I want to applaud Gov. Bill Walker’s recent decision to support ferry service and stop spending money on the extremely costly and dangerous Juneau road. Even if the state of Alaska was not in a difficult budget crisis, the move to use the money allocated for this project is better spent on more important transportation endeavors.
I am sure this decision is not popular amongst entrenched road building advocates within the state Department of Transportation, or the very persistent and rabid road building groups in the capital city. It is very hard for sitting governor’s in Juneau to make the best choice on Juneau Access when they are constantly lobbied by road folks and thrown departmental roadblocks to support any other options. There have been years of public testimony and polls that show that a majority of folks support ferry service over a road down the east side of the Lynn Canal.
There are currently two new ferries being built for this route. These new vessels will go a long way toward taking care of the needs of one of the busiest marine transportation corridors in the state system. This will free up vessels to better service other routes and also is a start to replace and modernize Alaska Marine Highway System’s aging fleet. These new vessels will be able to operate in even the most extreme winter weather. For those of us in the upper Lynn Canal, that is very important. We plan our medical trips, vacations and work related travel around the ferry schedule. Often times the planes can’t fly and for a majority of us, the idea of driving down an icy, avalanche prone road in winter would not be an option.
Gov. Walker has had to make many hard decisions that he believes will best benefit the citizens of Alaska for years to come. I believe he is making good choices.
Mike Korsmo
Skagway
