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Advocates warn San Juan islands face shrinking modern ferry fleet, urge state funding
Summary
Restore Our Ferries presenters and FAC members discussed a fleet-projection graph showing a decline in vessels not past retirement age and warned of rising breakdown risk; participants discussed costs (roughly $300M per Olympic-class boat), legislative funding delays, and options such as BC Ferries collaboration and interim fixes for the Sydney run.
Mark Ainsworth and Duncan Chalmers of Restore Our Ferries presented to the San Juan County Ferry Advisory Committee a vessel-projection chart produced from Washington State Ferries data that shows a shrinking number of vessels not past retirement age.
Ken Burtness, FAC representative for Lopez Island, said the graph indicates an increasing reliance on boats past their retirement age and growing risk of breakdowns. “To get Washington State Ferries out of the hole that they're in…to get out of the hole that we're in right now is gonna require 2 boats a year,” Burtness said, arguing that decades of delayed funding have pushed WSF into extended vessel lifespans.
Participants discussed rough cost ranges: Burtness referenced the governor’s $1 billion proposal for three boats — roughly $300–330 million per boat — and said that delivering a program to restore fleet health would require sustained, multi-billion-dollar investment over time. FAC members and Restore Our Ferries argued the Sydney–Friday Harbor international run is an economic asset for the islands and discussed interim options including partnering with BC Ferries, while also noting legal and certification limits such as the Jones Act.
The FAC pressed for clarity on procurement lead times and realistic public expectations about when service (including the Sydney route) could return. Chip Long asked for a technical definition of “retirement age”; Burtness answered that industry norms are around 30 years and that WSF’s practice of extending to 60 years has been a compensating policy that increases maintenance and breakdown risk.
Ending: FAC members agreed to continue outreach and advocacy, link local coverage and memos to the county Engage page, and to explore coordination across FACs and county caucuses to press the legislature for multi-year capital funding.
