The Alaska Marine Highway System has too many old ships, and too few people to operate them. In a virtual open house Tuesday (10-24-23), ferry officials kicked off a 20-year plan for rebuilding and modernizing Alaska’s Marine Highway.

Marine director Craig Tornga summarized ongoing issues facing the state’s ferry system, including difficulty with crew recruitment and retention. 

“All summer long, we’ve had a few no-sail days across the fleet due to crew shortage just because we didn’t have enough personnel to meet the manning requirements of our certificate of inspection from the Coast Guard,” Tornga said. “So that continues to plague us.”

Aging vessels are another problem for the ferry system, which currently operates five vessels over 45 years old. In August, AMHS released an interim plan outlining capital and operations improvements through 2026. The plan includes building three new vessels, including one to replace the 59-year-old Tustumena and a hybrid or electric vessel to replace the Lituya. 

“These reliability issues are due to age, and they’re not going to improve for us until we build replacement vessels,” Tornga said.

Tornga said that the trajectory of the 60-year-old Matanuska is still in question.  

“Since I’ve joined, we’ve held meetings for the Coast Guard, and we don’t have a determination yet to the extent of the upgrades to retain SOLAS until we know the condition and the safety of the hull,” Tornga said.

Consultant Kristen Kissinger, who is working with AMHS on the long-range plan, emphasized that data and recommendations from communities will guide this stage of the planning process. 

“Really having a database of just all the information about what kinds of things are present in a community, what a community might need, what are the gaps, what’s missing, and what that means for how they use ferry service,” she said.

She pointed attendees of the open house to an online survey open through November 7 and encouraged them to attend an Alaska Marine Highway Operations Board meeting, as well as to submit written comments. 

Work to develop the long-range plan will continue through mid-2024, and ferry users are encouraged to share input throughout the process.

It’s been a frustrating winter for ferry service in Southeast Alaska. A combination of supply chain issues, and an aging fleet, has made marine highway schedules especially sporadic this year. KCAW spoke with one Sitka resident about the far reaching effects of Alaska’s failing ferries. Listen below:

Like many rural Southeast communities, Sitka has seen long gaps in ferry service this winter. For Michelle Putz, her plans to move to Colorado have been at the mercy of an unpredictable ferry schedule. 

“We’re taking the ferry is sort of our last way of, you know, leaving Sitka,” Putz said. “The movers cannot take anything that’s liquid, because it will freeze during the winter time. And turns out that smoked salmon jars have liquid in them. So we’ve got to bring like liquids and stuff that’s important to us for the next couple of months and three cats in our truck on the ferry.”

Putz and her husband Perry are in the process of selling their house in Sitka. They were scheduled to leave on January 16, but then the Matanuska sailing was cancelled, leaving them without a ride. They’ve been renting a place while they wait for the next boat to arrive, an extra expense on top of the big move. 

“We’ll have all been paying for the rental for a couple of weeks. Luckily, we’re able to do that. It’ll make it not not ridiculously more expensive, but you know, just more challenging,” she said.

It’s been nearly a month since Sitka’s last ferry. And with maintenance on the Matanuska extended through the end of January, the state has been attempting to fill in long service gaps throughout the region. While the LeConte replaced some of the Matanuska’s trips to Haines and Skagway, it did not replace any of Sitka’s canceled sailings for December or January. Putz said they would have moved earlier if they could. 

“Part of the reason we’re moving now is because there were no ferries for October and November, like none, not a single ferry was coming through Sitka, which is crazy,” said Putz.

The Alaska Marine Highway, facing budget cuts and mechanical breakdowns, has become less and less reliable for the Southeast communities which once considered it a lifeline to the outside world. For Putz, while delays have been inconvenient, they haven’t necessarily been a surprise. 

“There’s definitely been a reduced schedule and reduced quality of travel because, you know, you don’t know what’s going to happen,” she said.” I knew that the ferries were…the schedules were questionable. So I thought if we waited until the middle of January, that they’d have had everything figured out by then.”

The couple was rescheduled for a sailing on January 30. Then the state cancelled that sailing too, pushing their trip back to February 13, almost a month behind their original departure date. 

The reduced schedule means that if they have to push something back then essentially everything gets pushed back.

According to the Department of Transportation, the Matanuska is supposed to come back in service at the beginning of February, but right now it’s still in a Ketchikan shipyard. Putz said people have been asking her what they’ll do if the ferry doesn’t come. 

“My answer is always…. wait,” she said, half laughing. “So we’ll be waiting.”

Sitka saw its first ferry in over a month on January 12- the Kennecott. But for those who want to travel to Bellingham, they’ll have to wait on the February 13 sailing of the  Matanuska.

