Testing for vehicle boarding process to begin at Kingston terminal
Published 1:30 am Friday, May 1, 2026
Washington State Ferries is testing a new system in May for vehicles boarding a ferry at the Kingston terminal during peak travel times.
Testing will run from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. on all Saturdays and Sundays in May, and on Memorial Day, May 25. It will be in full use starting June 1, when drivers must take a boarding pass from an automated dispenser, per a WSF news release. Starting in June, the system will operate from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. during these peak periods:
- Summer season: daily from Mother’s Day through Indigenous Peoples’ Day.
- Year-round: every Saturday and Sunday.
- Holidays: daily during the weeks of Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s.
The goal is to help improve traffic flow and prevent traffic backups, causing blockages downtown. The Kingston-Edmonds route is the second busiest route in WSF’s system, moving nearly 4 million people a year.
During the testing trial in May, signs on eastbound Highway 104 at Barber Cutoff Road will show when the system is active. When it is, a traffic signal before Lindvog Road will guide ferry traffic into a designated area. There, drivers should follow the direction of workers on site, who may or may not hand you a boarding pass to hold their place in line. They will then wait for another traffic signal that will direct them to proceed to the dock. When demand is high, the light may stay red for a while. If given a boarding pass, drivers must present it at the tollbooth, WSF says.
When the system is fully implemented in June, drivers will follow the traffic signal into the designated lane, where they will stop at the automated dispenser and take a pass. Once the system detects space at the terminal, the light will turn green and drivers can proceed to the toll booth, per WSF.
