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WASHINGTON STATE FERRIES |
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Four ferries sold to California recycler for $200KQuinault, Illahee, Nisqually and Klickitat posted 06/23/2009 The Washington State Department of General Administration approved the sale on Wednesday, June 17 followed by completion of the signature process on Thursday, June 18. Receipt of the payment was confirmed late on Friday, June 19. “The Steel Electric class vessels served as unforgettable icons of life in the Pacific Northwest,” said Assistant Secretary for WSF David Moseley. “We now must continue to focus our attention on getting new vessels built and into service, starting with the 64-auto ferry under construction.” In November 2007, Secretary of Transportation Paula Hammond ordered the Quinault, Illahee, Nisqually and Klickitat removed from service due to safety concerns. In 2008, the Washington state Legislature directed WSDOT to sell the vessels. WSF had been in discussion with potential buyers up until their sale on Friday to Eco Planet Recycling, Inc. The ferries are currently tied up in Bainbridge Island at the ferry terminal and Eagle Harbor Maintenance Facility. The ferries are scheduled to be towed to Ensenada, Mexico beginning in mid to late-July – pending weather conditions and completion of towing preparation – where they will be recycled. Gregoire: Invest $100 million in ferries to improve safety and increase capacityposted 12/14/2007 On November 20, 2007, Secretary of Transportation Paula Hammond pulled the Steel Electric Class ferries from service due to safety concerns. Since this time, the Port Townsend-Keystone car ferry route has relied on temporary passenger-only service, with the use of the 149-passenger Snohomish ferry. "Washington State Ferries is in dire need of new vessels on the Port Townsend-Keystone route," noted Secretary of Transportation, Paula Hammond, "and Governor Gregoire’s commitment to construction of three new ferries affirms that we all understand the significance of this route to those communities." Governor Gregoire also announced that WSF plans to rent a ferry from Pierce County in order to resume car ferry service on the Port Townsend-Keystone route by mid-to-late January 2008. Until then, WSF and the communities have developed shared solutions that include the hiring of a private contractor (Puget Sound Express) operating passenger-only service on the Port Townsend-Keystone run and moving the Snohomish to provide temporary service between Port Townsend and Colman Dock (Pier 52) in Seattle for an extended time into the New Year holiday shopping season. Service begins today for both routes. "We understand the many strains that the lack of car service on the route means to our communities," observed Traci Brewer-Rogstad, WSF Deputy Executive Director, "and we are moving quickly to help our passengers and local businesses by whatever means necessary." Ongoing inspections of aging Steel Electric ferries reveal additional repair needsposted 12/08/2007 The Quinault and Illahee have been in drydock since November 28. Since then, crews and shipyard staff have worked around the clock to prepare and inspect external and internal hull spaces of both vessels to find any steel problems. Removing paint on the vessels’ 80 year-old riveted steel hulls allows WSF to determine the feasibility and extent of needed repairs. On Tuesday, November 20, Washington State Secretary of Transportation Paula Hammond announced that WSF would pull all four of the Steel Electric class vessels out of service due to concerns about their safety. Work on the Quinault revealed significant hull pitting along the keel that WSF believes likely extends to all four Steel Electric class vessels. This decision led to vehicle service being suspended on the Port Townsend-Keystone ferry route. Ongoing work is revealing more pitting and corrosion. "As work has progressed on the Quinault, inspections have revealed additional steel that needs to be replaced and the extent of needed repairs continues to grow," said Paul Brodeur, WSF Director of Vessel Maintenance and Preservation. "These are old vessels and until all the paint is removed on the hull we will not know the full extent of the problem." At this time, 70 percent of the paint on the hull has been removed and WSF has discovered that at least 45 percent of the Quinault’s hull will need to be replaced before the vessel can return to service. This percentage may increase if WSF finds more pitting as it completes inspection of the Quinault and Illahee over the next few weeks. In the same dry-dock at Todd Shipyard, workers are hydro blasting the Illahee’s hull to remove the paint and inspect the steel underneath. Early inspections of the outside of the vessel show that there are areas with pitting that require repair, similar to what has been found on the Quinault. "These new developments add complexity to our decision about how much to invest in these 80 year-old boats," said Paula Hammond. "We are moving forward quickly with plans to replace the Steel Electric class vessels, and I understand how difficult it is for residents of Port Townsend and Whidbey Island to be without vehicle ferry service." "We will continue to do everything we can to keep our communities informed and to work closely with them and policy-makers as decisions are made and new information becomes available." WSF plans to use emerging information about the condition of the Quinault and Illahee to inform decisions about next steps. "We continue to assess the full range of hull pitting and this will help determine the extent and the cost of needed repairs. As we move forward, our first priority is the safety and service needs of our customers," Hammond said. Background: WSF owns four Steel Electric class vessels – Quinault, Klickitat, Illahee and Nisqually. These vessels, built in 1927, predominantly serve the Port Townsend-Keystone and San Juan Islands inter-island routes. They are the only ferries in the system capable of operating in Keystone’s narrow and shallow harbor. Two steel electric ferries may be back by springHiyu may need to fill in for short time By Sharon Kivisto posted 12/04/2007
