HomeMy WebLinkAbout051923 FW_ WSF Wooden Boat Festival Service
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From: Vezina, John
Sent: Friday, May 19, 2023 1:58:45 PM (UTC-08:00) Pacific Time (US & Canada)
To: Kate Dean; John Mauro
Subject: WSF Wooden Boat Festival Service
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Commissioner Dean and City Manager Mauro,
Good afternoon.
Thank you for our recent conversations regarding options for additional WSF service during the week of September 7-13, when the Seattle/Bainbridge route is on walk-on only service <https://wsdot.wa.g
ov/construction-planning/search-projects/bainbridge-ferry-terminal-overhead-loading-fixed-walkway-replacement> . As always, I appreciate your clear communication and collaborative approach
to challenges.
We know how important the Wooden Boat Festival is to people on both sides of Puget Sound, so this week a WSF team met to begin looking at the service opportunities for that weekend I
discussed with each of you. While adding a third boat to the Edmonds/Kingston route and other options are definitely on the table, we aren’t confident enough about our September crewing
and vessel availability to make firm plans now. It’s most likely we’ll do so in mid-July. I understand this may be frustrating, but we don’t want our customers or event planners to
make decisions based on service we may not be able to provide. Again, our focus is on getting to “yes,” for additional service, but with restoration paused while we recruit and train,
and vessel availability remaining a serious challenge, we don’t want to commit to service so far in advance.
On a positive note, it looks, at this time, like we’ll be able to provide consistent one-boat walk-on service on the Seattle/Bainbridge route that weekend. Given that, would it be worthwhile
for the Jefferson Transit Authority to have conversations with Kitsap Transit and Clallam Transit about bus service between Bainbridge and Port Townsend? I see there are options that
take two or more hours, but with only 48 miles between the communities, maybe there’s a way to increase frequency and decrease the travel time that weekend? Of course this is in addition
to the service Jefferson Transit already provides to Kingston, which could possibly also be augmented that weekend. The Port Townsend Ferry Advisory Committee may also be helpful in
this discussion, with Nicole Gauthier from Jefferson Transit as a member.
Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns. The closure project team is happy to work with local government and Wooden Boat Festival staff, sharing information about the
event and the best ways to travel to/from it. We look forward to working with you to lessen the impact of the Bainbridge vehicle closure as much as possible.
Best,
John
John B. Vezina
Director
Planning, Customer and Government Relations
Washington State Ferries <https://wsdot.wa.gov/travel/washington-state-ferries>
Cell: 206.473.9945