PORT TOWNSEND— A third new state ferry will take its maiden voyage on the Port Townsend-Coupeville run when the MV Kennewick has its inaugural sailing, expected in January.
The date of the inaugural run as well as the nature of the festivities have not yet been decided, according to Washington State Ferries spokesperson Marta Coursey.
“We are proud that we will be able to deliver the vessel on time and under budget,” Coursey said Wednesday.
“During this time we have gotten exceptional community support, for which we are extremely thankful.”
The Kennewick’s rollout follows the November 2010 debut of the MV Chetzemoka and that for the MV Salish, which followed in June.
The three vessels represent the Kwa-di Tabil class of ferries, built for the state by Vigor Shipyards — formerly Todd Pacific — for $213.2 million.
The Chetzemoka was named by Port Townsend schoolchildren after the 19th century Klallam chief, but the boat will not have permanent place on the Port Townsend-Coupeville route next week.
Beginning Tuesday, the route will return to one-boat service and the Chetzemoka will be moved to the Port Defiance-Tahlequah route after a dry-dock period.
The Salish will operate on the Port Townsend-Coupeville route until the Kennewick arrives. Then the Salish will become a backup vessel for other state ferries routes until it returns to two-boat service out of Port Townsend in the spring.
The Kennewick’s first two days of sea trials will are scheduled for today and Friday, according to a statement from Washington State Ferries.
The vessel will sail out of Everett Shipyard each day as Vigor tests the new ferry’s operational systems in preparation for demonstrating the vessel to the state ferry agency and the U.S. Coast Guard next week.
The state is tentatively scheduled to accept delivery from Vigor by the end of the month.
Following delivery, the state will conduct crew training on its permanent route, which is difficult because of the tides coming in and out of Keystone Harbor on Whidbey Island.
For ferry route naming and sign purposes, State Ferries last year renamed the destination Coupeville instead of Keystone.
The Chetzemoka was originally scheduled to go into service in August 2010 but that was delayed when its fixed-pitch propeller had to be reprogrammed to accommodate the Keystone tides.
The Salish and Kennewick were built with variable-pitch propellers which makes access to Keystone Harbor less problematic.
While the Chetzemoka has connections to Port Townsend, it will not service the route on a regular basis — but that isn’t a drawback according to Port Townsend Ferry Advisory Committee chair Tim Caldwell.
“There is a lot of local art on the Chetzemoka so it will promote Port Townsend with ferry riders in other parts of the system,” he said.
This richness of available ferries paints quite a different picture than the three years following Nov. 2007, when two aged and leaking Steel Electric-class ferries were taken out of service permanently.
During that time, Port Townsend was first serviced by a passenger ferry to Seattle, and then with the Steilacoom II, which was rented from Pierce County.
Washington State Ferries reported this summer that ridership on the Port Townsend-Coupeville route increased 37 percent since two-boat service resumed.
During this winter’s period of single boat service the Port Townsend and Coupeville ferry commissions plan to meet in order to determine a suitable schedule for when the two boats resume in the spring.
Caldwell said there won’t be any increased sailings due to budget, but they could occur earlier in the morning or later in the evening to accommodate evening events.
The two boats are scheduled to operate for 14 hours a day and 10 hours a day respectively, Caldwell said.
“It’s great that we have gotten a level of service that we haven’t seen for three years on this route,” Caldwell said.
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Jefferson County Reporter Charlie Bermant can be reached at 360-385-2335 or charlie.bermant@peninsuladailynews.com.