WSF problems entirely predictable – and avoidable
It’s no secret to anyone who’s had the pleasure of using the Washington State Ferry (WSF) system over the past several years that service and reliability have been sketchy, at best, and it seems to be rapidly deteriorating.
The Orcasonian reports there have been an incredible 1,145 ferry cancellations this summer, and that was as of two weeks ago. Delays of more than eight hours are commonplace and residents on the islands have evidently grown to expect travel to take all day for a 15-minute doctor’s appointment on the mainland.
In a recent episode of [un]Divided, Brandi Kruse recounts her six-plus hour adventure attempting to get to the San Juan Islands for a wedding, using tickets that had to be purchased months in advance.
On July 18, Steve Nevey, Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) Assistant Secretary and head of WSF, acknowledged the previous week had been “challenging” due to a “domino effect of disruptions,” adding:
“This temporary setback is difficult to digest, especially since we recently had our first week with no canceled sailings due to crewing since the pandemic began.”
So, it took more than 4 years since the start of the pandemic to complete a single week without a cancellation? And that’s just “due to crewing,” implying there were still cancellations last week due to other reasons.
The most frustrating part is that the problem is largely – if not entirely – due to decisions by lawmakers and government officials, particularly Governor Jay Inslee. When Gov. Inslee’s vaccine mandates took effect in Oct. 2021, WSDOT fired more than 400 employees, with the largest loss belonging to, you guessed it, WSF.
132 employees lost their jobs. Think WSF could use those workers now? No wonder crewing has been such a problem!
The other major issue is a shortage of ferries themselves, which stems from a law passed last year allowing for the purchase of five electric ferries by 2030. While the current fleet is suffering from breakdowns and increasingly widespread mechanical issues, some have suggested WSF purchase more diesel ferries in the interim. However, Gov. Inslee has dismissed this as “braindead thinking.”
When was the last time you think he waited six hours for a ferry?
Heck, as of last month, the state still hasn’t even found anyone to build the electric ferries.
On Wednesday, the Seattle Times reported on the tense conditions for workers on the ferries, who are having to deal with “middle fingers, yelling, cursing, slurs, disparaging tirades, passengers going at each other, crying.” To be clear, this isn’t fair – the workers that are showing up don’t deserve to be treated like this. But the passengers don’t deserve ridiculous delays like this either. The only people not suffering in this situation…are the ones directly responsible!
This is a disaster that has been years in the making, and our state’s current leadership has no one to blame but themselves. It’s likely this situation will only get worse, as obvious solutions continue to be willfully ignored.