet. Last Thursday, a group of 10 students from Port Townsend Maritime Academy toured the pilothouse and engine room aboard Kennewick, as well as our Port Townsend terminal. Today, in partnership with Core Plus Maritime, we showed students from Renton High School what career opportunities we offer during a roundtrip sailing between Seattle and Bremerton aboard Walla Walla.

SR 305 overnight roadwork near Agate Pass Bridge

Heads up Seattle/Bainbridge route riders! Give yourself some extra travel time if you use State Route 305 weekday nights and early mornings through the Agate Pass Bridge area. From 8 tonight through 5 a.m. tomorrow, the highway will be reduced to one alternating lane of traffic at Northeast Adas Will Lane in northern Bainbridge Island for work on a safety improvement project. Then from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m. Monday, April 8, to the morning of Thursday, April 11, there will be four traffic stops nightly of up to 30 minutes at a time near Totten Road between Poulsbo and Suquamish for work on a fish barrier removal project.

Customer kudos

“What a way to make a difference in someone’s day… Long after the eggs had been dyed and the candy eaten, it was time to take my three-year-old grandson, James, back to his mother on the 6:45 sailing out of Port Townsend. As we settled into our booth on the ferry, we were both a little worn out from the day’s festivities, when the sweetest member of your crew, Will [Stehly, ordinary sailor] from the Deck Department, stopped by our table to compliment my grandson’s little Easter basket. He must have noticed how fried we each were, as he said he’d be right back.

“A few moments later, he returned with a sweet treat for me, along with bunny ears for my grandson as well as a plastic egg containing a wind-up bunny. The unalloyed delight in my grandson’s voice as he asked again and again for ‘more hop-a-bunny’ brought smiles and laughter to everyone seated around us and walking by. Much thanks to Will for providing the perfect ending to our holiday visit.”

-Port Townsend/Coupeville route customer

Ordinary Sailor Will Stehly celebrates Easter with a customer aboard Kennewick Sunday. Photo courtesy Christina Albrecht, grandmother to James.