Ferry schedules changing for Colman Dock work

SEATTLE — The replacement of Colman Dock will require changes to Bremerton and Bainbridge Island ferry schedules.

Fourteen of 30 departures on the Bremerton route would be adjusted by 5 to 15 minutes, and 16 of 46 Bainbridge sailings, Washington State Ferries spokeswoman Hadley Rodero said of a proposed schedule that soon will be available for public review. 

To allow service to continue, the terminal building will be torn down one half at a time and won't be large enough to accommodate two boats docking at once.

"Because of that, space for walk-on passengers will be limited while the terminal building is being replaced," Rodero said. "We won't be able to process Bremerton and Bainbridge sailings at the same time because the building will be about one-third the size (as now).

"To safely and efficiently unload all of the sailings and maintain on-time performance, we need to modify the sailing schedules to provide more space between afternoon sailings where we have boats arrive and depart right next to each other."

Of the two routes' 9.2 million riders last year, 4.9 million walked on.

The proposed schedule shifts the current 4:20 p.m. departure from Bremerton to 4:10. Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Intermediate Maintenance Facility officials estimate about 125 of its workers ride the boat daily.

"We've informed WSF that an earlier sailing would not accommodate those employees, whose work day ends at 4:02 p.m, and we've asked them to take that into consideration as they finalize their schedule," said spokesman J.C. Mathews. "In addition, we're informing our workforce about the scheduled WSF open meetings, so our affected employees can attend, learn about WSF's plan and provide their own feedback."

An option might be Kitsap Transit's fast ferry service, which debuts July 10 with half-hour crossings between Bremerton and Seattle. Its projected schedule shows a 4:35 p.m. Bremerton departure, but the boat is limited to 118 passengers. 

Ferries officials will share the proposed schedule and information about what to expect during construction at open houses June 26 at Kitsap Conference Center in Bremerton and June 27 at Bainbridge Island Senior Center, both from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Drop-in sessions are scheduled June 21 from 3:30 to 6:30 p.m. at the Seattle terminal and King County Water Taxi waiting area, and June 22 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. as part of the Chimacum celebration at the Bremerton terminal. An online open house will be Friday through July 14 at ColmanDockProject.participate.online.

The amended schedule will begin in January and run until the project is completed in early 2023, Rodero said. Then riders will be asked if they like the old schedule, new schedule or a combination.

Preparations for construction have begun, including shifting the Bremerton route to operate from the middle slip instead of its normal one at the south end. Crews will begin construction on the south side of the dock and build the south trestle and water taxi facility, which King County is funding. In August, the current water taxi facility will be temporarily moved north between Colman Dock and the fire station. Later this month, vehicle access to Colman Dock will change.

Ensuing phases will include demolition of the timber trestle and terminal building and construction of new facilities and structures on the dock. The wooden trestle is vulnerable to earthquakes and its being replaced by a concrete and steel structure.

The current design includes an entry building along Alaskan Way, a terminal building situated north and south along the water, an elevated pedestrian connection between the two, a new, larger passenger-only facility and an elevated walkway between it and the car ferry terminal. 

Hoffman-Pacific, a joint venture, was selected in fall 2015 as the general contractor, for $326 million. The project has been appropriated $349.5 million in federal, state and local funding.