EDITORIAL: A Big Step Toward Resuming Foot Ferries in Kingston

Kitsap Sun - September 7, 2007

This could be the start of something good.

Last week, the Port of Kingston announced it has received a $3.5 million federal transportation grant to launch a passenger-only ferry run between Kingston and Seattle.

When it begins, the service will be the second attempt in recent years to provide a fast foot-ferry link to downtown Seattle for North Kitsap residents. From January 2005 to October 2005, Aqua Express offered commuter-hours service on the route.

When Aqua Express ended its service, the firm had lost more than $900,000. Fuel prices had increased sharply — a costly drawback because 319-passenger boats were being used — and the service only draw about half of the 600 riders per day the owners had projected.

Aqua Express still owns the foot-ferry dock it built under a lease arrangement at the end of the Port of Kingston’s fishing pier. In addition, the firm still retains the state’s license for the route. Aqua Express spokesman John Blackman said that when the port firms up its plans, his firm plans to submit a bid to operate the service.

Commissioner Pete DeBoer said he and the other two port commissioners are committed to providing a reliable link by water to downtown Seattle.

“It’s silly for somebody who works in downtown Seattle to have to drive to Bainbridge Island to get to work,” he said. “The roads are too crowded — we need to get people off the highways.”

He said passenger-only service also would be a boost to tourism in the area. DeBoer also noted the ferry operation also would benefit students and staff at the new Kingston High School, which opened last week.

“They’ll be going on field trips, and why pile them on a bus when they can experience our maritime heritage when they’re going to Seattle to visit the Frye Art Museum or the University of Washington?” he said.

DeBoer said a lot of lessons were learned from Aqua Express’s ill-fated venture in 2005. In particular is the fact that the boat was too large and too costly to operate. Although no formal proposal has yet been made, it’s likely the port will run two boats with a capacity of 149 passengers or less. Besides being more fuel-efficient, they’d require fewer crew members than a larger vessel. In addition, having two boats rather than one would mean the route wouldn’t have to be shut down in case of a mechanical breakdown — and if the boats were identical, it’d be easier to keep replacement parts on hand.

Rep. Christine Rolfes of Bainbridge Island also is supportive of the plan, said DeBoer, in part because she wants to reduce traffic loads on Highway 305 on the island.

And if the service proves itself, DeBoer said a possible “Phase 2” might be running commuter service from Kingston to Everett, primarily for workers at the Boeing plant there.

All this is dovetails with a longtime vision of Kitsap Transit for a new breed of small “mosquito fleet” boats, similar to the small ferries which linked Puget Sound ports for decades before a highway system was established. Now the situation is reversed, with highways jammed and an increasing emphasis on reducing traffic loads and the air pollution it creates.

We congratulate the Port of Kingston on its $3.5 million grant, which is a significant step toward providing foot ferries that once again may prove their value for Puget Sound residents.

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