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WSF lays out terminal electrification priorities and Fauntleroy preservation study
Summary
At a public forum WSF said initial charging infrastructure will focus on Central Puget Sound (including Coleman Dock), outlined a Fauntleroy dock preservation project to lift holding capacity from about 80 toward 124–150 vehicles with NEPA underway, and said island electrification is a longer-term goal.
Washington State Ferries officials told attendees that terminal electrification and several large terminal preservation projects are priorities tied to where new hybrid-electric vessels will be assigned.
John Vazina said the agency is prioritizing Central Puget Sound locations for early electrification work because those routes will receive the first new vessels. "We already have memorandums of understanding with Puget Sound Energy and Seattle City Light for the Seattle terminal," Vazina said, and added that Coleman Dock charging work is on a design and planning timeline with rough expectations of implementation around 2028–2029.
Nicole (terminal engineering/planning staff) described the Fauntleroy dock as particularly vulnerable: it sits low relative to the rest of the system, is exposed to storm surge and currently holds roughly 80 vehicles. Nicole said WSF has a preferred alternative at about 5% design that would increase holding capacity to roughly 124–150 vehicles, push structures offshore to reduce impacts on Cove Park and eelgrass, and enter the NEPA environmental review phase soon. "We're going into the NEPA phase here shortly," she said, and estimated construction completion around 2031 under current planning assumptions.
The agency noted funding currently appropriated for electrification is scoped to Central Puget Sound and does not yet cover remote routes such as the San Juan Islands; WSF said it will evaluate island electrification as battery technology and resources evolve and as more vessels arrive.
Reservations and ticketing: Jenna said WSF has funded a feasibility study into reservations on Lopez Island that will involve terminal engineering and planning to determine whether dock staging can accommodate reservations. She also said a modernization project for ticketing and reservations is progressing toward preliminary demos, with community engagement planned once a viewable prototype is ready.
What happens next: WSF will continue design work with utilities and stakeholders, proceed through NEPA for Fauntleroy, and share opportunities for public input on schedule changes and reservation/ticketing redesigns as those projects reach public-engagement milestones.
