Washington State Ferries electrification plan moves forward

Washington State Ferries is currently converting its three largest vessels to hybrid-electric battery power instead of diesel fuel. These conversions will reduce fleet-wide emissions by 27% – the equivalent of taking more than 10,000 cars off the road. The system has also been funded to build five new hybrid-electric ferries and the electrification of five terminals.

The three Jumbo Mark II ferries are the Puyallup, Tacoma, and Wenatchee. The ferries were constructed in the 1990s and are due for their mid-life propulsion system replacements, which means upgrading them to electric propulsion will result in minimal service disruptions.

The Jumbo Mark II ferries carry 202 cars and 2499 passengers each and primarily operate on the Seattle/Bainbridge and Edmonds/Kingston routes.

The changes to the Jumbo Mark II ferries bring WSF closer to meeting its vision of a zero-emissions fleet.