Where's the Wenatchee? Why the first ride isn't the finish line

By: Kurt Workman

Few things are more exciting at Washington State Ferries than the day a new or recently upgraded vessel carries its first passengers. It’s always a day of celebration, but it’s also an important milestone in a long journey.

The Wenatchee, North America's largest hybrid-electric ferry, arrives at Seattle’s Colman Dock ferry terminal.

Behind the scenes, our crews and engineers know it’s the final stage of a critical phase known as commissioning. Commissioning is an intensive process of troubleshooting and fine-tuning. This final stage can only take place in real-world conditions. There’s no way to simulate a fully loaded ferry on a busy route.

The Wenatchee, one of our three largest ferries ( Jumbo Mark II class ), is currently in this final stage. Like any complex overhaul, a few issues have surfaced.

Upgrading a 27-year-old ferry is no small feat. The Wenatchee now has a modern propulsion system, new ship controls and hybrid-electric power. This was an engineering challenge few have attempted on a vessel of this size. The Wenatchee is now North America’s largest hybrid-electric passenger ferry. It may take several weeks, but once fully commissioned, it will offer a cleaner, quieter and more reliable ride on our Seattle/Bainbridge Island crossing. Check out this video for a look at the conversion process.

Testing, tweaking and troubleshooting

Commissioning of the Wenatchee began at the shipyard. Crews worked through a long list of issues, most of which were quickly identified and resolved. When Wenatchee returned to us, testing continued for several months. Over time, fewer problems emerged. The U.S. Coast Guard provided approvals at each stage of the process. Eventually, the vessel was deemed ready for regular service. However, this did not mark the end of the commissioning process.

It’s common for occasional issues to surface during a vessel's early days of operation. In fact, a planned maintenance window was already built into the schedule in late September to mid-October, when the Wenatchee will be out of service. This was to address some items the team expected to discover.

When issues do arise, it often happens under rare or infrequent conditions. While these are not safety concerns, they can be time-consuming to address due to their inconsistency. It’s key during this time to maintain strong contingency plans, including having extra engineering staff on board and staging backup ferries. These preparations have helped minimize service disruptions when we’ve taken the Wenatchee out of service.

Our Director of Vessel Maintenance and Engineering, Forrest Nichols, explained it this way: “Just last month, the Chimacum had to go back into dry dock after completing a three-month dry dock project due to an issue with the controllable pitch propeller. This issue wasn’t discovered until late-stage commissioning of the work performed. Especially when new systems are fitted to old equipment, unexpected problems are extremely common.”

Working toward long-term solutions

During testing, crews identified a rare issue with the drive motor system. This is something that didn’t appear earlier. The problem isn’t related to the hybrid-electric conversion. It involves the propulsion system, which was also upgraded during the overhaul.

Because the issue only appears intermittently, it’s hard to diagnose. It’s even harder to confirm whether the fix worked. The upside? Crews can now recognize the signs, pinpoint the involved equipment and have a strong lead on the likely cause. The challenge is that it’s complex and unpredictable, so solving it takes time and further testing.

As we continue the commissioning process, our team is confident in a long-term fix. This will keep the Wenatchee running safely and reliably for years to come.

“We do not expect this to be the last issue in this commissioning process, but we do expect the rate and significance of challenges to decrease as we progress forward in this process,” Nichols said.

Powering progress

The Wenatchee upgrade is just one step in our 2040 Long Range Plan. Upcoming work includes key project areas for ferry system electrification:

• Building new hybrid-electric vessels, including two currently under contract (with an option for a third)
• Adding shore charging at key central Puget Sound terminals

Stay tuned for many more stories about our quest to build a cleaner, more reliable and more modern fleet, serving Washingtonians and our visitors for decades to come.

Re-connecting communities: How Judkins Park is Reshaping its I-90 Ramps

 By: April Delchamps

The opportunity to shape Judkins Park

Aerial view of Judkins Park and the surrounding neighborhood.

A new light rail station is opening in the Judkins Park neighborhood soon, which is going to change how people get around. More people will walk, bike and roll in the area. To prepare for this shift, we are looking at potential improvements where the I-90 ramps meet Rainier Avenue South.

The I-90 Judkins Park – Reconnecting Communities Study is a chance for the community to help shape how people travel in their neighborhood. The study brings together community voices, transportation experts and creative design to find better ways for people to travel on Rainier Avenue South at I-90.

What we are studying and why

Anyone who has walked, biked or rolled through Judkins Park has dealt with fast-moving vehicles getting on and off I-90 ramps at Rainier Avenue South. A 2018 study done by the Seattle Department of Transportation recommended that we improve these on- and off-ramps. When the new light rail station opens, even more people will use the I-90 interchange. These travelers might be traveling by foot, bike, adaptive device or many other ways. We are considering ways to improve safety at all five I-90 on-ramps and off-ramps at Rainier Avenue South. Our goals are to:

• improve safe travel for all—particularly for pedestrians and cyclists
• strengthen community connectivity
• improve access to the Judkins Park Link light rail station

Map of the Judkins Park area with the I-90 ramps endpoints shown as orange dots.

