M/V Puyallup returns to Bainbridge-Seattle route
Published 1:30 am Friday, May 2, 2025
The 202-vehicle capacity vessel M/V Puyallup returned to service on the Bainbridge-Seattle route April 26, Washington State Ferries confirmed.
The 144-vehicle ferry M/V Kaleeteen, which previously served on the route, has been taken out of service for routine maintenance, per WSF.
WSF has three Jumbo Mark II vessels in the ferry fleet, with two boats serving the Seattle to Bainbridge route, WSF spokesperson Dana Warr said. M/V Wenatchee is slated to return to service this summer on the Seattle/Bainbridge route as the first hybrid-electric ferry within the WSF network, per the agency.
Regarding reliability, WSF reported four cancellations on the Seattle-Bainbridge route due to mechanical issues between Jan. 1 and April 25 and 12 scheduled sailings resets.
A WSF report found that in 2023, the average on-time performance for the Seattle-Bainbridge route was 76%.
Warr said the average age of vessels in the WSF fleet is 34 years, which can contribute to more frequent maintenance.
“Half of the fleet is more than 30 years old, including five of 21 that are more than 50 years old. This aging fleet requires more maintenance to deal with problems such as steel corrosion, replacing or repairing obsolete equipment, and preservation projects that have been deferred, leading to a higher risk of vessel breakdown,” he said.
Warr said that when vessels fall behind their scheduled departure or arrival times, WSF resets the schedule — a common transportation practice.
In 2024, WSF carried 19.1 million passengers systemwide and carried about 4.9 million passengers on the Seattle-Bainbridge route.
“BI/SEA is one of, if not the most traveled,d routes in the system and having the largest ferries in the fleet allows a continuous flow of vehicles and walk-on passengers to move steadily to their destination,” Warr said.
During the first quarter of 2025, WSF has carried nearly 3.9 million passengers systemwide and 1 million passengers on the Seattle-Bainbridge route.
To learn about travel alerts visit wsdot.com/ferries/schedule/bulletin.aspx
