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NorthKitsapHerald.com
Friday, March 28, 2014 | North Kitsap Herald
Former SoundRunner backup ferry could be transferred
By KIPP ROBERTSON
krobertson@northkitsapherald.com
KINGSTON — The Kingston Express, once the backup vessel for the north end’s passenger ferry service to Seattle, has become more of a decoration. The 105-foot, single-hull ferry bobs up and down at the passenger ferry landing, which is now unused. However, the Express may soon have a new purpose and identity. The Port of Kingston is waiting for confirmation or denial from the Federal Transit Administration to transfer the passenger ferry to the New Orleans
Regional Transit Authority. As of March 25, there was no official word from New Orleans or the FTA. “We’re waiting for confirmation from receiving entities,” Kingston Port Manager David Malone said. Phone calls to New Orleans Regional Transit Authority and the FTA were not returned by deadline March 26. The process has “lots of documents,” all of which need to be approved, Malone said. The decision mostly falls on the other end. “There is potential for
The Kingston Express may be transferred to Louisiana if the transfer is approved by the Federal Transit Administration. Kipp Robertson / Herald it to not happen,” Malone said. “We have not heard
any indication …” Because there are so
many I’s to dot and T’s to cross, the process is long. But the interest is there. A Washington state Department of Transportation representative informed port staff they are “working with their counterpart that oversees the Louisiana area to expedite the process,” according to the Feb. 12 Port of Kingston meeting minutes. “[New Orleans Regional Transit Authority] is very interested and excited to proceed.” If the transfer did happen, the Port of Kingston would not receive anything. The port purchased the
Express and main passenger ferry boat, Spirit of Kingston, with money from a $3.5 million grant from the Federal Transit Administration. If the transfer does happen, the Express could either be shipped down to Louisiana on a barge or be piloted under its own power. The route, either way, would take the vessel through the Panama Canal. As for the dock once used by the passenger ferry service, Malone said there are no plans. However, he looks forward to the port figuring out what can be done with it.
County planning to close Little Valley Road to through traffic POULSBO — Kitsap County Public Works plans to close Little Valley Road at the intersection with State Route 307. “Little Valley Road is a residential road that was designed for local access,” Public Works traffic engineer Jeff Shea said on the
county's website. “With only a couple of homes adjacent to the road we would expect about 30 to 50 vehicle trips per day on that road.” Little Valley Road extends south from Bond Road/SR 307 to Forest Rock Lane, where it becomes 10th
Avenue. Traffic counts indicate the road is currently being used for almost 1,000 trips per day. “The road was not built to support that volume of traffic,” Shea said. “The road does not meet road standards for that amount of traffic because of inad-
equate lane width, lack of shoulder, sharp curves, limited sight distance, and a steep grade. Bringing the road up to current road standards to handle that traffic volume is costprohibitive. Several collisions have been reported on the road and we have
received several complaints about the road’s inadequate design.” According to the county, the state Department of Transportation supports this action because of the geometrics and collision history at the intersection with the state route.
Public Works completed a comprehensive study of the roadway prior to reaching the decision to close the road. The study is available online. You can comment here or email help@ kitsap1.com. Comments will be accepted through April 18.
F I N E • C A S UA L • TA K E - O U T • WA L K- U P
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