Advisory Park members represent many voices

No one knows a neighborhood better than the people who work, live and spend time there. The Advisory Group was created to include these voices—people who have lived here a long time and newcomers; business owners and people who commute; homeowners and renters; people who walk, roll and bike; families; and community advocates. The group includes people from local schools, community organizations, small businesses, advocacy groups and transportation agencies (City of Seattle, King County Metro and Sound Transit).

Advisory Group role

We work together with the Advisory Group to talk about changes that can be made to improve safety and efficiency of the I-90 ramps. The Advisory Group meets regularly through mid-2026.

Input from this group, and the community in general, helps us understand the community’s needs and priorities as they access the light rail station and get around the Judkins Park area.

Learning from past feedback

Judkins Park has been part of several transportation studies and community engagement efforts. We collected helpful feedback for this study in 2024 and plan to keep asking the community for input. We want to learn from past studies, while also making sure we have the most up-to-date information from the community for this work.

What the community has said so far

People touring the Judkins Park area as part of the Seattle Neighborhood Greenways Walking/Rolling Tour in 2024.

We talked with many people during Advisory Group meetings, events, surveys and listening sessions. Here is what we have heard:

Key community priorities:

• Getting around: people want to take the bus, walk, roll or bike to safely and efficiently get around Judkins Park and to the light rail station.
• Improvements to sidewalks and crosswalks : People want sidewalks that are not broken, disconnected or missing; crosswalks that are easy to find and use; to stay dry rather than get splashed on sidewalks; and more lighting.
• Traffic issues: People want drivers to slow down, stop at crosswalks and drive more carefully; better visibility for drivers to see people, especially when it is dark or raining.
• Noise and air pollution: People want less noise and cleaner air.
• Getting around for everyone: People want better access for people who walk, roll and bike; better crossing solutions for pedestrians who are visually impaired; solutions that also consider people who need to drive because other options are not accessible to them; noting that people have different, important needs that may require different solutions.
• Plan carefully: People want careful planning to minimize how closing or changing roads may affect people.

We are including this input to guide this study. We are studying ways to:

• make walking, rolling, biking and taking transit more comfortable
• reduce conflicts between traffic and pedestrians and people who bike
• create shorter routes for pedestrians and bikes
• get vehicles to drive slower

SDOT's near-term improvements

SDOT, in coordination with us, has made improvements to help with concerns now, while we work on long term solutions in this study. SDOT finished construction this year, and you can see the improvements in the community.

Where we are in the study

Our study follows a clear process to find the best solutions for reconnecting our community. Here's how it works:

Step 1: What problems are we trying to solve? We listen to the community and Advisory Group to understand what needs to be fixed or improved.

Step 2: How do we decide what's most important? Community and Advisory Group input helps us figure out which benefits and impacts matter most.

Step 3: What are our options? We work with the community and Advisory Group to come up with different ways to make improvements.

Step 4: Which options work best? We review each option with community and Advisory Group feedback to see which ones meet our needs.

Step 5: How can we make these options better? We use more feedback to improve and select the best options.

Step 6: Any final thoughts before we choose? We get final input from the community and Advisory Group to make sure we've got it right. We also create a draft report of our findings.

Step 7: What did we choose and why? We finish our study report and begin designing the improvements we recommend.

The Advisory Group for the I-90 Judkins Park Station study started in late 2024. Throughout this whole process, we are working closely with both our Advisory Group and the community to get their input.

We are currently looking at different options for improvements and will share more details about what we are learning in our next blog post.

Learn more and get involved

Study webpage

Visit the project page for the latest updates and detailed information:

SDOT study webpage

Learn about complementary near-term improvements.

Stay Tuned for More Opportunities to Participate

We are committed to keeping the community involved through this process. Watch for announcements about more opportunities to share your thoughts. Sign up for Seattle area news and study email updates.

Contact Info

Amber Stanley - Community Engagement Lead

Phone: 206-817-8833

Email: amber.stanley@wsdot.wa.gov

Wellness Check on the US 2 Trestle Study

By: April Delchamps

Last year, we listened to what the public had to say about the US 2 Trestle. Then we came up with improvement ideas to match what people wanted. We tested each idea to make sure it met the Purpose and Need.

It’s kind of like deciding on a smartphone or computer. There are a lot of options. You might narrow down those options by first thinking about what you need at a basic level like a brand you’re familiar with. Then you dig a little deeper into features like size, sound and physical appearance. Then you dig even deeper into more technical elements like how it works with other devices you use regularly or file storage. In the end, maybe you have two or three options to choose from.

Since then, we’ve been working to narrow down what we heard from the community into potential improvements for the trestle and connecting roads in Everett and Lake Stevens. We went from over 40 improvement concepts to 22. And we’re just getting started. Expect three more blogs with more information on the process this fall, leading up to a public comment period in early 2026.

