By early 2023, full levels of service were restored on four routes but remained limited across much of the system the Sidney route is not expected to re-enter service until 2030. The loss of workers who retired, transferred, or were fired during the pandemic caused delays and trip cancellations as service and ridership began to recover in 20, while vessel replacement also ran behind schedule. ĭuring the COVID-19 pandemic, WSF reduced service on most routes and suspended trips to Sidney on the Anacortes–San Juan Islands route. A route between Port Townsend and Keystone on Whidbey Island was launched in June 1974 to replace a privately-run service that had lost its franchise. The ten initial routes were reduced to eight by the end of the year. A set of revenue bonds were also issued to purchase the 16 vessels and 20 terminals of the Puget Sound Navigational Company for a total of $4.94 million. The new system was operated by the Washington State Toll Bridge Authority, which ordered ten new vessels that could carry 60 to 100 vehicles. The state government intended to run ferry service only until cross-sound bridges could be built, but these were never approved and left the ferries as the only means of crossing for vehicles. In 1951, the state bought nearly all of Black Ball's ferry assets for $5 million (Black Ball retained five vessels of its fleet). Toward the end of the 1940s, the Black Ball Line wanted to increase its fares, to compensate for increased wage demands from the ferry workers' unions, but the state refused to allow this, and so the Black Ball Line shut down. A strike in 1935 caused the KCTC to close, leaving only the Black Ball Line. By the beginning of the 1930s, two lines remained: the Puget Sound Navigation Company (known as the Black Ball Line) and the Kitsap County Transportation Company. The ferry system has its origins in the " mosquito fleet", a collection of small steamer lines serving the Puget Sound area during the later part of the nineteenth century and early part of the 20th century. The state ferries carried an average of 58,900 per weekday in the third quarter of 2023. WSF is the largest ferry system in the United States and the second-largest vehicular ferry system in the world behind BC Ferries. The ferry system carried a total of 18.66 million riders in 2023-9.69 million passengers and 8.97 million vehicles. The agency maintains a fleet of 21 vessels that are able to carry passengers and vehicles. It runs ten routes serving 20 terminals located around Puget Sound and in the San Juan Islands, designated as part of the state highway system. state of Washington as part of the Washington State Department of Transportation. Washington State Ferries ( WSF) is a government agency that operates automobile and passenger ferry service in the U.S. Washington State Department of Transportation For ferry systems in Washington state operated by other entities, see Ferries in Washington State. This article is about the ferry system operated on Puget Sound by the state of Washington.