Within the massive infrastructure bill being debated in the U.S. Senate right now is potential funding for electric ferries. A group in Skagway has already been working on such a project that could theoretically run between Skagway and Haines.

Alaska U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski has helped craft the legislation that would provide $250 million for a pilot program to develop electric or low-emission ferries over five years. It’s still in draft form, and it would need to survive the amendments process, pass the House of Representatives and be signed into law by President Biden. In other words, it won’t happen overnight.

But it’s probably not a coincidence that Skagway officials drafted a letter to Murkowski’s office this spring asking for the development of renewable energy transportation options for Skagway, specifically an electric ferry.

Skagway’s Ad-Hoc Ferry Committee chair Jan Wrentmore says it’s a good sign that it’s in the bill. But there’s still a lot that needs to happen.

“This legislation has to pass,  the funding has to become available. We need to know which agency it’s going to be funneled through. It could be the Department of Energy, it could be the Federal Department of Transportation. But we’re ready to convert the body of work that we’ve done into either a grant application or a funding application,” said Wrentmore.

The Ad-Hoc ferry Committee has been around since 2012 working to improve ferry service to the Upper Lynn Canal. Unfortunately, their efforts to improve Alaska Marine Highway service to Skagway haven’t panned out. So more recently they began designing a marine transportation system that’s less dependent on the state, starting with an electric ferry design.

“We have a spec sheet for a small shuttle class ferry that was developed that will take people and vehicles to Haines in a very efficient manner,” said Wrentmore.

The goal is to improve access to the Golden Circle route that allows independent travelers to travel from Haines to Whitehorse in Canada’s Yukon Territory, down to Skagway, and back to Haines. The design plans were crafted by Elliot Bay Design Group out of Seattle.

“That’s a small shuttle, it can carry 15 standard-sized cars, or seven to 10 large RVs, one captain, and two crew members. It would be summer only on that route. But the advantage is that it would be very efficient to operate, particularly if it were electric,” said Wrentmore.

The ferry would cost roughly $8.5 million to build. Neither Haines nor Skagway have the type of Roll-on Roll-off dock this small ship would need to operate, however, both communities are looking to revamp their waterfront infrastructure.

Skagway’s electric utility is run by Alaska Power and Telephone and it utilizes mainly hydroelectric power. The company’s Skagway Facilities Manager Darren Belisle says the electric ferry could be recharged in about an hour with existing hydroelectric power, but only during certain times of the year.

“We do have enough hydro to accommodate them in the summer months,” said Belisle.

Another concept being considered is a slightly larger vessel that Wrentmore says could make the trip to Juneau year-round. In the summer it could also provide service between Skagway and Haines.

That ship would be able to use existing infrastructure and could be a hybrid model.

Skagway’s Ad-Hoc Ferry Committee has also been talking with Murkowski’s office about getting funding for a feasibility study that would fully lay out the costs of their projects. Once that study is complete, the committee wants to bring options to the community for input.