Washington State Ferries
Public ferry service in Washington, US

Washington State Ferries
MV Tacoma at Colman Dock in Downtown Seattle
LocaleWashington
WaterwayPuget Sound, Salish Sea
Transit typeFerry
OwnerWashington State Department of Transportation
OperatorWashington State Department of Transportation
Began operationJune 1, 1951 (1951-06-01)
System length185.20 mi (298.05 km)[1]
No. of lines8
No. of vessels21
No. of terminals20
Daily ridership64,600 (weekdays, Q3 2025)[2]
Yearly ridership20,108,545 (2025)[3]
Websitewsdot.wa.gov/travel/washington-state-ferries

Washington State Ferries (WSF) is a public ferry system in the U.S. state of Washington that carries passengers and vehicles. A division of the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT), it operates 8 routes serving 20 terminals within Puget Sound and in the San Juan Islands. The routes are designated as part of the state highway system and also comprise a major public transit network for the state. WSF is the largest ferry system in the United States and carried carried 20.1 million total riders in 2025, of which 10.7 million were passengers and 9.4 million were driving vehicles. The agency carried an average of 64,600 per weekday in the third quarter of 2025.

The ferry system began operation on June 1, 1951, after the state government acquired routes, vessels, and terminals from the Puget Sound Navigation Company, a private company that had a virtual monopoly on ferries in the region. The company had sold its assets after it was barred from raising fares in the 1940s and was unable to cover rising costs. Under state control, the ferry system was modernized and expanded through the use of custom-built vessels that could carry larger numbers of passengers and vehicles. WSF was originally a division of the Washington State Toll Bridge Authority and was transferred to WSDOT control in 1977.

WSF maintains a fleet of 21 vessels that are able to carry passengers and vehicles. The largest of the fleet is the Jumbo Mark II class, which can carry 1,791 passengers and 202 vehicles. The agency has over 1,500 full-time employees and an annual budget of $354 million that is primarily funded by fares and the state's gas tax.

History

The ferry system has its origins in the "mosquito fleet", a collection of small steamer lines serving the Puget Sound area during the later part of the nineteenth century and early part of the 20th century. By the beginning of the 1930s, two lines remained: the Puget Sound Navigation Company (known as the Black Ball Line) and the Kitsap County Transportation Company. A strike in 1935 caused the KCTC to close, leaving only the Black Ball Line.[4]

Toward the end of the 1940s, the Black Ball Line sought to increase its fares by 30 percent to compensate for increased wage demands from the ferry workers' unions, which had agreed to a voluntary freeze in increases during World War II. After the state government rejected the fare hike, the company shut down service for nine days in protest.[5] The state bought nearly all of Black Ball's ferry assets along with Colman Dock in Seattle. Black Ball retained five ferries and the right to operate its remaining route between Seattle, Port Angeles, and Victoria, British Columbia.[6][7]

Washington State Ferries began operation on June 1, 1951, with the first run at 5:20 a.m. on MV Vashon between Lofall and South Point across the Hood Canal.[6] The fare was unchanged and commuter fare tickets that were previously purchased from Black Ball were honored on the new system.[8] The state government intended to run ferry service only until cross-sound bridges could be built, but these were never approved and left the ferries as the only means of crossing for vehicles.[9] The new system was operated by the Washington State Toll Bridge Authority, which ordered ten new vessels that could carry 60 to 100 vehicles. A set of revenue bonds were also issued to purchase the 16 vessels and 20 terminals of the Puget Sound Navigational Company for a total of $4.94 million.[7][10] The ten initial routes were reduced to eight by the end of the year despite demands from Kitsap County officials to continue service to Suquamish and Indianola.[7]

MV Kalakala, considered the flagship of the Black Ball Line, was included in the acquisition and remained under state operation until her retirement in 1967. After the Black Ball Line announced their withdrawal from the Port Angeles–Victoria route in 1955, the Kalakala was loaned by Washington State Ferries to run on the international route for five years during the summer months.[11][12] A route between Port Townsend and Keystone on Whidbey Island was launched in June 1974 to replace a privately-run service that had lost its franchise.[13] The Toll Bridge Authority was dissolved and replaced by the consolidated Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) on September 21, 1977.[14]