Editor’s Note: After this story aired, the Department of Transportation announced contracts with at least two vendors to run catamarans to Southeast villages. Read more about that here.

Tash Kimmell is a Report for America Corps member

The draft summer ferry schedule has many in Southeast anxious about another season with fewer sailings — or, in the case of some communities, no ferries at all. 

The Department of Transportation’s comment period on the draft schedule wrapped up today [Tuesday 2-4-2020] with two public conference calls, one for Southeast and another for Southwest and Southcentral routes. 

The DOT had already collected some 300 written comments. 

The Southeast call drew in residents from Ketchikan, Gustavus, Skagway, and Haines, among other towns. 

Lee Parker, president of Frontier Freight, said the proposed schedule for Gustavus, which calls for two sailing every other week, would make it harder for his business to supply seasonal lodges. 

“We need to be doing freight weekly,” Parker said. “The Glacier Bay Lodge and all the other inns and lodges in Gustavus — and there’s a lot of them — they have to get stocked every week, with the fresh produce, dairy goods, and the frozen goods. That has to come every week. So I don’t know what we will do if we can’t do that for them.”        

Jamie Bricker, of Skagway, advocated for increased summer service for the upper Lynn Canal. She said the winter of sparse sailings has taken a toll on Skagway, and also expressed concerns about safety as a good chunk of the fleet remains in layup due to mechanical issues. 

“Not only are we not providing adequate service to our people in Southeast Alaska,” Bricker said. “But at some point in time, the age of this fleet, and their state of disrepair, when does that become dangerous for people?”

Bricker said the issue of safety was particularly important, as her son is on the Skagway basketball team that was recently stranded in Juneau due to mechanical problems on the Matanuska.    

The DOT is currently reviewing the public comments and plans to release a full schedule later this month. 

The Matanuska ferry will make two additional stops in Kake later this month, the Alaska Department of Transportation announced Wednesday, December 4th.

The ferry will depart Kake December 13th en route to Juneau. The return trip arrives in Kake on the 15th, sailing on to Bellingham, Washington the following day.

The Matanuska was already scheduled to make three more stops in Kake this month, on the 24th, 28th, and 29th. DOT spokesperson Sam Dapcevich says the new port calls will send a small ripple through the existing schedule. 

“The stops that we added required some adjustments to the Matanuska’s schedule, so basically it will be leaving a little bit earlier from Bellingham on December 11th,” Dapcevich said. “And that schedule change will sort of cascade through until, I believe, December 16th. So there’ll be minor adjustments, but AMHS is notifying all the passengers of the changes.”    

The announcement comes against a backdrop of reduced ferry service across the region, the product of budget cuts and unexpected repairs keeping some vessels tied up. Small Southeast communities like Pelican, Gustavus, Angoon, and Tenakee Springs are scrambling to adapt to life without ferry service, while Prince William Sound communities remain cut off until the Spring. 

Hoonah, Kake, Haines, and other towns are contending with fewer port calls. 

The day after announcing the new stops in Kake, AMHS notified employees of the ferry Aurora that that vessel is being prepared for long-term layup in Ketchikan, underscoring the system’s continued struggles.

The ferries Matanuska, right, and Fairweather, left, dock at Juneau’s Auke Bay terminal May 20, 2016. The larger ship is delayed in its return to service after an overhaul. (Photo by Ed Schoenfeld, CoastAlaska News)

The ferry Matanuska will take 10 days longer than expected to return from repairs.

The ship, which sails Southeast waters, was scheduled to resume service Feb. 10. Instead, it will return to its route Feb. 20.

The Matanuska has been out of service since Jan. 4 for its annual overhaul. Officials say engineers found more damaged steel than expected.

The Matanuska sails from Prince Rupert, British Columbia, to Haines, with stops in most Southeast port cities.

The ferry was built in 1963, making it one of the Alaska Marine Highway System’s three oldest ships. It can carry up to 450 passengers and about 80 cars or trucks. It has about 100 staterooms.

The M/V Fairweather will provide service between Sitka and Juneau on Fridays. The addition of the fast ferry boosts the number of weekly northbound ships from the proposed one to four (Ed Schoenfeld/CoastAlaska News)

The Alaska Marine Highway System released its summer 2016 ferry schedule today (01-12-16), and as expected, it includes trimmed-down service. But service to Sitka is far more robust than originally proposed.

Here is the original story from KRBD: http://www.krbd.org/2016/01/12/amhs-releases-trimmed-down-summer-schedule/

The draft summer schedule called for one northbound and one southbound ferry a week. Under the final schedule, Sitka will have three northbound sailings (via M/V Matanuska and M/V LeConte) and one southbound ferry sailing (via M/V Columbia) a week, as well as the fast ferry M/V Fairweather operating to and from Juneau on Fridays.

