Could opting for diesel-powered over electric ferries get Washington new boats faster?

Washington state has a plan to replace its aging ferry fleet, but it will be years before commuters notice any changes.

With a system that’s short on both boats and workers, reduced schedules and canceled sailings have become a headache for those who rely on ferries. New Assistant Secretary for Washington State Ferries Steve Nevey hopes to change that.

"The priorities are to get the crew and the vessels that we need to restore full service," Nevey told KUOW's Soundside.

There are sometimes just 15 or 16 boats in service at a time — that's fewer than needed even during off-season travel days. In 2015, there were 24 boats in the system.

Washington State Ferries hopes to have five new vessels in local waters by 2030. But the department will also retire aging vessels, so the current number of vessels may not actually increase. Officials aim to preserve vessels as much as possible until new boats float our way.

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The state is competing with the Navy, Coast Guard, and other major customers for large vessels. On top of that, the new ferries slated for Washington will be hybrid-electric. The state also plans to convert a handful of its ferries to hybrid-electric as well, while building 16 charging terminals at its docks.

For the first time in a long time, Washington state is asking for bids to take on the job of building new ferries. Nevey said that request will officially be made at the end of May.

"Ten shipyards and a couple others are interested in the project ... one hope is to build two ferries in two different states," he said.

As this plan kicks off later this month, the state's ferry woes have become a major talking point among Washington's gubernatorial race. Part of that discussion is the possibility of going back to diesel-powered ferries to get boats faster, instead of the hybrid ferries that are currently planned for.

Nevey says switching now wouldn't be any faster.

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"Switching back to the diesel ferries would slow things down ... I don't think it's the hybrid technology that is slowing it down."

Nevey said that the ferry system was in a crisis two years ago, but today, it's in recovery. He noted that between January and April, the system had a service reliability of about 99%. During that same time in 2023, it was 97.8%. Officials are also looking at making scheduling changes to improve current ferry operations. A challenge given that the system has 15 vessels currently available.