During the COVID-19 pandemic, WSF reduced service on most routes and suspended trips to Sidney on the Anacortes–San Juan Islands route. The loss of workers who retired, transferred, or were fired during the pandemic caused delays and trip cancellations as service and ridership began to recover in 2021 and 2022, while vessel replacement also ran behind schedule.[15] By early 2023, full levels of service were restored on four routes but remained limited across much of the system; the Sidney route is not expected to re-enter service until 2030.[16] Staffing issues, particularly among ship captains and mates, continued to prevent the full restoration of service on the Seattle–Bremerton and Fauntleroy–Vashon–Southworth routes.[17] As mitigation for the delay in restoring the Seattle–Bremerton run's second vessel, WSF funded additional trips on the parallel Kitsap Fast Ferries that serves both terminals.[18] The second vessel on the Seattle–Bremerton route was restored in June 2025, followed a month later by weekend trips on the Port Townsend–Coupeville route to bring the system to its pre-pandemic domestic schedule.[19][20]

Routes

A map showing the routes operated by Washington State Ferries (in red) in comparison with Washington State highways (in yellow) and freeways, including Washington State and Interstate highways (in blue)

As of 2024[update], the Washington State Ferries system has 8 routes with an average of 388 daily scheduled sailings that serve 20 terminals located primarily on Puget Sound and in the San Juan Islands.[21][22] The network spans 185.20 miles (298.05 km) and serves an estimated population of 3.9 million residents across an area of 1,945 square miles (5,040 km2).[1] These routes are part of the state highway system and carry freight traffic and emergency services in addition to passengers and automobiles.[21] All of the system's route run year-round, but some have additional service during the peak summer months and on weekends.[20][23] Most routes are assigned between two and three vessels for most of the year, with additional sailings for late-night service and weekends; the Anacortes–San Juan Islands ferry requires a minimum of four vessels year-round and assigns at least one solely for inter-island service.[23]

The busiest route is the Seattle–Bainbridge Island ferry, which carried 5.2 million total riders in 2025; the Mukilteo–Clinton ferry carried 2.1 million total vehicles in 2025, the most of any route.[3][24] The Mukilteo–Clinton ferry also had the most sailings, at over 25,700 in 2025, followed by the Anacortes–San Juan Islands route, which has five terminals.[25] Another multi-terminal route, the Fauntleroy–Vashon–Southworth ferry, is known as the "triangle" route due to its three routing patterns that allow some sailings to bypass Vashon Island.[26][27] The longest route spans 40 nautical miles (46 mi; 74 km) from Anacortes to Sidney, British Columbia, and takes 2.5 hours to traverse.[28] The international route ran seasonally between April and December but was suspended in 2020 and is not scheduled to resume service until 2030 at the earliest due to the lack of a SOLAS-certified vessel.[29][30] The shortest route is the Point Defiance–Tahlequah ferry between Tacoma and Vashon Island, which is 1.5 nautical miles (1.7 mi; 2.8 km) long and has a crossing time of 15 minutes.[28][31]

Washington State Ferries routes
Route[32] Highway[33] Terminals[21] Length[28] Travel time[28] Began operation Ridership (2025)[3]
Vehicles Passengers Total
10 Seattle–Bremerton SR 304 Bremerton
Colman Dock (Seattle) 		13.5 nmi
(15.5 mi; 25.0 km) 		60 minutes June 1, 1951[34] 457,025 849,238 1,306,263
20 Seattle–Bainbridge Island SR 305 Bainbridge Island
Colman Dock (Seattle) 		7.5 nmi
(8.6 mi; 13.9 km) 		35 minutes June 1, 1951[34] 1,525,098 3,591,448 5,217,546
30 Fauntleroy–Vashon–Southworth SR 160 Southworth
Vashon Island
Fauntleroy (West Seattle) 		4.1 nmi
(4.7 mi; 7.6 km)[a] 		30 minutes June 1, 1951[34] 1,423,172 944,206 2,367,378
40 Point Defiance–Tahlequah SR 163 Point Defiance (Tacoma)
Tahlequah (Vashon Island) 		1.5 nmi
(1.7 mi; 2.8 km) 		15 minutes June 1, 1951[34] 538,406 422,176 960,584
50 Edmonds–Kingston SR 104 Kingston
Edmonds 		4.5 nmi
(5.2 mi; 8.3 km) 		30 minutes June 1, 1951[34] 1,992,765 1,870,671 3,863,436
60 Mukilteo–Clinton SR 525 Mukilteo
Clinton (Whidbey Island) 		2.3 nmi
(2.6 mi; 4.3 km) 		20 minutes June 1, 1951[34] 2,108,135 1,603,369 3,711,504
70 Port Townsend–Coupeville SR 20 Port Townsend
Coupeville (Whidbey Island) 		4.5 nmi
(5.2 mi; 8.3 km) 		30 minutes June 6, 1974[35] 334,462 392,746 727,208
80 Anacortes–San Juan Islands
SR 20 Spur 		Friday Harbor
Orcas Island
Shaw Island
Lopez Island
Anacortes 		11 to 17 nmi
(13 to 20 mi; 20 to 31 km) 		50 to 125 minutes[b] June 1, 1951[34] 941,849 1,012,777 1,954,626
85 Anacortes–Sidney
SR 20 Spur 		Sidney, British Columbia
Friday Harbor
Anacortes 		40 nmi
(46 mi; 74 km) 		160 minutes June 1, 1951[34] Suspended since 2020[36]