All four steel electrics were pulled from service due to hull pitting found on the Quinault. The Illahee, the inter island ferry, was put into dry dock last week to begin paint removal. "The Illahee was put up first because it already has had a substantial amount of work done to it," said Deardorf. "We don't know until we get that paint uncovered when the ferry could be put back in service. Because the price tag is fairly substantial, we haven't yet made the decision do we do the same amount of work to the Klickitat and the Nisqually. The Nisqually still has concrete and is in the worst shape mechanically." "If we only get two steel electrics back we would need to rely on the Evergreen State for the inter island boat," he said. The Evergreen State is larger and faster than the Nisqually. Because the Evergreen State was scheduled to be retired. "In order for us to ensure the Evergreen State is a reliable player for the next few years. It is long overdue to rebuild engines which is a 10 to 12 week job. We are wrestling with how to accomplish that." Under the best case scenario, the Illahee would be able to be repaired and back in service for use as the inter island ferry while the Evergreen State under went repairs. The Illahee would then go to the Port Townsend/Keystone route mid-May when the route requires two boats. This scenario depends on the Illahee's still unknown repairs and the ability to obtain engine parts for the Evergreen State's engines. "We won't know for another week or so, the timing of availability for parts for the engine rebuild," said Deardorf. "It uses engines put in 1988 from a Dutch company which went out of business." The back up plan calls for the Hiyu to fill in as the interisland boat if the timing doesn't work out. "The only other card to play is the Hiyu. We acknowledge it is too small for interisland traffic. We want to do any substitution when traffic at absolute lowest and for as short as time as possible," said Deardorf. "There are a lot of balls up in the air." Washington State Ferries Increases Steel Hull Inspections and Routine Vessel Maintenanceposted 12/01/2007
With fewer crowds and slightly lower demand, most annual maintenance occurs in the winter so the vessels are ready to go when warmer weather returns. The additional time that the Hyak will be in the shipyard may delay other scheduled vessel maintenance periods into early summer. "Washington State Ferries periodically measures the condition of vessel hulls through audio gauging and a routine steel maintenance program," said Paul Brodeur, Director of Vessel Maintenance and Preservation. "We not only record this by vessel, we also track issues by class of vessel to determine trends. We work with the U.S. Coast Guard to do regular vessel inspections and steel gauging." The steel hulls of WSF vessels are gauged 10 years after initial construction and at five year intervals thereafter. "The success of WSF’s steel maintenance program is why we have been able to keep aging vessels in service. Safety is our #1 priority and we work hard to keep our vessels in top condition through an aggressive steel inspection and maintenance program but we can always look for ways to expedite inspections and do more than we originally planned when vessels are in the dry dock. We can also work with the Coast Guard to be proactive in checking vessels for safety," said Secretary of Transportation Paula Hammond. WSF vessels work hard – most run seven days a week for as long as 20 hours a day. Each year the ferries require annual maintenance periods for everything from a new paint job, engine overhauls, and replacement of pitted steel in the hulls and auto decks. Each vessel in the fleet is removed from service up to four weeks each year to meet U.S. Coast Guard annual in-water inspection requirements and to complete other necessary maintenance. Additionally, each year, about one third of WSF’s vessels are pulled out of the water for a complete internal and external hull inspection that the U.S. Coast Guard requires twice in a five year period. "Our engineering staff and vessel crews work day and night to keep vessels in operation," said Brodeur. "Now more than ever, it is important that we work hard to inspect all vessels in the fleet and rededicate ourselves to our regular maintenance program." In addition to the ongoing work on the Hyak, other vessels that will go in for their scheduled annual inspection in the next month include the 90-car Sealth, 188-car Spokane and 124-car Kitsap. All Steel Electric Ferries Pulled From ServiceSan Juan inter-island route will resume this afternoon with Evergreen State posted 11/20/2007
The San Juan inter-island route run will resume Wednesday afternoon with the arrival of the Evergreen State. The Port Townsend-Keystone car ferry route is closed until further notice. The decision was released Tuesday night by Washington State Secretary of Transportation Paula Hammond. WSF owns four 80-year-old Steel Electric class vessels – Quinault, Klickitat, Illahee and Nisqually. These vessels predominantly serve the Port Townsend-Keystone and San Juan Islands inter-island routes. They are the only ferries in the system capable of operating in Keystone’s narrow and shallow harbor. "After meeting with staff concerning the most recent inspections of the Steel Electric hulls, I have decided that we must pull these ferries from service to examine each of the hulls more extensively," said Hammond. "Ongoing work on the Quinault has revealed significant hull pitting along the keel that likely extends to all four Steel Electric vessels." Currently, two Steel Electrics are operating – the Klickitat on the Port Townsend-Keystone route and the Illahee on the San Juan Islands inter-island route. The Klickitat was removed from the Port Townsend-Keystone route at the end of the service Tuesday and the Illahee was tied up at Anacortes after its last sailing Tuesday. Today, Wednesday afternoon, November 21, the Evergreen State will begin providing service on the San Juan Islands inter-island route. "Safety is our number one priority," said Hammond. "It cannot be compromised. We have kept up with the repairs on these vessels, but we are at a turning point that requires emergency action. "I realize the timing of this couldn’t be worse," added Hammond. "It is Thanksgiving weekend. We are doing everything we can to make this easier on the traveling public and the communities we serve." To help lessen the impacts of the loss of passenger-vehicle service on Port Townsend-Keystone, WSF will:
"We are working with local transit agencies as well as major local employers to help arrange transportation connections on both sides of the route," said Traci Brewer-Rogstad, WSF Deputy Executive Director/Chief of Staff. "I have asked the ferry system to work with local shipyards to fast track a solution to get car ferry service back on this route as quickly as possible," said Paula Hammond. "Our first priority is to assess the full range of hull pitting in each vessel and determine the extent and the cost of needed repairs. Depending on what is found, the next step will be repair or retirement of the Steel Electrics. "Our second priority is to expedite the vessel procurement process and to secure funding for new vessels on the Port Townsend-Keystone route. We are also researching the feasibility of hull replacement of the existing Steel Electrics, which might accelerate the timeframe for new vessels." Hammond said, "We are making these decisions with customer safety first in our mind." |
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