Nearly a third of Washington's ferry fleet is out of service

SEATTLE -- Ferry riders are in for longer waits on some routes as nearly a third of the state's ferry fleet is out of service.

According to The Seattle Times, seven of the 23 ferries operated by Washington State Ferries are out of service.

Four of them are awaiting inspection by the U.S. Coast Guard, and the other three are under maintenance.

WSDOT typically schedules maintenance this time of year, but the vessel Wenatchee was damaged by a crab-pot line, and the unexpected repairs are taking longer than officials thought they would. Wenatchee usually runs on the Seattle-Bainbridge route -- the busiest -- so other ferries have been shifted to replace it.

The Times reports that the agency needs 17 boats running in order to run a full schedule this time of year.

Because of the ferry shortage, smaller boats are running on the Edmonds-Kingston and Seattle-Bremerton routes. This means they are carrying between 20 and 60 fewer cars each trip.

Read the full report from The Seattle Times here.