Former and temporary routes

Former Washington State Ferries routes
Route Terminals Began operation Ended operation Notes
Edmonds–Port Townsend Port Townsend
Edmonds 		February 21, 1979[37] February 9, 1980[37] Temporary service after collapse of the Hood Canal Bridge[37]
Seattle–Bremerton POF Bremerton
Colman Dock (Seattle) 		October 15, 1986[38] September 19, 2003[39] Passenger-only ferry; suspended from July 1989 to April 1990[40]
Seattle–Port Townsend Port Townsend
Colman Dock (Seattle) 		December 13, 2007[41] February 8, 2008[42] Passenger-only ferry to replace the suspended Port Townsend–Keystone run[41]
Seattle–Suquamish Suquamish
Indianola
Colman Dock (Seattle) 		June 1, 1951[43] September 28, 1951[44] Replaced by the Agate Pass Bridge after tolls were lifted[44]
Seattle–Vashon Island POF Vashon Heights
Colman Dock (Seattle) 		April 23, 1990[45] September 28, 2009[46] Passenger-only ferry; replaced by the King County Water Taxi[46]
South Point–Lofall (1951–1961) South Point
Lofall 		June 1, 1951[34] August 12, 1961[47] Replaced by the Hood Canal Bridge;[47] temporarily reactivated on February 5, 1963, due to emergency bridge repairs[48]
South Point–Lofall (1979–1982) South Point
Lofall 		February 26, 1979[49] October 23, 1982[50] Temporary service after collapse of the Hood Canal Bridge; passenger-only vessel replaced by barges and a full-sized ferry in December 1979[51]

Terminals

Interior of the Mukilteo terminal, opened in 2020

The ferry system serves 20 terminals on Puget Sound and in the San Juan Islands that are designed to accommodate certain classes of its fleet.[21] Most terminals have one or two slips from which ferries can load vehicles and some have an additional tie-up slip for overnight use outside of revenue service. The slip is typically connected to land by a trestle bridge and to the ferry vessel via a movable transfer span that is hoisted by a tower. Some terminals have an overhead loading walkway for passengers that connects the terminal's waiting area to the vessel, where a gangplank is lowered onto the deck.[52][53] At terminals without an overhead walkway, such as in the San Juan Islands, walk-on passengers travel down the slip and board the vehicle deck alongside cyclists.[53][54] The interior of the waiting area includes seating, restrooms, drinking fountains, vending machines for snacks, ticket kiosks, a ticket booth, brochures and information stands, and public art.[55][56] Some terminals also have a separate office for supervisors that includes a break room, lockers, and a bedroom for overnight use.[57]

Each terminal has a designated holding area for vehicles that have passed through tollbooths and are prepared to board a vessel. They are divided into lanes that board in order; vehicles carrying ferry employees or passengers with medical exemptions granted by the agency board first, along with cyclists and motorcyclists.[58][59] At some terminals, the holding area has its own set of restrooms and a turnstile gate that allows passengers in vehicles to exit and re-enter the fenced area.[60][61] A designated queue lane on the shoulder of highways approaching the terminal is used during busy sailing periods. The lanes are monitored by Washington State Patrol officers, who are able to issue a $139 citation for line-cutting and direct vehicles to be back of the queue.[58][62] A hotline to report line-cutters to WSF was set up in 2010; violators are issued warnings in the mail until the program was shut down in 2021.[63][64] Some terminals also have parking lots that are owned by WSF, local governments, or private companies.[65][66]

The flagship terminal of Washington State Ferries is Colman Dock in Downtown Seattle, which serves 9 million annual passengers on the system's Bainbridge Island and Bremerton routes. It has three slips for the state ferries and an adjacent terminal for the Kitsap Fast Ferries and King County Water Taxi passenger-only routes.[67][68] Colman Dock was reopened in 2022 after a five-year construction project that replaced the old terminal at the site with a 20,000-square-foot (1,900 m2) waiting area and new spaces.[69][70] Most of the terminals in the ferry system are owned and operated directly by Washington State Ferries; the four facilities in the San Juan Islands are contracted out to private operators who also own nearby stores.[71] From 1976 to 2004, four nuns from the Franciscan Sisters of the Eucharist ran the Shaw Island terminal and its adjacent general store; their contract included operation of the hydraulic ramps for the transfer span and directing traffic in the holding area.[72][73] The terminal in Sidney, British Columbia, is owned by the town's government and operated by BC Ferries, the province's system; both entities charge a docking fee to Washington State Ferries for use of the terminal.[74][75]

