Washington State Ferries

A ferry arrives in Downtown Seattle.

This article is about the ferry system operated by the state of Washington. For ferry systems in Washington state operated by other entities, see Ferries in Washington State.

Washington State Ferries is a passenger and automobile ferry service owned and operated by the Washington State Department of Transportation that serves communities on Puget Sound and in the San Juan Islands. It is the largest passenger and automobile ferry fleet in the United States and the third largest in the world by fleet size. The service is also the largest in the world based on the number of vehicles carried, having carried 11 million annually.

History

The ferry system has its origins in the "Mosquito Fleet", a collection of small steamer lines serving the Puget Sound area during the later part of the nineteenth century and early part of the 20th century. By the beginning of the 1930s, two lines remained: the Puget Sound Navigation Company (known as the Black Ball Line) and the Kitsap County Transportation Company. A strike in 1935 forced the KCTC to close, leaving only the Black Ball Line.

Toward the end of the 1940s the Black Ball Line wanted to increase its fares, to compensate for increased wage demands from the ferry workers' unions, but the state refused to allow this, and so the Black Ball Line shut down. In 1951, the state bought nearly all of Black Ball's ferry assets for $5 million (Black Ball retained five vessels of its fleet). The state intended to run ferry service only until cross-sound bridges could be built, but these were never approved, and the Washington State Department of Transportation runs the system to this day.

Fleet

Washington State Ferry Tacoma

The Hyak in Rich Passage heading to Bremerton, WA.

As of 2012, there are 22 ferries on Puget Sound operated by the state. The largest vessels in this fleet carry up to 2500 passengers and 202 vehicles. They are painted in a distinctive white and green trim paint scheme, and feature double-ended open vehicle decks and bridges at each end so that they do not need to turn around.

The ferry fleet consists of the following vessels:

Washington State Ferries Current fleet

Ferry Name	Class	Year Built (Rebuilt)	Auto Capacity	Passenger Capacity	Notes
MV Hiyu	None	1967	34	200
MV Chetzemoka	Kwa-di Tabil	2010	64	750
MV Salish	Kwa-di Tabil	2011	64	750
MV Kennewick	Kwa-di Tabil	2011	64	750
MV Evergreen State	Evergreen State	1954 (1988)	87	875
MV Klahowya	Evergreen State	1958 (1995)	87	800
MV Tillikum	Evergreen State	1959 (1994)	87	1061
MV Sealth	Issaquah 100	1982 (2006)	90	1200
MV Issaquah	Issaquah 130	1979 (1989)	124	1200	Auto capacity increased to 124 in 1989
MV Kittitas	Issaquah 130	1980 (1990)	124	1200	Auto capacity increased to 124 in 1990
MV Kitsap	Issaquah 130	1980 (1992)	124	1200	Auto capacity increased to 124 in 1992
MV Cathlamet	Issaquah 130	1981 (1993)	124	1200	Auto capacity increased to 124 in 1993
MV Chelan	Issaquah 130	1981 (2004)	124	1076	Auto capacity increased to 124 in 2001
MV Tokitae	Olympic	2013	144	1500
MV Samish	Olympic	2014	144	1500
MV Hyak	Super	1967	144	2000
MV Kaleetan	Super	1967 (1999)	144	2000
MV Yakima	Super	1967 (2000)	144	2000
MV Elwha	Super	1968 (1991)	144	1076
MV Spokane	Jumbo	1972 (2003)	188	2000
MV Walla Walla	Jumbo	1972	188	2000
MV Tacoma	Jumbo Mark II	1997	202	2500
MV Wenatchee	Jumbo Mark II	1998	202	2500
MV Puyallup	Jumbo Mark II	1999	202	2500

Retired vessels

MV Illahee was one of the Steel Electric class ferries which were retired in 2007.

