Ferry funding that can benefit people, right now, and the planet in the future

Over the past year, I have “commuted” once a month to my second clinic in Friday Harbor, which has given me a front-row seat to the collapse of the Washington State Ferry System. In some ways, the solution is simple. We need more boats in the water and more bodies on those boats. However, the obstacles to boats and bodies are many. After ignoring our marine highways and aging vessels for the past few decades, Washington State lawmakers should pay attention to House Bill 2498, a proposal made by House Transportation leaders Andrew Barkis and Spencer Hutchins. It calls on Gov. Inslee to declare a state of emergency and use the power of the executive branch to procure two non-electric ferries within the next two years.

HB 2498 offers a compromise: Two non-electric ferries could relieve the boat bottleneck while remaining committed to investing in clean energy and protecting the environment. As someone who sees the value in preserving our marine highway and the environment, in this column, I want to share why this legislation is a good idea for our pocketbooks, our people, and our planet.

The bottom line is that we need more boats. And we needed them yesterday. According to WSF, they need 26 vessels to provide reliable service to all routes. They have 21. During low season, six are out of service due to staffing or mechanical issues, leaving 15. During high season, WSF can stretch the fleet to 17, although certain runs barely keep up, such as the Coupeville, Bremerton, and Southworth routes. WSF cancelled more than 3,500 sailings in fiscal year 2023, and on-time performance plummeted to 84%. WSF has funding for five new ferries, yet decisions about who will build them will not be made until this summer. The first new vessel is unlikely to enter service before 2028 — fully four years from now.

Washington State Ferries is the largest ferry system in the United States. The various routes act as a marine highway for businesses, tourists, and daily commuters. While ferries play a major role in supporting our economy, no one has quantified the economic impact of a faltering system. A $90,000 study has been commissioned to answer that question, but I suspect the negative impact is larger than we imagine.  The San Juan Islands already feel economic pain, fewer tourists generate less hotel, restaurant, and tax revenue. But the economic impact of a crumbling ferry system does not end there. Ferries are a symbol of our state. They are necessary for daily transportation for thousands of people.  When Seattle hosts the 2026 World Cup, thousands of soccer fans will descend upon the region and give our state the chance to show off all the Pacific Northwest has to offer — including a chance to journey to the beautiful islands surrounding the Emerald City.

While we wait for numbers confirming the negative economic impact, it is easy to understand how unreliable transportation harms people. Last Friday, I had the busiest day in my Friday Harbor clinic ever.  My clinic does not serve the ultra-rich or even the middle-class. More than 75% of the children I serve in the San Juan Islands are covered by Medicaid insurance.  While most live on San Juan Island, some journey from Anacortes, Lopez, and Orcas Island — requiring a ferry ride to access pediatric primary care.  But increasingly, staffing, or mechanical setbacks on the ferries hinders families from getting to me when they are in need. One some days, I have evaluated children after 9:30 p.m. because the inter-island boat did not run until the last possible time in the day. Parents stay with friends overnight until they can return to their home a day later. This past week, friends with a boat brought over a child from Anacortes to be seen because the Anacortes-San Juan Island ferry run was cancelled at the last minute.

Related: Ferry maintenance, route support and impact study funded in House transportation budget

Of course, I ran into the same problem on my journey home last Friday. After seeing patients, my family and I got in line at 11:30 a.m. for the 12:10 p.m. boat from Friday Harbor to Anacortes. After noon came and went without any sight of our ferry, I learned the boat had been delayed due to a crew shortage earlier that morning. Of course, I had a second reservation on the 3 p.m. boat from Coupeville to Port Townsend, but knew we would miss it due to the significant delay of the first one. Unfortunately, WSF does not honor reservations when you miss a boat, no matter who is at fault. So I had a choice to make when we arrived in Anacortes: head east to I-5 and drive the 150 miles to Kitsap County (plus idling in Seattle's Friday afternoon traffic) or drive south to Coupeville, hope for space on the 7:30 or 9:10 p.m. runs to Port Townsend, and cross the Hood Canal bridge to home, about 75 miles in total.

Which would be better for our planet? Undoubtedly, electric ferries reduce carbon emissions compared to diesel boats, but House Bill 2498 is asking a slightly more nuanced question. They are asking the same question I was asking myself that afternoon. Are diesel ferries carrying cars and passengers better for the environment than passengers in cars driving those same routes on the highway? The answer might surprise you.

Published in Environmental Science and Pollution Research in June 2023, researchers studied six WSF routes: Edmonds-Kingston, Seattle-Bainbridge, Seattle-Bremerton, Mukilteo-Clinton, Fauntleroy-Southworth, and Port Townsend-Coupeville. Ferries carrying cars and passengers reduces carbon emissions significantly compared to driving the same route by car.

In the end, I headed for Coupeville. I spent the afternoon playing frisbee with my kids at the ferry landing and patiently waiting to go “standby.” We made it home to Kitsap County just before bedtime. To me, people, pocketbooks, and the planet all matter. And that is why I am going to call the Governor’s Office and my local lawmakers to lend support getting more boats on the water in the Puget Sound.

Dr. Niran Al-Agba is a pediatrician in Silverdale and writes a regular opinion column for the Kitsap Sun. Contact her at niranalagba@gmail.com.

This article originally appeared on Kitsap Sun: Ferry funding ideas that can benefit people, and the planet