The Washington State Ferry (WSF), a division of the Washington State Transportation Department (WSDOT), has received its first Olympic-class 144-car ferry from Vigor Fab, a ship building unit of Vigor Industrial.
The ferry, named Tokitae, is the first of the three ferries to be delivered to WSF; it cost $144m.
Vigor Fab senior vice-president and head Joe Corvelli said: “Vigor Fab built a top-notch, first-in-class vessel on budget and on time to serve WSF’s peak summer season.”
WSF interim assistant secretary George A Capacci commented: “We have a long-standing, productive partnership in new vessel construction with Vigor.”
Tokitae is powered by two electro-motive diesel engines and can travel at speeds of up to 31km/h and accommodate 1,500 passengers and 144 cars. The ferry will soon enter service on the Clinton-Mukilteo route.
Work on the second Olympic-class vessel, the Samish, is currently underway at Vigor, with delivery planned for early 2015.
Funding for a third ferry is being provided by the State lawmakers and construction is expected to commence by the end of this year.
Construction of the three 144-car ferries is estimated to cost $383.6m with Samish costing $126.45m.
Image: The Tokitae is scheduled to enter service on the Clinton-Mukilteo route in the coming days. Photo: courtesy of Vigor Industrial LLC.
