Where the subsidy dollars would come from remains an unanswered question. To help ferry service get off the ground, Patton said a start-up subsidy would likely be needed.ĭean concurred, saying “I think that’s what it’s going to take.” Whidbey/Seatac Shuttle and Victoria Express have also approached the Port of Coupeville about the possibility of ferry service. The trip took a little more than 20 minutes to complete. When Cama Beach State Park opened last month, Deception Pass Tours brought a boatload of officials to the celebration.
Whidbey seatac shuttle trial#
She said the company would have to buy a second, smaller boat to offer the service.ĭeception Pass Tours already did a trial run of the trip across Saratoga Passage. “We would love to be the ones to provide it,” said Terica Taylor, owner of Deception Pass Tours. Three business, two of them local, have expressed interest in operating the ferry service.
Whidbey seatac shuttle update#
They will examine how it was compiled and then update the numbers. Since then the price of gas has tripled.Ĭounty officials are looking at the 13-year-old study. Patton said the port possesses a study the county produced in 1995 showing, at that time, the county spent $27,000 a month in transportation between the two islands. The county would also benefit from the ferry service, by shortening the trip between Coupeville and Camano Island.ĭean didn’t know how much the county spends on transportation between the two islands, but it’s no doubt significant. “I’m certainly supportive of it,” Dean said.
He suggested that the port also examine using one of the two finger piers recently installed in the park, which are closer to parking.Ĭounty Commissioner John Dean, who makes the 90-minute car commute from Camano Island to Coupeville, said ferry service would bring in a nice infusion of tourist dollars. Parking is a major issue for the new state park that currently has 187 spots. Wheeler said a decision hasn’t been made on whether to allow the pier to be used for passenger ferry service.
He said it will be two to three years before the pier becomes a reality. Park Ranger Jeff Wheeler said the pier is currently going through the permitting process with the Army Corps of Engineers. There are plans to build a pier at the new Camano Island park. There is a possible location opening up in the next couple of years now that Cama Beach State Park has opened. The Coupeville Wharf would need some modifications, there needs to be a place for the ferry to land on Camano Island, and the business selected to offer ferry service would need funding as a start-up subsidy.įinding a spot to land on Camano Island has been one of the hurdles preventing ferry runs from happening, but that may change. Patton said several things need to happen before such a service could begin. The port has also been approached by three different businesses about the possibility of providing ferry service. When port officials developed their comprehensive plan, it placed ferry service as one of the goals the port would like to achieve. “The thing that is going to drive this is the price of fuel,” said Jim Patton, executive director for the Port of Coupeville.
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