Wsf News

Steve Nevey has been selected to serve as assistant secretary for the Washington State Ferries Division, the state's Secretary of Transportation Roger Millar announced on Thursday. Nevey will succeed Patty Rubstello, who is stepping down as head of WSF after more than 33 years of service with the Washington State Department of Transportation.A career mariner, Nevey progressed directly from high school to a maritime academy in the U.K. For the past two years he has served as director…

The next newbuilds for Washington State Ferries (WSF) could be built by a shipyard outside of Washington as the state seeks to accelerate its ferry electrification program.The Washington State Department of Transportation's (WSDOT) WSF earlier this week issued a request for information to the shipbuilding industry across the country as part of its effort to contract for five new hybrid-electric Olympic-class ferries. Responses are due in January and will provide critical information for the Invitation for Bid in spring 2024…

The Washington State Ferries (WSF) vessel Walla Walla has been temporarily removed from service so that one of its propellers could be replaced. The 440-foot-long, 2,000 passenger Jumbo-class ferry arrived at Vigor and was taken into dry dock on September 27 after one of its propellers was damaged last month.The vessel is expected to be out of service for up to four more weeks, WSF said..

Washington State Ferries has tapped local shipyard Vigor to convert up to three of its Jumbo Mark II class ferries to low-emission hybrid-electric power.Vigor's $150 million winning bid for the contract came in about $16 million under the second place bid from another Washington shipyard, but was still approximately $30 million above the state’s $120 million estimate for the project. Vigor has been awarded approximately $100 million for the conversion of two vessels, with a fixed-price option to convert the third vessel in 2025.WSF…

A fuel contamination issue led to the grounding of a Washington State Ferries (WSF) vessel in April, the operator said in a recent update.The 440-foot double-ended Jumbo Class ferry Walla Walla was traveling from Bremerton, Wash. to Seattle with 596 passengers and 15 crew members on board when it ran aground in Rich Passage, just off Bainbridge Island, Wash., at approximately 4:30 p.m. on April 15. No injuries, pollution or damage to the vessel was reported.At the time of the incident…

A Washington State Ferries (WSF) passenger vessel has been refloated after running aground this weekend in Rich Passage, just off Bainbridge Island, Wash.The 440-foot double-ended Jumbo Class ferry Walla Walla returned to Bremerton on Sunday, after grounding at approximately 4:30 p.m. Saturday, while traveling to Seattle from Bremerton.There were 596 passengers and 15 crew members on board at the time of the incident, and no injuries were reported, according to WSF.Passengers were transferred onto Kitsap Transit vessels and taken to Bremerton…

Washington State Ferries (WSF) this week launched an invitation for bid to convert its three largest vessels to hybrid-electric propulsion.The conversion will remove two diesel generator sets from each of WSF's Jumbo Mark II ferries and replace them with batteries and associated support systems. The conversion will incorporate energy storage technology and rapid charging of the batteries from each applicable ferry terminal.Siemens Energy will supply the propulsion control systems…

A Washington State Ferries (WSF) vessel has been repaired after it allided into the Fauntleroy dock in Seattle last summer.Everett, Wash. repair yard Everett Ship Repair (ESR) served as the prime contractor for emergency repairs to WSF's Cathlamet, and it subcontracted sister-company Nichols Brothers Boat Builders (NBBB) to construct a new steel pickle fork at its facility on Whidbey Island. A pickle fork is the area of a passenger deck extending above the end of the car decks…

With travel and tourism nearing pre-2020 levels, and transit systems benefiting from a return to work, passenger vessels have seen renewed activity. In its year-end review, John Groundwater, Executive Director of the Passenger Vessel Association (PVA), which advocates for the sector in Washington, D.C. wrote: “As we are nearing the end of the calendar year, we are delighted to report that our industry, and our members, are reporting far and wide that they have experienced very…

Marine electronics company Furuno said it has delivered a suite of upgrade electronics for Washington State Ferries' Issaquah.Built in 1979, Issaquah received a newly upgraded helm featuring four Furuno FAR3220NXTBB Chart Radars, two on each end of the vessel. These Black Box, Solid-State Chart Radars provide enhanced target detection with a refined user interface and new, aerodynamic antennas, as well as a host of new and improved features, Furuno said.According to Furuno, the user interface of these advanced Chart Radars provides the operator with carefully organized tools…

The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) will launch a competitive bid process for the construction of its next five hybrid-electric ferries after negotiations stalled with shipbuilder Vigor.Vigor, which has built a number of existing vessels for WSDOT's Washington State Ferries (WSF), is currently finalizing designs for the new ferry class and was also lined up to build the vessels, but the shipyard and WSDOT could not agree on price and other contract terms…

An improperly tightened fastener led to a diesel engine failure on the passenger and car ferry Wenatchee near Bainbridge Island, Wash., resulting in nearly $3.8 million in damages, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said Tuesday.On April 22, 2021, the catastrophic failure of the no. 3 main engine aboard the Wenatchee during a sea trial in Puget Sound led to the ejection of components from the engine and resulted in a fire in the no. 2 engine room. No injuries or pollution were reported.In November 2020…

