More than half of Washington State Ferries’ 23-vessel fleet is scheduled to be retired by 2040. Washington’s plan calls for 16 new vessels in the next 20 years, including 13 ferries to replace vessels due for retirement and 3 additional vessels to fill in when other ferries are out for maintenance and to respond to growth.
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Mainly, these decisions are amongst the recommendations of the newly released 2040 Long Range Plan, which WSF submitted to the Washington State Legislature.
Assistant Secretary Amy Scarton addressed that
This Long Range Plan provides a blueprint to guide WSF’s investments and meet our customers’ service expectations
The Long Range Plan is based on WSF’s 2009 Long Range Plan by focusing on a set of investments and service enhancements for the agency to implement over the next 20 years. The plan addresses four major themes:
- Reliable service;
- Customer experience;
- Managing growth;
- Sustainability and resilience.
WSF Long Range Plan also focuses, for the first time, on green practises concerning its ferry fleet and being prepared for climate change and seismic events. According to Gov. Jay Inslee, the plan is based on electrifying the ferry fleet to reduce fuel use, emissions, noise and maintenance costs.
Concluding, WSF will use the plan to guide projects and adapt to changing conditions through 2040.