The Washington State Transportation Commission regulates the name of the terminals. In 2010, it approved the renaming of the Keystone terminal on Whidbey Island for the nearby city of Coupeville after lobbying from local officials and business leaders.[76]

Washington State Ferries terminals[71]
Terminal County Year built[c] Slips Connections
Anacortes Skagit 1959 2
Bainbridge Island Kitsap 1966 2
Bremerton Kitsap 1990 2 ferry/water interchange Kitsap Fast Ferries
ferry/water interchange Kitsap Foot Ferries
Clinton Island 1987 2
Coupeville Island 1979[77] 1
Edmonds Snohomish 1952 1 Amtrak Amtrak
Sounder commuter rail Sounder
Fauntleroy King 1957 1
Friday Harbor San Juan 1968 2
Kingston Kitsap 1986 2 ferry/water interchange Kitsap Fast Ferries
Lopez Island San Juan 1980 1
Mukilteo Snohomish 2020[78] 1 Sounder commuter rail Sounder
Orcas Island San Juan 1959 1
Point Defiance Pierce 1958 1
Port Townsend Jefferson 1983[79] 2
Seattle – Colman Dock King 2022[69] 3 ferry/water interchange Kitsap Fast Ferries
ferry/water interchange King County Water Taxi
Amtrak Amtrak
Link light rail Link light rail
Sounder commuter rail Sounder
Shaw Island San Juan 1974 1
Sidney, B.C. — 1959[80] 1
Southworth Kitsap 1958 1 ferry/water interchange Kitsap Fast Ferries
Tahlequah King 1958 1
Vashon King 1957 2 ferry/water interchange King County Water Taxi

Service

Passenger cabin on MV Kaleetan, 2016

The ferry system had over 145,000 scheduled sailings during fiscal year 2024, of which 97.6 percent were completed. Over 3,600 trips were cancelled, primarily because of mechanical issues and crew shortages.[22] The system adjusts its schedules during four annual "sailing seasons",[81] with the highest level of service between June and September to accommodate larger passenger volumes.[20][82] The earliest year-round sailings in the system are around 4:00 a.m. on several routes; service generally lasts until midnight for most routes, with some sailings as late as 1:30 a.m. or 2:10 a.m.[82] Additional service is provided on some major holidays and weekends, such as Memorial Day and Labor Day, as well as for special events.[82] A vessel typically takes 20 minutes to unload and load passengers and vehicles at a terminal.[83]

Vehicle slot reservations, released in tranches up to several months in advance, are available for the Port Townsend–Coupeville and Anacortes–San Juan Islands routes due to their limited capacity and high demand.[84] These reservations cover up to 90 percent of available vehicle space on a sailing, with the rest allocated to standby traffic.[85] Commercial and oversize vehicles, such as semi-trucks, that exceed the maximum vehicle dimensions or have a gross vehicle weight over 80,000 pounds (36,000 kg) must receive written approval from Washington State Ferries to drive onto a vessel.[86][87] A 2024 study estimated that an average of 754 trucks used the ferry system per day and transported up to $3.49 million in cargo and other goods on a daily basis.[88] The ferries also have unpublished sailings for vehicles that transport hazardous materials, such as gasoline, which other passengers and vehicles are prohibited from boarding.[89]

The route schedules are referred to by the number of assigned vessels; for example, "two-boat" service refers to a reduced schedule due to the lack of a third vessel.[90] If a vessel is unavailable for more than 24 hours, a relief vessel can be recalled from another route and reassigned depending on needs and terminal compatibility.[81] Reassignments are also made for vessels scheduled to undergo regular maintenance and inspections, which can take several weeks.[91] During longer service disruptions, Washington State Ferries has leased passenger-only ferries from private operators to provide temporary sailings if another ferry is unavailable.[92][93] From 2022 to 2026, the state government funded seven additional trips on the Kitsap Fast Ferries route between Bremerton and Seattle to supplement weekday ferry service during a shortage of available vessels.[94] In the event that a terminal is unavailable for planned work or an unplanned disruption, ferries in Puget Sound are to be redirected to alternative terminals.[95]

