By Walt Elliott
The Washington State Ferry reps will to be at the Village Green Community Center to get your ideas for their long-range plan from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. May 8. This will be your opportunity to see and comment on a proposal to change the sailing times for the Kingston ferries.
‘I’m givin’ her all she’s got, captain!’
The cartoon refers to a surprise decree last month that the ferries are going to save gas by slowing down. WSF has proclaimed that slowing from 20 knots to 18 knots would save a whopping 50 gallons per sailing. If only that were true. Even if Capt. Kirk of starship Puyallup called Scotty for warp drive he wouldn’t get much over 18 knots … not even with fair winds and a following sea.
Originally the Jumbos had enough power do over 21 knots. Since then their diesels were “down-rated,” which reduced their power to extend life and improve efficiency. While our ferries may be able to hit 18 knots, they normally run from 15 to 17 knots. Look at the table. Slowing our boats hurts our schedule and won’t save gas, so it’s not likely to happen.
Jumbo II ferries have four engines and can cruise on two. In 2010, the WSF figured that they could save gas by crossing the Sound on two engines and starting up a third engine for a safety margin while docking. As my mom said, “Your ballpoint pen only has so many clicks.” That assessment proved true in 2014, when the Tacoma started her third engine when approaching Bainbridge Island and the switchboard went kablooie. Though she lost all power, with masterful shiphandling by the skipper as well as firefighting by the engineers Tacoma was safely anchored until she could be towed in.
The incident analysis by Siemens concluded the “surge limiters” had failed and because of the frequency of switching surge limiters they can wear out and get damaged. Crew at the time reported that the management was warned to check the relays, breakers and switches, which they did not do.
You may recall an extra Jumbo II ferry hanging around Kingston for a couple of weeks last month. The reason was to find out whether a boat could be docked with just two engines. EEK! What if, when docking, Capt. Kirk rings up Scottie for more power and one of those two engines drops off line … crunch! Beyond the risk to people, if the Edmonds dock gets smashed our route is out of business.
Consider the bigger picture. The laws of physics would say that it takes a given amount of energy to push a ferry across the Sound. Whether that comes from two engines or three it’s still the same total energy. Boeing 727s have three engines, while they only need the extra power for take-off, no one’s asking the pilots to shut down an engine for the rest of the trip just to save on fuel. While the ferry captains I’ve met are awesomely competent. Should they be asked to keep the boat safe and on schedule using only half the engines their ferry was designed for?
It’s been getting harder to get info from WSF representatives. Think of Sgt. Schultz in “Hogan’s Heroes” (“I know nothing”). So please let us know if you pick up on something that needs checking out. My email is elliotttmore@comcast.net and our committee meets on the second Monday of the month from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Village Green Community Center.
