Kitsap Transit is reporting that over one million passengers rode on its ferry fleet last year, with all its fast ferry routes displaying significant increases.
A Jan. 5 KT news release shows 1,059,856 riders, up 33%, a statistic the agency says shows that demand has rebounded following the COVID pandemic.
The Fast Ferries route between Bremerton and Seattle made up nearly half of the ridership, finishing 2023 having carried 517,270 passengers, a 54% increase.
An increase in ridership was expected given the agency began running extra sailings on that route as part of a funding agreement reached in late 2022 with the state. The agreement was expected to begin fading out last spring, but the expanded schedule has since remained as Washington State Ferries continues to struggle with its aging fleet.
The other two Fast Ferries routes broke the 100,000 mark by year’s end. The Kingston route increased its ridership to 106,375 passengers (up 37%), and Southworth’s boats carried 146,087 passengers (up 49%). The release adds, “Average passenger loads per sailing were up 35 percent for the Kingston service and 41 percent for the Southworth service.”
Overall ridership on the two local foot ferry routes between Bremerton and South Kitsap were not as drastic, the Port Orchard route actually decreasing to 183,140 (down 10%). Annapolis’ route made up the difference by bringing in 106,984 passengers (up 33%) to slightly increase overall foot ferry ridership.
The agency also reported it had met its targeted goals in obtaining at least 98% better service reliability and 95% timely arrival, defined as within five minutes of scheduled arrival.
“We are proud of the dedication our ferry crews, mechanics and shoreside ambassadors demonstrate day in and day out in operating our service safely on the marine highways while maintaining an excellent record of reliability,” KT executive director John Clauson said.
The agency looks to 2024 with the goal of moving forward on a new ferry maintenance facility, which the agency reports is now the second largest in the state.
WSF service
The success of the KT ferry system has helped alleviate some of the burden Bremerton and other Kitsap jurisdictions have faced with WSF’s shortages of operational vessels and crew members.
It’s those factors among others that WSF cites in its new Service Contingency Plan released Jan. 4 in which more delays were announced in a restoration now expected to continue several more years.
“While ridership continues to recover following the COVID-19 pandemic, WSF is unable to return service to pre-pandemic levels,” that report says. “This puts pressure on the entire ferry system, as customers wait longer to board, crews work longer hours and frequent overtime, and unexpected service disruptions create ripple effects felt throughout the system.”
WSF says it does not anticipate full restoration until new vessels begin entering the fleet. The report suggests that would not occur until at least 2028.
The report also adds a possibility for limited restoration in the time being, “There will be times, often entire seasons, in the interim period when WSF has both the crew and vessels available to operate additional service above the fifteen-vessel baseline.”
That limited restoration would continue to follow a prioritization list. WSF would first add a third vessel to the Fauntleroy-Vashon-Southworth route, then a second for Seattle-Bremerton and then a second at Port Townsend-Coupeville in the shoulder/summer season.
