A pilot electric ferry service between Seattle and nearby Tacoma could debut next summer to serve the surge of World Cup tourists expected in the region — but questions about funding, ferry terminal locations and total costs remain unanswered.
Pierce County leaders, whose jurisdiction includes Tacoma, are hoping the hydroplane ferry would boost tourism and provide a scenic connection to the city 35 miles south of Seattle — one that lasts well beyond the World Cup kickoff in June. They also envision job creation from building the zero-emission vessels in the area.
“This is an example of a legacy that we can leave this region that will promote tourism, promote economic development and promote movement around Puget Sound,” said Ryan Mello, executive of Pierce County, in a recent pitch to Port of Tacoma officials.
The hydroplane ferries would be the only water-based public transit linking Puget Sound’s two largest cities.
Here’s how the plan works:
- The project needs $4 million to launch. Pierce County has earmarked $2 million from its lodging tax fund and is seeking additional support.
- The county would lease two 29-passenger ferries from a company called Prop SF, which currently manages ferry service in San Francisco.
- Prop would handle the vessel operations, marketing, infrastructure, maintenance and ticketing.
- The vessels are built by the Irish company Artemis Technologies.
- The Artemis EF-12 Escape ferries would make eight round-trips daily, serving up to 230 people per day.
- Pierce County aims to make the service permanent and potentially serve additional destinations.
“The vision of bringing back the ‘Mosquito Fleet‘ with this generation of boats is what we are hoping is the outcome of this pilot,” said Betty Baublits, Pierce County’s economic development director, referencing the privately owned ships that ferried passengers in the region more than a century ago.
“We will evaluate the success of the pilot with all of our community, maritime and rider stakeholders to determine what the future of an electric foot ferry network in the Salish Sea will be, and who is the best entity to continue the program,” she added via email.
Tight timeline raises questions
While the notion of sleek new hydroplanes zipping across the region’s waterways is attractive, how the plan comes together is foggy under the compressed timeline.
Along with additional funding needed to set sail, the project must find ferry landing sites with parking and boarding ramps that meet accessibility needs and install charging facilities. Who pays for and owns the shore-side infrastructure depends on where it’s located, Baublits said.
The county is also working on a revenue-sharing agreement with Prop, with the county proceeds reinvested into the electric ferry program. The parties have not said what the passenger fares would cost.
At the September meeting with the county and the Port of Tacoma, commissioners shared enthusiasm for the proposal, imagining a service between the city and other popular locales on Puget Sound. But there were also concerns about affordability for passengers.
“It is very luxurious inside one of these [ferries],” said Commissioner Kristin Ang. “So I do want to make it affordable for more people and inclusive … I get that this is the pilot project, but when I look at those leather seats, I’m just like, ‘Is this just for a certain class of people?’”
Others in the region are similarly interested in the proposal, which could bolster the connection between tech companies and organizations in Seattle and Tacoma. But the proposed speed of deployment remains a hurdle.
“This is a big project. It’s a big opportunity, and we need to give it the time necessary in order to be successful,” said Dennis Joyce, director of investments for Tacoma Venture Fund (TVF), a venture capital firm. Tying the launch to the World Cup, he added, “is a really short time horizon.”
Challenges getting ferries launched
Existing rapid and mass transit options between Seattle and Tacoma include Sound Transit’s commuter railway service and its express buses.
There are other efforts underway to deploy electric-powered vessels in Western Washington:
- The Washington State Department of Transportation plans to convert ferries to hybrid battery power and purchase new electric ships. The program has struggled with cost and timeline challenges.
- Plans for an electric ferry to make the five-minute trip between Anacortes and Guemes Island have likewise been slow moving.
Nearly a decade ago, real estate company Seco Development proposed a pilot ferry service to carry passengers across Lake Washington, between Seattle’s tech-heavy South Lake Union neighborhood and a Seco office development in Renton. The development is now mired in bankruptcy.
Part of the challenge for these projects stems from federal laws including the 1920 Jones Act and the Passenger Vessel Services Act of 1886 that require the use of domestically made vessels for carrying goods, cars and passengers for domestic, waterborne transportation. The rules eliminate the option of purchasing less costly European-made ferries.
Artemis is building its hydrofoils in Belfast and in February announced a manufacturing partnership with the Seattle-based luxury yacht maker Delta Marine.
David Tyler, Artemis co-founder and managing director for North America, declined to share details on where vessels for the Tacoma-area project would be built, what they would cost, and when they would be available, saying via email that was “currently commercially sensitive information.”
Tyler said that additional manufacturing locations beyond the Seattle site would be “announced soon.”
Pierce County Executive Mello said the region has long wanted to bolster its ferry service options — and now is the chance.
“Hosting such a significant world event,” he said, “causes some sense of urgency and helps cause some creativity about how can we take advantage of this moment for the benefit of the people who live here … and the businesses who have the responsibility of providing jobs and economic vitality for this region long after the games are gone.”
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