Ridership

Annual ridership, 2002–present
Year Vehicles Passengers Total %±
2002[96] 11,009,262 14,132,205 25,141,467 —
2003[97] 10,819,196 13,557,080 24,376,276 -3.0%
2004[98] 10,828,312 13,264,024 24,092,336 -1.2%
2005[99] 10,801,196 13,016,170 23,817,366 -1.1%
2006[100] 10,850,232 13,087,314 23,937,546 0.5%
2007[101] 10,674,166 13,034,931 23,709,097 -1.0%
2008[102] 10,010,941 12,721,853 22,732,794 -4.1%
2009[103] 10,064,294 12,673,416 22,737,710 0.0%
2010[104] 10,101,190 12,350,214 22,451,404 -1.3%
2011[105] 9,977,372 12,252,669 22,230,041 -1.0%
2012[106] 9,974,874 12,226,622 22,201,496 -0.1%
2013[107] 10,082,448 12,454,581 22,537,029 1.5%
2014[108] 10,226,543 12,967,117 23,193,660 2.9%
2015[109] 10,479,752 13,402,575 23,882,327 3.0%
2016[110] 10,546,355 13,658,540 24,204,895 1.4%
2017[111] 10,641,368 13,818,677 24,460,045 1.1%
2018[112] 10,761,822 13,925,216 24,687,038 0.9%
2019[113] 10,452,119 13,432,670 23,884,789 -3.2%
2020[114] 7,629,223 6,357,479 13,986,702 -41.4%
2021[115] 8,879,300 8,400,579 17,279,879 23.5%
2022[116] 8,598,475 8,775,694 17,374,169 0.5%
2023[117] 8,970,374 9,691,160 18,661,534 7.4%
2024[118] 9,072,325 10,076,356 19,148,681 2.6%
2025[3] 9,421,912 10,686,633 20,108,545 5.0%

In 2025, Washington State Ferries carried a total of 20,108,545 passengers and 9,421,912 vehicles;[3] it averaged 64,600 passengers on weekdays in the third quarter of 2025.[2] Walk-on boardings accounted for 42 percent of passenger boardings across all routes.[3] The total ridership in 2025 was a 5 percent increase from the previous year, attributed to the restoration of the full domestic schedule and a decrease in canceled sailings.[119] The system is the busiest in the United States, ahead of the passenger-only Staten Island Ferry in New York City,[120] and second-busiest in the Pacific Northwest behind BC Ferries in Canada.[21][121] Washington State Ferries also carries the third-most passengers of any public transit system in the state, behind Sound Transit and King County Metro.[21] In 2013, the system carried 22.4 million passengers and ranked third globally behind İDO in Istanbul, Turkey, and Transtejo & Soflusa in Lisbon, Portugal. It also carried the second-most vehicles out of any system, behind Fjord1 in Norway.[122]

The ferries are considered a major tourist attraction in Washington state in addition to their use as a commuter and cargo service.[123] The U.S. Census Bureau estimated that 3.8 percent of workers in Kitsap County commuted using a ferry in 2024.[124] Washington State Ferries recorded its highest ridership in 2018, when it carried nearly 24.7 million total passengers and 10.8 million vehicles.[125][126] Use of the ferries fell to under 14 million in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic, which was also marked by a higher rate of cancelled sailings. Ridership began to increase the following year and had recovered to over 19 million by 2024 with gains in the number of walk-on passengers.[125] Peak ridership in the summer months also returned, with four days in July 2025 reaching over 90,000 total passengers—the highest mark since August 2019.[127] Washington State Ferries also draws more than 300,000 boardings during the Memorial Day and Labor Day holiday weekends;[128][129] the two-week period around Christmas typically draws 700,000 passengers.[130]

Fares

The state ferry system has fares that vary based on the route and direction of travel, age of the passenger, dimensions of the vehicle, and other factors.[131] As of October 2025[update], the lowest round-trip adult fare in the system is $6.95 for the Mukilteo–Clinton route, while the highest is $17.50 for the Anacortes–San Juan Islands route. Discounts are available for senior citizens and passengers with disabilities.[132] On most routes that cross Puget Sound, passenger fares are only charged in the westbound direction and are priced as round trips.[133][134] Passenger tickets are dispensed at staffed ticket booths at terminals, self-serve kiosk machines, and tollbooths that also collect vehicle fares; they are valid for 90 days.[135] Multi-use and monthly passes are sold for all fare types through the agency's online store.[136] An electronic ticketing system, named Wave2Go, was introduced in February 2007 to replace ticket books for frequent riders with a scannable card that is reloaded at kiosks.[137][138] Washington State Ferries also accepts the ORCA card, a fare smart card platform used by most transit systems in the Seattle metropolitan area that can load multi-use and monthly passes.[139]

