Keystone will get a new ferry in 2009
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20080215/NEWS01/988589793

Two bigger ferries could follow in 2010 under a law signed by the governor Thursday.

By Jerry Cornfield
Herald Writer

OLYMPIA -- A new law signed Thursday sets the state on course for building and delivering three new car ferries for the Whidbey Island-to-Port Townsend run.

Gov. Chris Gregoire signed legislation intended to put a 50-car ferry on that run by April 2009 and potentially two larger boats in service the following year.

"In an unprecedented time frame we are now in the process of building three new vessels," said Gregoire, who's also requested that the Legislature appropriate $100 million for the boats.

The new law calls for constructing vessels to replace the Steel Electric-class ferries pulled off the Keystone-to-Port Townsend route in November because of safety concerns about their 80-year-old hulls.

This law, passed by large majorities in the House and Senate, specifies that the new ferries carry no more than 100 vehicles and that they must be built in Washington.

Today, the state Department of Transportation intends to start soliciting bids for constructing at least one and up to three vessels based on the Steilacoom II design. Bids are due in 30 days with a contract awarded by this April.

One boat of this design will be built and in use in 2009, the governor said.

That certainty about adding only one Steilacoom-class ferry to the fleet may be because a growing number of community leaders and legislators want something larger.

"I'm happy we're getting one as quickly as we are," said Port Townsend Mayor Michelle Sandoval. "I'm looking forward to hopefully getting two boats that are a little bit bigger."

Service resumed on the ferry run using a Steilacoom II-class vessel leased from Pierce County. Sandoval was among the elected officials onboard in a trial run of the leased boat through the challenging waters of Admiralty Inlet. Afterward, many said they wanted more heft.

"I was on that boat and it was a little rocky. It is a really sturdy, safe little boat," said state Sen. Mary Margaret Haugen, D-Camano Island, prime sponsor of the new law.

Still, she said, she wants the state to pursue the building of larger boats.

"(The leased) boat may be adequate for the short term but it is not the right boat for the long term," said Rep. Norma Smith, R-Clinton, adding that the new law does not lock the Legislature into buying a specific boat.

Legislators and state ferry officials are eyeing the Island Home-class ferry, which can carry up to 76 vehicles. They are in use in Nantucket, Mass. Later this month, a captain and chief engineer from Washington State Ferries plan to fly east to view them in use.

Elliot Bay Design Group of Seattle designed Island Home ferries, as well as the Steilacoom II. State Transportation Secretary Paula Hammond said she's gathering information on modifications needed to make them operable on this route.

If there is a clear sign from elected officials to pursue the Island Home-class vessels, she will move quickly to get designs and go out to bid.

Hammond said those boats will cost more but can be covered under the governor's funding proposal. She said one could be delivered in April 2010 and a second in November 2010.

"The boat we have there right now will not achieve the level of service we need. Building another boat just like that will not achieve the level of service we need," said Rep. Barbara Bailey, R-Oak Harbor.

"My hope is that when we go to that second and third boat we look at the level of service that is needed and we build the right boat," Bailey said.

In addition to procuring these ferries, the Legislature is considering a bill to direct the state ferry system to develop a schedule for repairing and replacing its fleet.

Senate Bill 6932, sponsored by Haugen, also pushes the agency to find ways to pay to build new boats to replace the 18 ferries that likely must be retired as the fleet ages over the next three decades. The legislation could come up for a vote by Tuesday.

"Things have changed," Haugen said. "We intend to have some real rules, laws saying that (ferry officials) have to come to us and report to us on a regular basis. It has taken a long time to get here. We see this ship turning around."

Reporter Jerry Cornfield: 360-352-8623 or jcornfield@heraldnet.com.