Updated Purpose and Need

One of the most important parts of this study is what we learn from agencies, tribes, and community members. Last year, we held an online open house and survey to listen to people about how they travel on or near the US 2 Trestle. We also heard about the challenges of travelling in this area. In October 2024, we blogged about the survey findings and how they informed the study Purpose and Need Statement.

What is a Purpose and Need again? Here’s how the Federal Highway Administration defines it. Everything we do on this study must address the study Purpose and Need statement. Nothing moves forward in our analysis unless it meets the statement we developed together.

FHWA agreed with our Purpose and Need in August 2024, but federal Executive Orders required that we revisit it. We made minor changes to the language and FHWA concurred with these in July 2025.

As a reminder, our current Purpose and Need statement focuses on three major topics: multimodal mobility (cars, trucks, buses, bikes, pedestrians), safety, and resiliency (keeping the bridge functioning), also referred to as “state of good repair.”

Here’s what’s happened with the study since last fall:

1. We worked with our advisory groups to come up with more than 40 ideas to improve the trestle and the roads on both the east and west sides.
2. We did an early review called “prescreening” to see if each idea could meet the main goals of the project. This was a simple pass-or-fail test. Two ideas didn’t pass and were dropped.
3. The rest of the ideas moved to the next review, called “Level 1 screening.” In this step, we rated how well each idea could improve travel for different types of transportation, make things safer, and help the trestle last longer. We gave each idea a “high,” “medium,” or “low” score. We shared these results with our study committees earlier this year.

Concepts include the east and west interchanges, and the east and west bound trestle structures.

4. We are now combining the highest-scoring concepts from Level 1 into what’s called “system-level alternatives.” This means we’ve combined improvement concepts for the east side, west side, and the trestle itself. We’re also using traffic modeling to make sure these ideas work together. These packages of improvements will go into the next level of review, called the “Level 2 evaluation.” In Level 2, we will take a deeper, more numbers-based look at each alternative to see how well each meets the Purpose and Need.

Steps to move from Level 1 Screening to Level 2 Evaluation.

If you're curious about how tolling fits into the study, you can check out the materials from our second EAG meeting.

What’s coming?

We plan to share the results of the Level 2 analysis with the public in early 2026. In the meantime, we’ll be in touch with more details about what we are doing.

Here’s a look at what you’ll learn in upcoming blog posts:

• Critical connections: how we’re looking at the east and west side of the trestle to improve travel experience on the trestle.
• Car-less crossings: How we are considering public transit and active transportation (think bicycling, walking, or other non-vehicle forms of traveling) improvements to the trestle experience.
• What the public can expect to see in the next online open house.

Please stay tuned for all this and more! To follow along with the study, consider signing up for the WSDOT Snohomish County Newsletter email updates. We also regularly update our study web page and document library.

One step closer to new ferries

By Kurt Workman

In July, after a yearlong process, Gov. Bob Ferguson announced Eastern Shipbuilding Group will build our three new 160-vehicle hybrid-electric ferries. ESG’s price was tens of millions of dollars lower than the other bid we received. That lower cost means we can build three boats instead of only two. Their bid also includes delivery of the ferries to Washington.

Drawing of outboard profile for WSF 160-vehicle ferry. These new vessels will have open air passenger lounges beneath each pilot house, three modes of operation: diesel, battery only, or hybrid, and a rapid charging system so that battery charging can occur during each scheduled terminal stop.

Our ferries work hard

We operate the largest ferry system in the country, with a 21-ferry fleet serving 10 routes and about 19 million passengers a year. Hard-working ferries and crews serve customers more than 20 hours per day, 365 days per year. Our ferries are on average 35 years old and have an expected 60-year life span. Five of our ferries are over 50, and the oldest is 66.

For riders, older vessels mean a higher chance of service disruptions. They also mean more maintenance issues for us. These new ferries are a key part of our Long Range Plan ’s direction to have 26 vessels in the WSF fleet by 2040.

Next steps

On August 7, we finalized the contract with ESG, and now they can get to work completing the design of the new ferries and developing a detailed project schedule. At the same time, Washington State Ferries will work with our partner ABB to design and purchase the technology that will power the new vessels, including the engines and batteries. This should take about a year, then construction begins. 

Big picture

We’re offering incentives to the shipyard to deliver vessels ahead of schedule and the first 160-vehicle ferry could be in service as early as 2030. These ferries will allow us to replace aging ferries and deliver improved service. They are also a key part of our System Electrification Program to deliver 16 new, hybrid-electric ferries by 2040.

In addition to new ferries, we will add electric charging to 16 terminals. We are currently working on terminals in central Puget Sound, including two slips in Seattle. Hybrid-electric ferries will charge their batteries while loading at terminals. This will allow the new 160-vehicle hybrid-electric ferries to reduce emissions by about 90 percent compared to our current ferries. The new ferries will primarily operate under electric power, but, when necessary, they can use their diesel engines.

Washington State Ferries is proud of the path we’re on to build our ferry fleet of the future. Stay tuned for more updates!