Date:  Friday, October 15, 2010

Contact: Al McCoy, Senior Budget Manager, 206-515-3761

SEATTLE – One of Washington state’s aging ferries will get a new coat of paint thanks to $1.3 million from the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA).

“Now we’ll be able to paint and preserve a vessel that is in much need of such work,” said David Moseley, Assistant Secretary for WSF. “It’s important to keep them protected from the elements and a fresh coat of paint will really help.”

The ferry vessels need to be painted approximately every seven years to help preserve and protect them from the corrosive salt water.

More than half of the 21 vessels in the Washington State Department of Transportation’s Ferries Division (WSF) are more than 40 years old.

It is not yet known which vessel will get painted.

WSF sought the grant funding from FHWA’s Ferry Boat Discretionary Funding Program.

WSF is the largest ferry system in the United States, carrying nearly 23 million passengers and 10 million vehicles annually to 20 terminals throughout the Puget Sound region. For more ferry system information, visit www.wsdot.wa.gov/ferries.

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