The Victoria Express News

Black Ball Ferry Line is purchasing the business operations of the Victoria Express from Victoria Rapid Transit in a deal announced today by both companies. Terms of the sale were not released. The Harmon family formed Victoria Rapid Transit in 1990, and over the past two decades grew the ferry business to include service to Victoria, Friday Harbor on San Juan Island and Port Angeles. The ferry has also offered numerous private charters for individuals and organizations throughout the Strait of Juan de Fuca, the Puget Sound, as far south as Westport and even into Lake Washington. “The Harmon family has built a great company and there is a lot of goodwill among their customer base,” said Black Ball Ferry Line president Ryan Burles.

WSDOT Ferries Division (WSF) is adding two 149-passenger foot ferries to the one auto ferry service between Seattle and Bremerton for the Monday afternoon commute and until further notice. WSF is contracting with private operator Victoria Express to provide this service. Pending fog delays, passenger-only service will begin Monday, Aug. 31, with one 149-passenger ferry leaving Bremerton at 3 p.m. and leaving Seattle at 4 p.m. A second 149-passenger-only ferry is expected to begin service leaving Seattle at 4:20 p.m. •    5:00 p.m. •    5:40 p.m. •    6:20 p.m. •    6:45 p.m. •    7:15 p.m. •    7:55 p.m. •    9:05 p.m. Auto ferry service was reduced on the Bremerton route because the Wenatchee has been removed from service following a hard landing Sunday morning, Aug. 30.

WSDOT will reduce Seattle/Bremerton ferry service to one 144-auto ferry and supplemental passenger-only service at the beginning of the service day on Tuesday morning, Oct. 7. This will allow WSDOT to restore two-boat service on the Edmonds/Kingston route. The 188-car that was operating on the Edmonds/Kingston route had to be removed from service on Monday for repairs. WSDOT has no spare vessels because several vessels are out of service for regularly scheduled maintenance and inspections. To fill in for the , WSDOT will move the 144-car Hyak to the Edmonds/Kingston route, along with the 188-car . The 144-car Kaleetan will continue to serve the Seattle/Bremerton route.

Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) Ferries Division announcee that service will be restored on the Seattle/Bremerton route starting on Feb. 13 with the return of the 144-auto/2,500-passenger Hyak from scheduled maintenance. The Hyak will run the boat #2 schedule, so its first departure will be out of Bremerton at 6:20 a.m. Victoria Express passenger-only vessels will operate the 6 a.m. and 6:30 a.m. sailings out of Bremerton on Wednesday only. The U.S. Coast Guard approved the maintenance performed on the Hyak and the ferry underwent successful sea trials this evening to make sure that the vessel was ready for service.

Gary Frommelt, Hornblower Marine Services, Elizabeth, Ind., was elected 2003 PVA President on February 18 during the PVA Annual Convention at MariTrends 2003 held in Long Beach, CA. Other officers elected were PVA Vice President, David B. Clark, Golden Gate Ferry , Larkspur, CA, and PVA Secretary-Treasurer, Cornel Martin, Delta Queen Steamboat Company, New Orleans, LA. Frommelt serves as project manager for Hornblower Marine Services as director of marine operations for Caesars Indiana-home to the largest riverboat casino in the world. Frommelt was most recently PVA Vice President, has served on the PVA Board of Directors since 1996, and has been a long-term member of the Safety Committee.