October 17, 2022
Monday

As your state representative, one of the concerns I hear most frequently about is our Alaska Marine Highway System. I am thankful for the educated, vocal, and committed constituency we have here in southern Southeast. Continuing to speak up about what we need from the ferry system is vital.

The Alaska Marine Highway Operations Board hit the ground running when they were created this past year. They’re tasked with providing input on short-term planning, as well as creating a comprehensive long-range plan for development and improvement of the system.

I encourage everyone to look at the work they’re doing and provide feedback. Information about their plan for our ferry system can be found at https://dot.alaska.gov/chartingthecourse/

This past summer, the AMHS made trips to Prince Rupert once again. That being said, with the changing season, there will be much less service to and from Prince Rupert this winter. There are hardly any trips scheduled in January. When the draft winter schedule was released, planners heard loud and clear from Southeast that they needed to continue service to Prince Rupert. I will continue to work with the Department of Transportation to keep that route going strong.

I have high hopes for the AMHS going into the future. Thanks to the injection of federal dollars through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, we can modernize our fleet, provide stable year-round jobs to those employed by the ferry system, and get service back to a level that makes ferry travel a desirable option for passengers.

If you have any suggestions for improving our ferry system, concerns about how it is lacking, or simply have questions pertaining to infrastructure, don’t hesitate to contact me at Rep.Dan.Ortiz@akleg.gov or call my office at 907-247-4672.

Respectfully,

Rep. Dan Ortiz
Ketchikan, Alaska

About:

Editor's Note:

The text of this letter was NOT edited by the SitNews Editor.

Opinions expressed are solely those of the writers and do not necessarily represent the opinions of Sitnews.

Received October 12, 2022 - Published October 17, 2022

Related Viewpoint:

SitNews ©2022
Stories In The News
Ketchikan, Alaska

Articles & photographs that appear in SitNews are considered protected by copyright and may not be reprinted without written permission from and payment of any required fees to the proper sources. E-mail your news & photos to editor@sitnews.us Photographers choosing to submit photographs for publication to SitNews are in doing so granting their permission for publication and for archiving. SitNews does not sell photographs. All requests for purchasing a photograph will be emailed to the photographer.