Sitka Mayor Mim McConnell said, “It’s a huge improvement and I’m just very thrilled to see the response from the Alaska Marine Highway folks to address the needs here in Sitka and the region.” The fast ferry Fairweather will operate four days a week, serving Juneau, Haines, Skagway and Sitka.

Jeremy Woodrow, spokesman for the Alaska Marine Highway System, said that change was in response to public comment, particularly from Sitka residents.

“Sitka had probably the most drastic reduction in service in the draft schedule, and that was because of elimination of the fast ferries. By adding in the fast ferry, changing the way the LeConte is running, Sitka will get improved ferry service than what had been previously proposed.”

For the region as a whole, Woodrow said customers will notice the reduced fleet size, which  is in response to state budget cuts. “One of the main ferries that will not be operating is the Taku, which was in layup last summer, as well. And the Malaspina will be in an overhaul period for the majority of the summer.”

One caveat, though: Woodrow cautioned this summer ferry schedule is based on funding levels in Gov. Bill Walker’s spending plan, released last month. The Legislature meets soon and could change those funding levels, which would change service.

Woodrow said, “Where it will change is to be determined. There’s a lot that can happen throughout the legislative session, and we aren’t going to guess what may happen right now. But we do have to put out a schedule, so passengers can begin planning their travel for the summer.”

Calling the ferry Sitka’s “road,” McConnell hopes the schedule stays put as Sitkans make their reservations for the summer. “It would not be good for business to have the schedule change at the last minute. So hopefully what we see now is what remains when the legislature is through with it.”

For the near future, passengers who want to book reservations will need to call. The online reservation system is going through an overhaul and will debut on May 1^st, 2016. That’s when the summer season – and summer prices – begin.

The full summer ferry schedule can be viewed online here: http://www.dot.state.ak.us/amhs/pubs/

The Alaska Marine Highway System’s toll-free reservation number is 800-642-0066.

KCAW’s Brielle Schaeffer contributed reporting.

The ferry LeConte docks at Juneau’s Auke Bay terminal. The ship is in drydock in Ketchikan for bow thruster repairs. Photo: Ed Schoenfeld, CoastAlaska News.

Update: The LeConte will resume service Sunday, June 16, but about 5½ hours behind schedule. The Malaspina will sail Juneau to Gustavus roundtrip on Saturday night to alleviate stranded travelers in Gustavus. The ferry will depart Auke Bay at 10 .p.m and return in time to sail Lynn Canal as scheduled Sunday morning.

The LeConte’s revised schedule is:

6/16 – Depart Juneau: 12:30 p.m.
6/16 – Arrive Hoonah: 3:45 p.m.
6/16 – Depart Hoonah: 4:45 p.m.
6/16 – Arrive Tenakee: 8 p.m.
6/16 – Depart Tenakee: 8:30 p.m.
6/16 – Arrive Angoon: 10:45 p.m.

Earlier report: Onboard mechanical problems continue to delay some Alaska Marine Highway sailings.

The ferry LeConte is at the Ketchikan Shipyard due to a recurring issue with its bow thruster.

Marine highway spokesman Jeremy Woodrow says it will take close examination to determine what needs to be fixed.

“Because of where the bow thruster is located and the nature of the issue, it’s required to be put up on drydock and the closest drydock is in Ketchikan,” he says.

The bow thruster is a two-way engine that helps maneuver the front of the vessel. Thruster problems cancelled several sailings earlier this month.

The 300-passenger, 35-vehicle LeConte is scheduled to be back in service June 15th. But Woodrow says it could take another day or so.

The ship is based in Juneau and sails to Angoon, Hoonah, Tenakee, Gustavus and Pelican this time of year.

The ferry Matanuska docks in Wrangell, giving a passenger a chance to make a cell phone call.

The ferry Matanuska had its own mechanical problems earlier this week.

Woodrow says they were in the engine room. Repairs delayed the ship’s Prince Rupert departure by three hours.

That’s affecting arrival and departure times through early Saturday morning.

“What really put them behind schedule is that it made them miss the tide in the Wrangell Narrows, so they were delayed it Ketchikan for a longer time than they wanted to be,” he says.

The ship sails from Rupert to Skagway, with stops in Ketchikan, Wrangell, Petersburg, Juneau and Haines. It can carry about 500 passengers and 90 vehicles.

The ferry Tustumena remains at Seward’s shipyard after a winter repair project found additional issues. Woodrow says it should return to service July 24th. The ship carries up to 175 passengers and 35 vehicles

He says the marine highway’s eight other vessels are sailing without significant problems.

Schedule updates are available from ferry terminals or the AMHS central reservations office at 1-907-465-3941, toll f