Date:  Tuesday, March 10, 2009

Contact: Susan Harris-Huether, Senior Programs Manager, 206-515-3460

SEATTLE – WSDOT Ferries Division (WSF) will add service hours and re-open the Anacortes/Sidney, B.C. route with the beginning of the spring sailing schedule on Sunday, March 29.

WSF will provide one round trip sailing per day between Anacortes and Sidney, B.C. through the spring on the 124-car ferry Chelan. Customers are encouraged to make reservations for travel on this route on the WSF Web site or by calling 511.

Other service increases with the spring schedule include:

• Weekend inter-island service in the San Juan Islands reverts to sailings by the 87-car Evergreen State.
• Restores eight hours of mid-day service Monday through Thursday between Anacortes and the San Juan Islands.
• Resumes weekend three-boat service on the Fauntleroy/Vashon/Southworth route (the third boat will operate eight hours a day on Saturday and Sunday).

WSF will not increase service this year on the Port Townsend/Keystone route, due to financial constraints. Customers are strongly encouraged to make reservations for travel on this route. Please visit the WSF Web site or call 511 to make reservations. WSF launched the reservation system on this route last spring, and it has been very successful. It allows customers to avoid waiting in line for up to several hours during peak travel times, and prevents long back-ups on the roads leading to the terminals.

The complete spring sailing schedule is currently available on our Web site and at locations throughout Puget Sound. The spring schedule will be in effect March 29 through June 20.

For more ferry system information, please visit the WSF Web site at www.wsdot.wa.gov/ferries. To sign up for free e-mail alerts about service disruptions and other route information, click on the link in the far left column of the Web site. 

                                          # # #

WSDOT keeps people, businesses and the economy moving by operating and improving the state's transportation systems. To learn more about what we're doing, go to www.wsdot.wa.gov/news for pictures, videos, news and blogs. Real time traffic information is available at www.wsdot.wa.gov/traffic or by dialing 5-1-1.

< Back to News Home