Editor,

The Jan. 14 edition incorrectly paraphrased what Commissioner Helen Price-Johnson said in the ferries article. She did not say fares went up 200 percent since 2000. She said fares rose “over 100 percent” while nationwide inflation has caused prices to rise 33.2 percent over the same period.

Since the loss of the motor vehicle excise tax funds dedicated to ferries in 2000, ferry fares have risen dramatically to where they pay for 70 percent of ferry operating costs vs. the gas tax that funds 15-20 percent of roads.

That’s 70 percent on average.

The Mukilteo-Clinton route is the most lucrative route for state Ferries, with close to 100 percent paid for via the fare box. It is time to bring fares more in line with what mainland motorists pay, and Gov. Jay Inslee’s budget begins this by proposing to freeze fares for the next two years.

Better yet, how about a fare reduction for Mukilteo-Clinton? Reasonable fares are important to the vitality of Whidbey Island.

The article also noted that ferries have been reliable 99.5 percent of the time. That overall rating is great, but it doesn’t reflect the situation on the Coupeville-Port Townsend (CV-PT) run.

This run experienced its worst performance in 15 years with 444 cancellations, a 5 percent rate, excluding 2007 when the steel-electric boats were suddenly pulled from service.

Weather and tides account for 363 of these cancellations. Safety concerns are pre-eminent on this run.

The crews, masters and port captain are to be congratulated for their safety record.

There are efforts underway to identify anything that can help improve performance on the CV-PT run.

This run has the highest ratio of commercial traffic and is a vital link to our island heath. The new Ferries Chief Lynn Griffith brings with her some confidence that there will be performance improvements throughout the system.

Ralph Young,

Chairman, Coupeville Ferry Advisory Committee