Whidbey Leaders Protest Rising Ferry Fares, Seek Reprieve
Island County leaders on Whidbey Island drafted a joint letter to the Washington State Transportation Commission to protest a series of planned ferry fare increases, arguing the burden falls heavily on local residents who rely on the Clinton Mukilteo route. The letter asks the commission to eliminate the planned increase next year, citing the route's high ridership, its positive operating balance, and the outsized impact on commuters, patients and local businesses.
Leaders across Whidbey Island formally raised objections on November 14, 2025 to a package of ferry fare increases that they say will strain household budgets and local commerce. County Commissioner Melanie Bacon, who represents the only district in the state with two ferry routes, drafted a letter to the Washington State Transportation Commission conveying elected leaders’ “surprise and disappointment over the large increases.” She circulated the letter after discussing rates at a Regional Transportation Planning Organization meeting.
The letter outlines a sequence of upcoming cost changes. Fares across the ferry system rose by 3 percent in October 2025 and are scheduled to rise another 3 percent in May 2026. A new 3 percent credit card fee will be added in March 2026. The seasonal surcharge that had been 25 percent is set to increase to 35 percent. Taken together, the letter notes this will amount to about a 16 percent increase for cash payments and more than a 20 percent increase for credit card payments over the course of a single year.
The local leaders provided a concrete example of the effect on routine travel. “Add that all up, and a standard vehicle and driver on Whidbey who paid $29.23 in September 2025 to drive round trip to their doctor in Everett will pay $34.11 in September 2026,” the letter states. The letter also highlights the Clinton Mukilteo route as the second most used in the state and one of the few routes that “operate in the black.”
County officials asked county commissioners to sign the letter, and solicited endorsements from Oak Harbor Mayor Ronnie Wright, Coupeville Mayor Molly Hughes, Langley Mayor Kennedy Horstman, South Whidbey Port Commissioner Curt Gordon and Port of Coupeville Commissioner Martin Vanderpas. The signers will present a united local front in asking the state Transportation Commission to reconsider the planned increases.
For Island County residents the stakes are immediate. Ferries are the primary transportation link for many commuters who work on the mainland, for patients traveling to specialty medical appointments, and for movement of goods to retail and service businesses on the islands. Local officials said outreach from State Ferries before the increases went into effect was inadequate, and they cited that shortcoming as part of their rationale for asking the commission to reverse the future increases.
The next step is for the Transportation Commission to review the letter and consider the request to eliminate the planned increase next year. Island County leaders say they will keep pressing for relief while monitoring how the changes affect household travel patterns and local commerce.
