Kwa-di Tabil-class ferry
Auto/passenger ferries operated by Washington State
Kwa-di Tabil-class ferries (kwah-DEE-tah-BALE) is a class of three ferries built for Washington State Ferries to replace the retired Steel Electric-class ferries. Acquired by the State of Washington at an approximate cost of $213 million, the vessels carry up to 64 vehicles on lower-traffic routes.
In the design stage, the class was called the 100 Vehicle-class and later 64 Vehicle-class ferries.
Ferries
Ferries in this class include:
MV Chetzemoka
MV Salish
MV Kennewick
History
In November 2007, Washington State Ferries made the decision to remove the 80-year-old Steel Electric-class ferries from service over safety concerns. Routine inspections revealed serious hull corrosion damage on two of the four old vessels. When the Steel Electrics were removed from service, there were no ferries able to carry vehicles on Port Townsend-Coupeville route as no other vessel could be used in Coupeville's small, shallow Keystone Harbor.
Due to the vessel shortage created by the sudden retirement of the Steel Electric-class ferries, Washington State Ferries (WSF) decided to base the design of the Kwa-di Tabil-class ferries on an existing ferry, Island Home, which runs between Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts and Woods Hole, Massachusetts. The Washington State Legislature authorized and funded vessel construction in February 2008 and the first vessel was built on tight 18-month schedule by Todd Pacific Shipyards in Seattle (by state law all new WSF vessels are built in Washington). The "build in Washington" restriction was removed by the legislature in 2023.
The first ferry, Chetzemoka, was christened by Governor Christine Gregoire and began service November 14, 2010 on the Port Townsend-Coupeville route.
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