Colman Dock construction set to alter Seattle ferry sailings

By Luciano Marano • June 20, 2017 9:05 am
Image courtesy of Washington State Ferries | A rendering of what the interior of the newly-rebuilt Colman Dock will be like.
Image courtesy of Washington State Ferries | A rendering of what the interior of the newly-rebuilt Colman Dock will be like.

An extensive renovation and remodel of Seattle’s aged Colman Dock is slated to impact Bainbridge Island and Bremerton sailing schedules in the near future, according to Washington State Ferries officials.

WSF is replacing the “aging and seismically vulnerable parts of Colman Dock in Seattle in order to maintain its critical role as a regional multimodal transportation hub,” according to the project overview.

Beginning January 2018, the start of the winter schedule, passengers can expect the Bainbridge sailings to leave five to 15 minutes later and the Bremerton sailings to leave five to 15 minutes earlier than normal as a result, WSF spokeswoman Hadley Rodero said.

“Not every sailing will change, though several changes are proposed for both the weekday and weekend Seattle/Bainbridge sailing schedule, primarily in the afternoon,” Rodero said.

“While we made every effort to minimize the impacts to our current sailing schedules, changes to a single sailing creates ripple effects through the schedule because our vessels are in continuous operation throughout the service day.”

The altered schedule will be the norm, Rodero said, through the end of construction, “expected to be complete in early 2023.”

“As the final phase of Colman Dock construction nears, WSF will work together with Ferry Advisory Committees and the public to identify permanent sailing schedules for Bainbridge and Bremerton,” Rodero said.

More specific information is expected in coming weeks, to be disseminated at several public outreach events where WSF officials will be sharing information about what to expect during construction, including changes to the Bremerton and Bainbridge sailing schedules.

The Bainbridge Island open house information session will be held from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, June 27 at the Bainbridge Island Senior Center (370 Brien Drive SE).

Additionally, there will be open houses held in Bremerton (5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Monday, June 26 at the Kitsap Conference Center (100 Washington Ave.), and in downtown Seattle from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. Thursday, June 29 at the Center for Architecture and Design (1010 Western Ave.).

Two “drop-in” sessions are also scheduled: 3:30 to 6:30 p.m. Wednesday June 21 at the Seattle terminal and King County Water Taxi waiting area (801 Alaskan Way, Pier 50 and 52), and from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thursday, June 22 at the Bremerton terminal as part of the Chimacum Community Celebration.

There will also be an online open house (ColmanDockProject.partic ipate.online) from Friday, June 16 to July 14.

Visit www.wsdot.wa.gov/Projects/Ferries/ColmanMultimodalTerminal for more information.

WSF officials announced the work to replace the old and seismically-vulnerable parts of Seattle’s Colman Dock earlier this month. Major construction is planned to start later this summer.

Officials noted: “Construction is expected to continue through early 2023 and the terminal will remain open throughout construction. Some work is already underway to get ready for construction including shifting the Bremerton route to operate out of Slip 2. Later this month, vehicle access to Colman Dock will change.”

Colman Dock in Seattle is WSF’s largest ferry terminal and supports transportation across Puget Sound between downtown Seattle and communities in Kitsap County and the Olympic Peninsula. It serves commuters, tourists, commercial vehicles, walk-on passengers and bicyclists.

In 2016, more than 9 million people traveled through Colman Dock, including more than 5.5 million foot passengers, according to WSF.

Key elements of the construction project include replacing the existing timber trestle portion of the dock with a new concrete and steel trestle; replacing the main terminal building; replacing the passenger-only ferry facility on the south edge of Colman Dock with funding from King County; constructing a new elevated walkway between the terminal building and the passenger-only ferry facility; replacing the overhead loading facility on the northernmost slip; adding a bicycle entry and holding area north of Marion Street; maintaining a connection to First Avenue via the Marion Street Bridge; elevated pedestrian walkway connecting to the terminal building; and mitigating for additional overwater coverage.

The overall project timeline, which was actually begun in 2012 with an environmental process study and preliminary design, moved into the final design and permitting phase earlier this year.

Construction is set to last from August until 2023.

“While ferry operations will be maintained throughout construction, customers can expect changes to how vehicles, passengers and bicycles load and unload,” WSF officials cautioned.

“Customers and terminal neighbors can also expect construction noise, vibration and odor. New steel piles will be installed with impact pile drivers during daytime hours only. Some nighttime work to complete other construction activities may also be needed. Removal of creosote-coated timber piles can also cause vibration and odors. Our contractor will use best management practices to minimize these impacts.”