Alaska’s oldest ferry is too expensive to repair, according to officials with the Alaska Marine Highway System, who say it would cost millions to fix the 62-year-old Matanuska.
Craig Tornga, the marine director, said seeking that funding would compete with other future projects.
“Funding is tight, and will those dollars stay there in the rural ferry program? You know, with the new administration? We just don’t want to be competing against our new build plan that’s in the long-range plan,” he said.
Tornga was speaking to the Alaska Marine Highway Operations Board during an April 25 meeting. The nine-member board makes recommendations to the state’s Department of Transportation, which controls the ferry system. The board made a formal recommendation that the Matanuska be officially retired from the fleet.
At the bare minimum, the ferry would require at least $45 million to return to service and around $130 million if it’s certified for international travel.
The ferry’s problems surfaced during an overhaul two years ago and then multiplied. Surveys of the ship showed asbestos in the crew quarters and deteriorating steel throughout. The Matanuska would need about 125,000 pounds of steel in repairs.
Operations Board Chair Wanetta Ayers said fixing it would be too challenging.
“It’s regrettable,” she said. “It will be a sad day when the Matanuska is no longer in the fleet.”
The Matanuska is a large ferry, carrying up to 450 passengers and dozens of vehicles. It used to be one of Southeast Alaska’s mainliners sailing the route from Lynn Canal north of Juneau all the way south to Prince Rupert, British Columbia. However, for more than two years, the Matanuska has been used as a hotel ship for ferry workers in Ketchikan. Tornga said it’s very useful right now, but it’s still too expensive to operate long-term, even as a hotel.
Board member Captain Keith Hillard said the Matanuska is a prime example of what happens when you defer maintenance.
“The report you just got here is a poster child of exactly where we do not want to be 10 years from now,” he said, “with the Tazlina, the Hubbard, the Kennicott, Columbia.”
He said it’s also a warning for the six new ferries the system plans to bring on in the next decade or so. He said it’s like the old adage: paying a little now can save a lot later.