Fares are set by the Washington State Transportation Commission and reviewed every two years to account for projected financial needs for operations and capital projects.[140] A surcharge of 25 percent is added during the peak season from May through September on most routes, with the San Juan Islands route charged 35 percent; it does not apply to discounted or multi-use fares.[141][142] Since October 2022, all fares on the ferry system for passengers under the age of 19 years old have been free as part of a state transportation funding package.[143] Nearly half of the operating budget for Washington State Ferries is funded with fares collected from passengers and vehicle drivers; the farebox recovery ratio was 49.8 percent in 2024, a slight decrease from 50.6 percent in 2023. The state government's subsidy per rider was $9.05, while the overall subsidy was $4.79, and $18.76 was spent per passenger trip.[1][32] The rest of the budget is derived from the state government, which collects a gas tax and fees on driver's licenses and other items.[144] A dedicated motor vehicle excise tax (MVET) was used to fund ferry operations until it was removed by Initiative 695, passed by voters in 1999.[32][145]

Operations

In 2024, Washington State Ferries (officially the WSDOT Ferries Division) had an operating budget of $353.8 million, mostly derived from fares and the state government, and a capital budget of $208.7 million. The active ferries traveled a total of 759,247 miles (1,221,890 km) in revenue service and carried nearly 18.9 million total unlinked passenger trips.[1] As of June 2024[update], Washington State Ferries had 1,589 full-time employees, of which nearly half are classified as deck workers.[22] The system had a shortage of available crewmembers immediately after the COVID-19 pandemic that led to 30 percent of scheduled sailings being cancelled.[146] Washington State Ferries employees are represented by 16 unions that have signed 13 total collective bargaining agreements.[21] Each vessel requires between 10 to 16 crew members depending on the size of the boat; they operate in two or three daily shifts with the exception of the engine room, which uses two 12-hour shifts for continual monitoring.[81]

The primary maintenance facility for the system is at Eagle Harbor on Bainbridge Island, just west of the city's ferry terminal. WSF built its Eagle Harbor facility in 1962 and uses it to also store unused or recently retired vessels.[147][148] WSF also has other shops on Bainbridge Island, including in-house carpenters that maintain and repair fixtures aboard ferries as well as at terminals, including windows, floors, and cables.[149] The agency's headquarters and operations center was consolidated into a single building in the Belltown neighborhood of Seattle in 2005. It includes an emergency operations center that is staffed 24/7 and has direct radio links to two transmission towers near Issaquah and Quilcene.[150][151] Outside contractors also conduct maintenance, rehabilitation, and inspections of the ferries at dedicated large drydocks on Puget Sound;[152] another facility on Lake Union in Seattle is used for smaller vessels that can fit through the Ballard Locks on the Lake Washington Ship Canal.[153] Onboard food service, primarily through the ship galley and vending machines, has been operated by contractor Sodexo Live (formerly Centerplate) since 2016.[154][155] The galley offers food and alcoholic beverages from local companies, including Ivar's clam chowder and wine from Chateau Ste. Michelle.[156] It served 1.6 million customers in 2024 and sold 10,000 US gallons (38,000 L) of clam chowder and nearly 150,000 soft pretzels.[157][158]

The agency allows weddings and other celebrations to take place on board ferries with reservations and arrangements made in advance; no extra costs are charged for services.[159] The scattering of cremated remains at sea is performed board state ferries with permission from WSF, who charge a fee of $150 and require the use of a biodegradable container or vessel. The ceremonies, scheduled outside of peak travel periods, take place during a temporary stop and are followed by an announcement and the sounding of the ferry's whistle. In 2024, a total of 190 memorials were performed aboard WSF vessels.[160] The ferries are also mandated to stop for large marine mammals, including orcas and humpback whales, to avoid collisions or harming the animals.[161] Whale sightings are reported to a multi-agency alert system and supplemented by electronic listening arrays placed in the Salish Sea;[161][162] in 2025, there were 687 whale sightings aboard the WSF system.[163]

Fleet

MV Puyallup, one of the largest ferries, departing from Seattle

As of 2025[update], Washington State Ferries has a fleet of 21 ferries that serve its routes.[164] The ferries use a double-ended design with a pair of wheelhouses, crew quarters, propellers, and rudders that are mirrored to allow for operation in either direction.[165][166] They are roll-on/roll-off with at least one vehicle deck above the engines;[165][167] for vessels with multiple vehicle decks, a ramp connects the upper and lower parking areas.[168] The passenger areas of the ferries are above the vehicle area and connected by stairs and elevators.[168] They comprise at least one indoor cabin with seating, tables, restrooms, vending machines, and a staffed galley.[169][170] The outdoor pedestrian deck includes a sun deck with bench seating and a "picklefork" at each end that is divided into two halves to allow for the vehicle deck to be visible from the wheelhouse.[168][169] Walk-on passengers board from gangplanks that lower onto the picklefork at terminals equipped with an overhead walkway.[53]

