PORT TOWNSEND — Preparations for a passenger ferry to Seattle — at $50 per round trip — are focused on completing necessary paperwork and an outreach program that will tell the public what the service is — and what it is not.
Ferry service remains on track to begin service in the summer of 2013, said Jim Pivarnik, deputy director of the Port of Port Townsend.
The first of a series of community meetings about the project is planned Tuesday, when port representatives will answer questions from the Tuesday Morning Group at 9 a.m. at the Highway 20 Roadhouse, 2152 W. Sims Way.
Port personnel also expect to answer questions about the financial problems reportedly besetting the Port of Kingston’s ferry to Seattle, which is costing taxpayers about $35,000 per passenger and which may be shut down, according to The Seattle Times.
The two projects are quite different, Pivarnik said.
Although the Port Townsend boat will be built or purchased through a $1.3 million federal grant, no public money will be used for its operation, he said.
It will be operated privately by Puget Sound Express.
Also, it will not be a commuter service, Pivarnik added.
“The purpose of the ferry is to bring people from Seattle to Port Townsend,” he said.
“Some people may use it to get to work, but that’s not its purpose.
“If you have to be in Seattle at a certain time of the day, it may not be the best way to go.”
Weather and water conditions may decrease reliability, and sailings could be cancelled at the last minute, Pivarnik said, adding that, at $50 per round trip, it also is too expensive for commuters.
“The service will be priced for visitors who will pay the $50 fare,” he said.
“People are worried that the ferry will turn Port Townsend into a bedroom community, but that’s not going to happen.”
Pivarnik said that the Port of Kingston did approach the Port of Port Townsend to see whether it wanted to buy either of its boats.
“We told them we weren’t interested,” Pivarnik said. s“They are too slow and use too much fuel.”
With their 149-passenger capacity, they also are too big.
Port personnel are considering a 49-passenger ferry, although the idea of running a 75-passenger boat has been discussed.
Port commissioners initially intended to build a boat to the route’s specifications using the grant money but they have since decided that they may decide to purchase a craft.
The decision won’t be made until all the paperwork is done, Pivarnik said.
Initial plans are for the ferry to make two round trips a day, seven days a week in the summer months and cut back to weekends only during the winter, Pivarnik said.
For more information, phone 360-385-0656.
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Jefferson County Reporter Charlie Bermant can be reached at 360-385-2335 or charlie.bermant@peninsuladailynews.com.