SEATTLE — Heads up for anyone trying to take a ferry on Monday: your route is likely cancelled or delayed.
Ferry officials say they are experiencing a severe shortage of crew. The staffing issue began on Sunday, stranding people across western Washington for hours, and is now bleeding into Monday’s commute as well.
As of 7:30 a.m. Monday, all ferries to and from Bainbridge Island were cancelled until further notice; Seattle/Bremerton was running on limited one-boat service, Edmonds/Kingston was running one boat, and riders were seeing two-hour wait times, and all routes servicing Anacortes/San Juan Islands were cancelled or very limited.
Mukilteo/Clinton was also briefly limited from 4-7 a.m., but returned to 2-boat service quickly.
Tim Barker took the Kitsap Fast Ferry from Bremerton Monday morning. He said he often sees delays on the big ferries when trying to get to and from Seattle.
“It’s just hard to rely on a mode of transportation that’s supposed to be there to make your life easier; instead, it makes it difficult,” Barker said.
Faye Armitstead, also from Bremerton, took the Fast Ferry as well. She said she showed up for the 6:20 a.m. boat only to find out it was cancelled. She said she would be late for work if she waited for the next big ferry.
“I did get on the fast ferry, but I think some people didn’t get on it; that’s not great for them,” Armistead said.
Barker said he had no other choice this morning.
“Extremely difficult, especially for someone like me that ended up taking the fast ferry this morning to get to the airport since I’ve got a flight this morning,” Barker said.
Justin Fujioka with WSF said the lack of crew is a consistent issue, but they are actively trying to build up their workforce.
“The more licensed positions it takes years to get into for credentialing and training. We’re trying to build that bench, and that’s why we have started so many new workforce development programs over the past several years to try and build that bench,” Fujioka said.
Passengers say they are questioning whether these constant delays are sustainable.
“I moved over there because of better cost of living, but if this is the trade-off it’s not wonderful sometimes,” Armistead said.
WSF tells KIRO 7 they are trying their best to keep at least one boat running per route, but can’t make any promises.
Check your route and schedule before you head out today to make sure whatever boat you need is actually up and running.
For route alerts and information, click here.
Washington State Ferries released this statement on social media
“This morning, 23 engine room employees called in sick. Every employee qualified to fill those positions has declined to fill them and keep the ferries running. All of the employees calling in sick, and declining to fill those vacancies, are represented by the Marine Engineers’ Beneficial Association (MEBA) who represent engine room employees. The ferries cannot run without these roles being filled. As a result, 13 of our 18 ferries are not in service. We understand how disruptive this is to thousands of Washingtonians. We expect our employees to return to work as soon as possible.”
“The employees who work in the engine room play a vital role in providing WSF’s safe service, which is why Staff Chief Engineers have a base salary of $157,000, and can make more than $350,000 a year with overtime, as well as annual sick and vacation leave, and retirement accrual.”
“All WSF vessels are fully staffed at the beginning of every service day at U.S. Coast Guard required levels. When an employee calls in sick, request dispatchers work to fill the position as quickly as possible. When those positions aren’t filled, the boat cannot sail, which is what we’re experiencing today across 13 of the 18 vessels currently in service.”
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