Kitsap County fast ferries moving ahead after voter approval

BREMERTON — Transit officials in Kitsap County are moving ahead with plans to build a network of fast passenger-only ferries across Puget Sound after voters approved a local sales tax increase in November.

The plan calls for six ferries to run between Kitsap County and downtown Seattle over the next several years.

Passenger-only service between Seattle and Bremerton is expected to launch next summer. Service between Kingston and Seattle is expected in 2018, followed by service between Southworth and Seattle in 2020.

Officials say the locally-controlled ferries will get passengers to downtown Seattle in half the time.

The Kitsap Sun says the Kitsap Transit Board on Tuesday approved moving forward with getting design-build bids for the new vessels.

Voters approved raising the sales tax by three-tenths of 1 percent to pay for the ferries. The tax begins in April.