The ferries are named by the Washington State Transportation Commission and are derived from the state's Native American tribes and their languages.[171] The tradition originated with the Puget Sound Navigation Company in the 1930s and was adopted by the state government in 1958;[172] the final vessel with a non-indigenous name was the Evergreen State, which was retired in 2015.[173] The fleet is painted with a standard livery of white with green trim; the Washington State Department of Transportation logo is painted on the stack at the center.[167] After 50 years of state service, a commemorative gold stripe is painted on the center stack.[174] Washington State Ferries also allows the use of wraps for advertising through contractors, but reviewed the policy in 2023 after a Coca-Cola advertisement drew widespread criticism, including from governor Jay Inslee.[175][176] The interior of the passenger cabin typically uses neutral colors for its seating and floors, which have been described as "like an airport waiting room from the 1980s" and "utilitarian in appearance".[177][178] Some ferries are stocked with jigsaw puzzles by passengers or crewmembers and left for public use.[179] Washington State Ferries began offering paid Wi-Fi access aboard vessels on some routes in 2004 that was expanded with a contract awarded to Boingo Wireless in 2008.[180][181] The service was discontinued in 2016 after the contract expired; it had largely been replaced by more widespread cellular networks, but a new pilot program is scheduled to begin in 2026.[182]

The largest ferries in the system are the three Jumbo Mark II class vessels, which carry 202 vehicles and 1,791 passengers.[164] Their passenger capacity was originally listed as 2,500 until the U.S. Coast Guard revised their rules on vehicle stability in 2011 to account for a 25-pound (11 kg) difference in the weight of an average adult passenger.[183][184] The total capacity is determined by the ability to evacuate passengers from the vessel in a waterborne emergency through lifeboats, rafts, or capacity on other vessels assigned to the route.[183] The number of passengers boarding is determined using handheld counter devices that are logged by ferry personnel; in the event of an overloaded vessel, it returns to port and disembarks passengers until it falls under the limit.[185] The smallest vessels in the fleet belong to the Kwa-di Tabil class, which carry 64 vehicles and 748 passengers.[164][186] As of 2024[update], the average ferry in the fleet is 33.1 years old;[1] they have an expected lifespan of 60 years and are scheduled to undergo a "mid-life refurbishment" at 30 years that upgrades their propulsion, navigation, and safety systems.[187][188] The ferries are inspected in a drydock on a rotating basis and receive annual certification from the U.S. Coast Guard.[187][189] As of 2023[update], 9 of the 21 active ferries are considered to be in good condition;[190] the system averaged 13.7 weeks out of service per vessel in 2024 due to planned maintenance and unscheduled issues.[22]

Washington State Ferries primarily uses diesel fuel to power the engines aboard its vessels, which spin a generator to create electricity.[191] The agency used 15.2 million gallons of diesel fuel in 2024, of which 9.4 percent was biodiesel; the use of biodiesel is mandated by state law and began in 2009.[192] Up to 19 million gallons of diesel fuel was used annually prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, when the ferries had an expanded schedule.[193] The ferries are refueled every two to three weeks during an overnight shift at designated terminals or a fuel pier at Harbor Island in Seattle.[192][194] Washington State Ferries is the largest contributor to greenhouse gas emissions in the state government and has been the subject of plans to electrify the fleet since 2018.[188][195] By 2040, the agency intends to build 16 new hybrid-electric ferries, convert six others to have hybrid propulsion, and build charging stations at 16 terminals.[83] The first vessel to undergo conversion to use hybrid-electric propulsion was MV Wenatchee, which returned to service in July 2025 after two years of work.[196] Wenatchee has two battery rooms with 864 battery cells that store 5.7 megawatt-hours of energy for the engines.[196] Further work on converting the Jumbo Mark II fleet to hybrid propulsion was delayed by Washington governor Bob Ferguson in early 2025 in favor of restoring service on the routes.[197] The first on-shore charging stations are expected to be constructed in 2029 at the Clinton and Mukilteo terminals.[196][198]

