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WASHINGTON STATE FERRIES |
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Tariff committee recommends fare increasesposted 11/25/02
The additional fare increases for the San Juans are part of the move towards tariff route equity - the same distance pays the same price. WSF has added an additional 5 percent per year on top of other fare increases in order to achieve route equity. The fare to Lopez should reach the goal with the 2003 increase. Orcas and Friday Harbor will take longer. Inter island fares weren't included in calculations for route equity. The committee has recommended the fares be brought into line. San Juan Ferry Advisory Committee member Bob Distler, who is a member of the tariff committee, fought to have the increases phased in. WSF staff wanted to impose the increases in either a two or three year period. Distler's motion to phase in the increase at 5 percent per year on top of the other increases was passed by the committee. It will take until 2009 to reach route equity. The cost will increase from $10.25 to $14.00. The 5 percent annual increases planned system wide will be on top of the 5 percent. The cost is a blended fare. The rate was taken from an average of all the inter island routes. Commercial rates have been averaged in the past to the San Juans - the same rate was paid for Lopez, Orcas or Friday Harbor. That practice will end next year. "The increase to Friday Harbor commercial haulers will be substantial," San Juan Ferry Advisory Committee member Ed Sutton said at the FAC Nov. 21 meeting on Orcas Island. He proposed the change in fares because he said it wasn't fair to Lopez truckers. Sutton sits on the tariff committee and represents the commercial trucking industry. The cost for a 40-foot truck traveling from Anacortes to Friday Harbor will increase from $117 to $136 under the route equity formula. The committee voted to impose the increase over a three-year period. Distler tried to convince the committee to use the 5 percent formula it had used elsewhere but was voted down. As with the other fares, the route equity increase will be on top of the system-wide increases. Youth fares will be equal to the passenger discount coupon tickets if the transportation commission follows the tariff committee recommendation. Children ages five to 18 are eligible for the youth fare. Under age five travel at no charge. The topic of the peak season surcharge in the San Juans being collected for 22 weeks while more service only lasts for 14 weeks was addressed. One committee member made the case that the public expects to see some logical connection between the two. He noted prior to 1991, the surcharge coincided with the increased service and was promoted that way when it was originally proposed. Other committee members said the other WSF routes do not receive additional service and also pay surcharges. The committee voted not to change the length of time the surcharge is imposed. They discussed instead extending it to 23 weeks in order not to start it on Mother's Day. In the end they decided not to make any changes. The tariff committee will meet again on December 11, 2002 at Colman Dock in Seattle to finish its work on recommendations for the state Transportation Commission. A series of public hearings will be held in the spring before the new tariffs go into effect in May, 2003. Inter-Island fares to rise to $14posted 11/11/02
WSF has been moving toward route equity - the same distance pays the same price - for the past few years. The inter island fares have not been adjusted for route equity. San Juan County Ferry Advisory Committee Chair Bob Distler said, "This is a really tough one for us. This affects the fabric of our community. We have a lot of people who go five days per week here." He suggested WSF limit the route equity increase to 5 percent per year. The route equity increases done so far have been implemented at that rate. While the rest of the system increased 22 percent two years ago, the San Juans routes increased 27 percent - an additional 5 percent. Last year it was 12.5 percent systemwide, 17.5 percent in the San Juans. While true route equity would require different rates for trips between the islands, the committee is recommending an average be used and the cost be the same for all inter island travel. Difficulty with coupon books was cited as the reason. Commercial rates will also be adjusted if the committee's recommendations are adopted. Currently the rate from Anacortes to Orcas and Friday Harbor is the same. The rates will be adjusted to reflect route equity. Distler asked that the committee place a 5 percent limit on those rate increases also. EXCERPTS OF PREVIOUS STORY ON ROUTE EQUITYposted 03/11/02
The chart below shows the relationship between the proposed fare and the percentage needed to achieve route equity. For example, fares for the Anacortes-Friday Harbor route need to be priced 1.64 times the Seattle-Bainbridge route in order to meet route equity. If the proposed fares are adopted the route will be 1.47 times the Bainbridge route. WSF Planning Director Ray Deardorf noted the Anacortes-Lopez route will also be at the target after the 2002 increases. Therefore future fare increases for Lopez will be less than for Shaw, Orcas and San Juan Islands.
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