MV Kalakala was retired in 1967

Washington State Ferries Retired fleet

Ferry Name	Class	Year Built (Rebuilt)	Year Retired	Auto Capacity	Passenger Capacity	Notes
MV Chippewa	None	1900 (1928/ 1932)	1964	52	950	Converted to a car ferry in 1926
MV Leschi	None	1913	1967	40	453
SS San Mateo	None	1922	1969	50	659	Purchased by PSN in 1941
SS Shasta	None	1922	1958	55	468	Purchased by PSN in 1941
MV Rosario	None	1923 (1931)	1951	33	312
MV Kitsap (1925)	None	1925	1961	32	325
MV Crosline	None	1925 (1947)	1967	30	300
MV Kehloken	Wood Electric	1926	1972	50	770	Purchased by PSN in 1940
MV Kalakala	None	1926 (1935)	1967	110	1943	Originally built as MV Peralta in 1926; rebuilt as Kalakala in 1935 using Peralta's hull
MV Enetai	Steel Electric	1927	1967	90	1500	Purchased by PSN in 1940 and converted to a single-ended ferry
MV Willapa	Steel Electric	1927	1967	90	1500	Purchased by PSN in 1940 and converted to a single-ended ferry
MV Chetzemoka (1927)	Wood Electric	1927	1973	50	400	Purchased by PSN in 1938
MV Quinault	Steel Electric	1927 (1958/ 1985)	2007	59	616	Purchased by PSN in 1940
MV Illahee	Steel Electric	1927 (1958/ 1986)	2007	59	616	Purchased by PSN in 1940
MV Nisqually	Steel Electric	1927 (1958/ 1987)	2007	59	616	Purchased by PSN in 1940
MV Klickitat	Steel Electric	1927 (1981)	2007	64	412	Purchased by PSN in 1940
MV Klahanie	Wood Electric	1928	1972	50	601	Purchased by PSN in 1940
MV Skansonia	None	1929	1969	32	465
MV Vashon	None	1930	1980	50	646
MV Olympic	None	1938	1993	55	605	Purchased by WSF in 1954
MV Rhododendron	None	1947 (1990)	2012	48	546	Purchased by WSF in 1954, sold to Atlantic Capes Fisheries in 2013
MV Kulshan	None	1954	1982	65	350	Purchased by WSF in 1970, sold in 1982 and renamed MV Governor
MV Tyee	None	1985	2003	0	?
MV Kalama	Skagit/ Kalama	1989	2009	0	230	Sold in 2011
MV Skagit	Skagit/ Kalama	1989	2009	0	230	Sold in 2011; capsized on July 18, 2012
MV Chinook	Passenger-Only Fast Ferry	1998	2008	0	350	Sold to Golden Gate Ferries, renamed MV Golden Gate
MV Snohomish	Passenger-Only Fast Ferry	1999	2008	0	350	Sold to Golden Gate Ferries, renamed MV Napa

Routes

A map showing the routes operated by Washington State Ferries in comparison with state highways in Washington. Click for more detail.

Most Washington State Ferry routes are legally part of the state highway system, frequently with no road portion on one end or the other.

• Seattle-Bremerton (SR 304)
• Seattle-Bainbridge Island (SR 305)
• Southworth to Vashon Island to Fauntleroy (West Seattle) (SR 160)
• Point Defiance-Tahlequah (south end of Vashon Island) (SR 163)
• Clinton to Mukilteo (SR 525)
• Edmonds-Kingston (SR 104)
• Keystone to Port Townsend (State Route 20)
• Anacortes to (any or all of the following [in most common route order]) (SR 20 Spur)
  • Lopez Island
  • Shaw Island
  • Orcas Island
  • Friday Harbor (on San Juan Island)
  • Sidney, British Columbia (The service's only Canadian port-of-call) (Seasonal, operates April through December)

From October 1986 to September 9, 1989 and from April 23, 1990 to Sept. 21, 2003 a passenger-only service ran on the Seattle-Bremerton route. It was shut down because of limited profitability and because of continued lawsuits of residents living on the waterway used by the ferry to prevent the high-speed ferries built for the run from running at their full speed. The slower speed made the crossing time similar or equal to the auto ferry operating on the same route, making the passenger-only service redundant.^{[citation needed]}

The current passenger-only ferry route between Seattle and Vashon Island is designated State Route 339, with no road portion at either end. This route is no longer operated by Washington State Ferries, as responsibility was passed to the King County Marine Division in fall of 2009.

Other ferries

Main article: Ferries in Washington State

There are several other publicly operated, private, and passenger-only ferries in Washington state.

See also

• Alaska Marine Highway
• Ferries in Washington State
• Inter-Island Ferry Authority
• BC Ferries
• Keller Ferry
• King County Ferry District
• Seattle tugboats
• Black Ball Line

External links

• Washington State Ferries official homepage
• Evergreenfleet.com-- A History of Washington State Ferries Past and Present
• Vehicle Reservation Predesign Study
• West Coast Ferries Forum