Vigor Industrial (formerly Todd Shipyard) in Seattle has been the primary shipbuilder for all of the system's ferries since 1997; a state law previously required new ferries to be built in Washington, but was revised in 2015 to allow outside bidding.[190] Vigor had built the first four vessels in the Olympic class from 2011 to 2018 and were initially announced as the contractor for the a hybrid-electric vessel based on the Olympic class. After cost overruns and other disagreements, Washington State Ferries opened an invitation for bids for an initial set of three hybrid vessels that included qualified firms from outside of the state.[83][190] In July 2025, the state government selected a $714.5 million proposal from Eastern Shipbuilding of Panama City, Florida, ahead of another bid from a Washington company. The vessels are scheduled to begin delivery as soon as 2029 and use an electric propulsion system supplied by ABB. These ferries, the first to be built outside Washington in over 50 years,[199] are planned to be based on the Olympic class with a capacity of 1,500 passengers and 164 vehicles.[200] Governor Bob Ferguson announced a $1 billion addition to the proposed 2026 budget that would fund three more hybrid electric vessels; the full electrification program is estimated to cost $6.2 billion.[201] The system's first electric charging stations are planned to be constructed at five terminals, beginning with Colman Dock in 2029.[202]

Active classes operated by Washington State Ferries (2025)[164]
Class Vessels Image Years built Capacity Length Maximum speed Notes
Vehicles Passengers
Evergreen State (1) MV Tillikum
(MV Tillikum) 		1959 87 596 310 ft 2 in (94.5 m) 13 kn (15 mph; 24 km/h) Rebuilt in 1994;[164] 2 vessels retired[203]
Issaquah (6)

(MV Chelan) 		1979–1982 124[d] 1,196[e] 328 ft 2 in (100.0 m) 16 kn (18 mph; 30 km/h) Rebuilt in 1989–2005[164]
Jumbo (2)

(MV Walla Walla) 		1972–1973 188 1,793 440 ft 0 in (134.1 m) 18 kn (21 mph; 33 km/h) Rebuilt in 2004–2005[164]
Jumbo Mark II (3)

(MV Wenatchee) 		1997–1999 202 1,791 460 ft 2 in (140.3 m) 18 kn (21 mph; 33 km/h) Wenatchee converted to battery–electric propulsion in 2025.[196]
Kwa-di Tabil (3)

(MV Salish) 		2010–2011 64 748 273 ft 10 in (83.5 m) 14 kn (16 mph; 26 km/h)
Olympic (4)

(MV Suquamish) 		2014–2018 144 1,500 362 ft 5 in (110.5 m) 17 kn (20 mph; 31 km/h)
Super (2)

(MV Yakima) 		1967 144 1,195 382 ft 2 in (116.5 m) 17 kn (20 mph; 31 km/h) Rebuilt in 1999–2000;[164] 2 vessels retired[205]

Retired vessels

MV Kalakala, originally part of the Puget Sound Navigation Company fleet, was retired in 1967

From 1951 to 2007, a total of 18 older ferries were retired as they were replaced by newer vessels that had been purpose-built for use on the state ferry system. Many entered service in 1951 as part of direct transfers from the Puget Sound Navigation Company, while others had been acquired from systems in other areas of the United States.[206] Among the retired vessels was MV Kalakala, an Art Deco vessel that was the flagship of the Black Ball Line and served in the state ferry system until her retirement in 1967.[207] The four largest vessels of the Steel Electric class, built in 1927 and sold to the Black Ball Line in 1940, were used by the state ferry system until they were pulled from the fleet in November 2007 due to corrosion issues.[208] From 1986 to 2009, Washington State Ferries also operated five high-speed catamarans used on passenger-only routes that could carry 250 to 350 riders per sailing.[209] The agency previously trialed the use of a Boeing Jetfoil, a passenger-only hydrofoil, for seven weeks in 1978 but ultimately decided to acquire conventional catamarans instead.[210][211]

Most of the retired WSF vessels have been sold through public auctions, including on eBay, to bidders who sought to reuse or scrap them.[212][213] The ferries are docked at the Eagle Harbor Maintenance Facility and stripped of parts that can be reused on other vessels or repurposed locally.[212] The former air horn from MV Hyak was installed at Climate Pledge Arena for use as a goal horn during Seattle Kraken games.[214][215] After a failed tow attempt by an Ecuadorian businessman, MV Elwha was sold to an Everett-based shipbuilder for use as an office and warehouse.[205] Other vessels have been reused by other public and private operators, including MV Kulshan for the Steamship Authority in Massachusetts and MV Hiyu as a party venue in the Seattle area.[214][216] Several have also been abandoned by their new owners, including MV Olympic on Ketron Island, leading to proposals to establish a ship breaking yard in Washington.[217]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Measures the non-stop distance and time from Southworth to Fauntleroy
  2. ^ Depending on which terminals are served on the sailing
  3. ^ Reflects the date that the current structure was built
  4. ^ MV Sealth has a listed capacity of 90 vehicles.[164]
  5. ^ MV Chelan has a listed capacity of 1,090 passengers on international trips due to SOLAS Convention standards.[204]

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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Washington State Ferries.
  • Official website
  • Evergreen Fleet, a ferry history website
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