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WSF tells San Juan FAC it spent $773,000 on TRM work; about $432,000 deemed reusable as vendor change proceeds
Summary
Washington State Ferries told the San Juan County Ferry Advisory Committee it has spent $773,000 on the TRM project and estimates about $432,000 of that work can be reused with a new vendor; WSF said a new RFP will include earlier user testing and that broader communications will follow once a plan is set.
Washington State Ferries (WSF) representatives told the San Juan County Ferry Advisory Committee on a WSF update that the agency has spent $773,000 on the current TRM vendor and expects roughly $432,000 of that work to be reusable if the project moves to a new contractor. "We've spent $773,000 to date, with this vendor, and we estimate that... about $432,000 is reusable work," WSF staff member Tali said.
The committee had asked several operational and fiscal questions after the announcement that WSF will change vendors on the TRM work. Council liaison Carrie pressed for a higher-level explanation of why the contract did not proceed as planned and noted constituents will want answers about the roughly "$341,000" she said appeared lost. "Well, did Washington state ferries just mess this up?" Carrie asked during the meeting.
WSF said the short answer is the work required more customization than either party anticipated, and that the project team expects not to start from zero with a replacement vendor. "We were hoping that it would be something off the shelf that we could just pull and use... we ended up needing a little more customization than either side anticipated," Tali said. She added that legal work on intellectual property and rights is ongoing but the project team is hopeful it will retain rights to most of the completed work.
On procurement and product testing, WSF told the committee it plans to include standard user testing earlier in the schedule for the new RFP. Tali said the extension of the project timeline was intended in part to give staff time for community demonstrations and early feedback: "One of the benefits... was the ability to come out to the community... here's what we have so far. Yes, it is our hope that that will be incorporated with a new RFP."
WSF also described limited public outreach to date: the agency has notified key partners (legislators, local officials and affected FACs), updated the project website, and will broaden external communication closer to the new RFP and contract award. "We probably won't do a lot more in terms of... media... until we have... kind of a new plan forward," Tali said.
Committee members asked for clearer public messaging and more transparency about the procurement misalignment. Carrie asked the agency to explain why the work fell apart at a high level to avoid a blame narrative; Jennifer, the FAC chair, said the FAC wants to support WSF's messaging and help explain the reasons to constituents.
WSF also briefed the committee on operational planning for the FIFA World Cup, describing increased staffing, contingency planning and signage to manage expected passenger surges. The agency said it will prioritize down-sound/Bremerton-area service during peak match travel and will publish a service contingency plan in the coming weeks.
The committee did not take formal action on the TRM procurement at the meeting. WSF said staff would follow up with requested budget details and communicative materials as they are finalized.
The FAC will revisit updates on procurement, the new RFP and the forthcoming contingency plan at future meetings.
