The Super-class ferries are a class of , 144-car

ferries A ferry is a ship, watercraft or amphibious vehicle used to carry passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A passenger ferry with many stops, such as in Venice, Italy, is sometimes called a water bus or water tax ...

built in 1967 for

Washington State Ferries Washington State Ferries (WSF) is a government agency that operates automobile and passenger ferry service in the U.S. state of Washington as part of the Washington State Department of Transportation. It runs ten routes serving 20 terminals loca ...

History

The Super-class

ferry A ferry is a ship, watercraft or amphibious vehicle used to carry passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A passenger ferry with many stops, such as in Venice, Italy, is sometimes called a water bus or water taxi ...

was designed to complement the smaller ferries, as well as to replace the aging . The design of the Super class was done in Seattle by W.C. Nickum and Sons, a naval architectural firm, and

. Funding for the Super-class ferry design and construction was made available by the

United States Department of Housing and Urban Development The United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government. It administers federal housing and urban development laws. It is headed by the Secretary of Housing and Urb ...

(HUD), and state and federal funds. Once the design was complete, a low bid was accepted by the

National Steel and Shipbuilding Company National Steel and Shipbuilding Company, commonly referred to as NASSCO, is an American shipbuilding company with three shipyards located in San Diego, Norfolk, Virginia, Norfolk and Mayport (Jacksonville), Mayport. It is a division of General Dy ...

San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the List of United States cities by population, eigh ...

, California, which constructed all four vessels over a period of two years. The Super class was to designed to accommodate the rapidly expanding population growth in

Puget Sound Puget Sound ( ) is a sound of the Pacific Northwest, an inlet of the Pacific Ocean, and part of the Salish Sea. It is located along the northwestern coast of the U.S. state of Washington. It is a complex estuarine system of interconnected ma ...

, especially in the

Bremerton Bremerton is a city in Kitsap County, Washington. The population was 37,729 at the 2010 census and an estimated 41,405 in 2019, making it the largest city on the Kitsap Peninsula. Bremerton is home to Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and the Bremerto ...

and

Bainbridge Island Bainbridge Island is a city and island in Kitsap County, Washington. It is located in Puget Sound. The population was 23,025 at the 2010 census and an estimated 25,298 in 2019, making Bainbridge Island the second largest city in Kitsap County. ...

areas. Each vessel was rated with a top speed, which was relatively unheard of in large ferries at the time. All four vessels in the class feature a two-level passenger deck and a vast sun deck with full access via sheltered outdoor stairwells at both ends of the vessel, indoor staircases via both passenger decks, and elevators which were later added to meet ADA requirements. The first ferry to enter service, in 1967, was the , which replaced the ''Kalakala'' on the Seattle–Bremerton route. The 20-knot speed enabled the crossing to be made in 45 minutes, as opposed to an hour and fifteen minutes on the ''Kalakala'' which traveled at a maximum of . Second to enter service was the in 1968, on the Seattle–Bainbridge Island route. The last two were the (Seattle–Bremerton) and (Seattle–Bainbridge Island), which entered service later that year. The Super class was displaced on the Seattle–Bainbridge route less than five years later by the even larger ferries. Starting in 2019, the Super class was replaced by the ferries.

Ferries

The Super class consisted of four vessels. As of September 2021, two of those vessels are still in active service, and the other two have been retired. The class consists of: * – retired June 30, 2019 * – in active service as of September 2021 * – in active service as of September 2021 * – retired April 17, 2020

References

External links

Washington State Ferries class information
{{WSF Ferry Classes Washington State Ferries vessel classes Ferry classes