House of Reps to ferry commissioners: Put frequent-rider discounts back on the table.

Bill corrects flaw in current law

Feb. 15, 2008

Olympia -- The state House sent ferry commuters a valentine Thursday by passing legislation that requires the Department of Transportation and Washington State Transportation Commission to again consider offering discounted fare packages to frequent ferry riders.

House Bill 2718, introduced by Rep. Sherry Appleton (D-Poulsbo), restores the possibility of discounts, nearly a year after a 2007 law relieved DOT and the Commission from the responsibility of factoring discounts into their planning.

Appleton argued that her bill "restores good faith and reassurance to ferry riders who, over the past few weeks, have been taking it on the chin. We want to make sure that our ferry commuters have a say in this important discussion.

"Someone in Kitsap County who commutes to work by ferry every day now spends about $4,500 a year on fares out of a median income of $50,000," Appleton continued. She said that if the current discounts, which are frozen until next year, were to be withdrawn, "it might cost $6,000 a year just to get to work and back, not counting gas and parking.

"As a matter of parity," Appleton pointed out, "when you are a frequent commuter using the Tacoma Narrows Bridge, you pay $1.75," a saving of $1.25 per round-trip. Ferry riders, she said, deserve the same consideration.

Appleton's 23rd-district seatmate, Rep. Christine Rolfes, co-sponsored HB 2718. "Last year," she said on the House floor Thursday, "we began a much-needed, systematic overhaul of the entire ferry system. We agreed to freeze fares for the duration of this work. Today's bill acknowledges that frequent riders are the backbone of the system, and that the shortcomings of that system must not be balanced on their backs."

The House gave HB 2718 a 95-0 sendoff to the Senate. If that chamber OKs the bill without amending it, Gov. Chris Gregoire could sign it into law well before the 2008 Legislature's scheduled Mar. 13 adjournment.

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Contacts: Rep. Sherry Appleton, (360) 786-7934

Rep. Christine Rolfes, (360) 786-7842

Dan Frizzell, (360) 786-7208 (staff)

Print-quality photo of Rep. Appleton

Print-quality photo of Rep. Rolfes

Radio and TV news directors:

For broadcast-quality audio on this issue, or to arrange TV or radio interviews, contact Dan Frizzell, House Democratic Caucus broadcast coordinator, at frizzell.dan@leg.wa.gov or (360) 786-7208.