By Professor John Robertson
From the Dispatch in Washington State, USA, yesterday:
Nearly 3,800 ferry riders and 544 non-riders took part in the FROG survey, with the number of riders on all routes saying they are either satisfied or mostly satisfied with service at 54%, which is down from 58% in 2023.
The Vashon triangle had the greatest percentage of riders saying they are dissatisfied with service, at 70%.
Last year, in Kiro 7, we read:
Vashon Island (10 000) commuters to Seattle in Washington State are up in arms about their $27, 15-minute ferry service:
Vashon Island residents are fed up with the unreliability of their ferry route and many expressed their frustrations at a meeting Monday night.
On Monday morning, an issue with a ferry forced it to leave the Fauntleroy-Vashon-Southworth route to unload vehicles at Pier 52 in Seattle.
The issues on this ferry line have been a point of complaint for years — long lines of vehicles at Fauntleroy are common, so much so that an entire Facebook group is dedicated to it and other issues on the ferry route.
Many ferry riders have also complained that at times, boats do not travel at full capacity.
Rachel Ehlers is one of the people who commutes back and forth. She posed a simple question back at KIRO 7′s crew regarding the ferry and reliability: “What are we paying for?”
The comparable Largs to Cumbrae 10 minute crossing costs £15 ($19) 54 times a day with 100% reliability currently.
Washington State Ferries are subsidised but the arrangement is controversial:
The Scottish Government subsidy for CalMac ferries in 2022/2023 was £173 million.
BBC Scotland, however, has met two islanders, Jason and Julian, from Uist, who feel abandoned if their ferry is ever cancelled.
Sources:
https://www.seattletimes.com/opinion/letters-to-the-editor/ferries-unfair-subsidies/
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