Comments sought on ferry summer schedule draft

The Alaska Marine Highway System has put forward its draft summer schedule for next year, one which is similar to 2017 sailings.

The proposed schedule covers service between May and September 2018. Nine of the system’s 11 vessels will be operational during the season,

Wrangell will be serviced through the summer by the Malaspina and the Columbia. The Malaspina will sail from Prince Rupert to Skagway once per week, and from Prince Rupert to Juneau once per week. It will make southbound stops into Wrangell Monday mornings and Thursday evenings, returning northbound Tuesday afternoons and Saturday mornings.

The Columbia will remain on the Friday Bellingham route, passing through Wrangell twice a week. It will be scheduled to stop through on its southbound route Wednesday morning, and Sunday afternoons on its way back north. After the Malaspina enters layup for maintenance in mid-September, the Columbia would be Wrangell’s sole ferry service for the final weeks of the month.

The Matanuska will not be included on the summer schedule, undergoing a propulsion systems upgrade. The 54-year-old vessel was last repowered in 1984, and $34 million was allocated for next year’s overhaul. The vessel will see replacement of its main propulsion engines and ancillary systems, with various upgrades.

Schedule patterns are based on expected funding levels for the 2019 fiscal year, which begins July 1. The schedule has remained much the same since the 2016 summer season, with funding cuts each year absorbed elsewhere in the schedule.

Members of the public are invited to review and comment on the proposed draft by November 10. The full schedule is available online at http://www.dot.state.ak.us/amhs/share/schedule/considerations.pdf. Written comments can be emailed to dot.amhs.comments@alaska.gov, or faxed to 907-228-6874.

AMHS is also interested in knowing about any need for special events scheduling and other requests that organizers or communities may have. For instance, the Little Norway Festival in Petersburg next May and the SE Alaska State Fair in Haines in July are among those events listed for consideration. Wrangell currently does not have any events listed, such as its July Fourth celebration or Bearfest in late July.

A public teleconference to hear additional comments and consider adjustments is scheduled for November 16 at 10:00 a.m. for Southeast schedules, with the meeting physically held at the AMHS Ketchikan office. The toll free number to participate in the teleconference is 1-515-604-9000, with the access code 279613.

Individuals with disabilities who may need auxiliary aids, services, or other special modifications to participate in this public meeting can contact the AMHS operations manager, Captain Tony Karvelas, at either 228-7252 or by emailing anthony.karvelas@alaska.gov, no later than November 2. Karvelas is also the point of contact for additional questions about the draft schedule.