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Ferry Facts
Jean Alden, Skagit County Public Works, provided ridership statistics for the first six months of this year.
(Vehicle and passenger trips to Guemes Island.) *January through June 2004 is a better comparison since the car ferry was disrupted or out of service for 27 days in this period 2005. County Reports $1.5 Million Loss On Ferry
[From data provided by Skagit County Public Works] Extended Service Costs Skagit County declared 2005-2006 annual ferry expenses of $2,234,743. Dividing that by the total number of runs scheduled for this year (8164) gives us an average cost per run of $273. This means that the extended 4 runs each evening cost $1094. During the July extended runs (counting from July 6, 7pm-10pm), the ferry carried over to Guemes an average seven vehicles and 14 people per run. Assuming very generously that this is all new revenue (and not return trips that would have occurred earlier in the day) and that it will remain constant throughout the winter months, the ferry collected in fares an average of $77 per run. The county then is losing $196 on every evening run, almost $800 a night, $12,500 per month, and $150,000 a year. If we are less generous and assume only half the trips represent new revenue and the ridership in winter will be half what it is in the summer months but costs will remain the same, the county loss on extended service will increase to over $200,000 a year. [From data provided by Skagit County Public Works] |