It’s a common story in the U.S. shipbuilding industry today. A piece of equipment that used to be available for delivery on short notice—maybe in one or two weeks—now must be ordered months or more in advance, and it costs double. Add to this rising steel prices and the labor issues that have pervaded nearly all industrial sectors since the early days of the pandemic, and it’s clear that business is far from usual for American shipyards.Bollinger Shipyards president and CEO, Ben Bordelon…

The year just ended, 2021, might be described as being about “trying to get back to normal”, across the entire transportation spectrum, two years into the pandemic. During this time, the decarbonization and electrification waves have swept across maritime passenger transport. The passenger side of the business is dependent on multiple funding sources; increasingly, this money will be driven by environmental and social considerations.The long-awaited funding of “infrastructure”-related projects…

Shipbuilder Nichols Brothers Boat Builders (NBBB) said it has delivered the second of two 255-passenger-only ferries to Kitsap Transit of Bremerton, Wash. Like the first-in-class-vessel the Enetai, the Commander outperformed design expectations during vessel trials, delivering to Kitsap Transit a lighter, faster, and smoother riding vessel, the builder said. Kitsap Transit awarded a design and construction contract to Nichols Brothers Boat Builders for two new ferries in December 2018.

The past decade has seen tight restrictions on emissions from vessels, notably with a 2015 move to a .10% sulfur maximum in Emission Control Areas (ECA) in North America and in northern Europe. As the International Maritime Organization (IMO) now shapes shipping’s decarbonization future, shipowners are looking at transitions away from fossil fuels. Among the myriad of alternatives are lithium ion batteries and some early forays into hydrogen fuel cells.To date, large batteries are used on short runs…

Washington State Ferries' (WSF) Jumbo Mark II class ferry Wenatchee, the largest in the WSF fleet, entered drydock at Everett Ship Repair, LLC (ESR) on November 10.The vessel is 460’ x 90’ with a docking displacement of 4675 LT. ESR’s drydock, the Faithful Servant has underwent improvements to expand its capabilities, and can now service vessels up to 460’ x 100’ with drafts up to 32’, including all of WSF fleet.The docking evolution started with moving the Faithful Servant drydock…

German shipbuilder MV Werften has said it has secured a 193 million euro loan from the German government to complete the new polar class luxury expedition ship Crystal Endeavor and to keep the shipyard in operation till March 2021. As reported back in April, Genting's Crystal Cruises announced the Crystal Endeavor's launch would be delayed due to the temporary closure of the MV Werften shipyards during the COVID-19 pandemic.The 164-meter, 20,000-gross-ton Crystal Endeavor was…

Noise Control Engineering, LLC (NCE) recently completed an underwater radiated noise study for Washington State Ferries (WSF), a study which entailed measurement of nine vessels representing all seven operating classes of WSF vessels, quantifying noise, potential impacts to orcas and other marine life, and methods of reducing noise.“With the increasing awareness of underwater noise impacts on marine life, both globally and locally in the Northwest, WSF is interested in learning more about how their operations may impact marine life,” said Jesse Spence, President, NCE.

U.S. shipbuilding company Vigor has selected ABB to supply the hybrid-electric propulsion and energy storage systems for the newest additions to the Washington State Ferry fleet, setting the largest U.S. ferry system on course to drastically reduce greenhouse gas emissions and fuel use.The new Olympic Class ferries, each with a capacity of 144 cars and 1,500 passengers, with the planned addition of charging capability at terminals, would reduce fuel consumption by up to 95%. Upon delivery in 2024…

Washington State Ferries will begin the process of converting three Jumbo Mark II vessels from diesel to hybrid-electric power.The government agency that operates automobile and passenger ferry service in the U.S. state of Washington as part of the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) announced Tuesday the state will receive $35 million from the federal Volkswagen settlement to retrofit the Tacoma, Wenatchee and Puyallup.The ferry system is the largest consumer of diesel fuel in the state with over 18 million gallons of diesel burned each year, and the three Jumbo Mark II ferries account for 26 percent of total fuel consumption. This step brings the state ferry system closer to meeting the goals outlined in Gov.

Elliott Bay Design Group (EBDG) was recently selected by Vigor Fab as the engineering firm that will provide functional design for the new hybrid-electric Olympic Class ferries for Washington State Ferries (WSF). EBDG is responsible for redesigning the vessels to accommodate the major change in propulsion type without disrupting structural components. The ferries will operate on all-battery power during crossings or can revert to a hybrid, diesel-electric propulsion if required.

A Massachusetts-based acoustical engineering consulting firm recently completed an underwater radiated noise study to quantify noise, potential impacts to orcas and other marine life, and methods of reducing noise for Washington State Ferries (WSF). Noise Control Engineering (NCE), a subsidiary of naval architecture and marine engineering firm Glosten, said its study included measurement of nine vessels representing all seven operating classes of WSF vessels. The firm specializes in noise and vibration design…