State will pull new ferry from shipyard to help cut-off Southeast towns

The Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities has found some temporary help for Southeast Alaska towns cut off by maintenance problems afflicting two of its older ships.

On Friday, the agency said it will pull the new ferry Tazlina from a shipyard in Ketchikan and will press it into service. The Tazlina had been awaiting the installation of side-loading doors and crew quarters not included in the original design for the new ship or its sister, the Hubbard.

Even without that work, the Department of Transportation said the Tazlina can be used “to provide as much service to the northern Panhandle as regulations will allow, and will call on Haines, Skagway, Gustavus, and Hoonah.”

Without crew quarters, Coast Guard operating restrictions mean the ship can sail for only 12 hours per day.

Read more: https://www.adn.com/alaska-news/2019/11/16/tazlina-to-provide-service-to-some-southeast-alaska-communities-with-ferry-disruptions/