GPA to design WSF ferries

Seattle-based naval architect firm Guido Perla & Associates (GPA) has signed a contract with Todd Pacific Shipyards Corporation to provide the design of a new 144 car ferry ordered by Washington State Ferries (WSF). Todd Pacific Shipyard, in conjunction with its major subcontractor J.M. Martinac Shipbuilding Corporation, will be building up to four vessels for a value of $342 million.

Each of the new ferries, measuring approximately 362 ft (110 metres) in overall length and 83 ft (25 metres) in breadth, is intended to carry 1,500 passengers and 144 vehicles, and will incorporate all of the latest USCG requirements for safety and security. Detailed construction engineering for the first ferry is expected to begin in early 2009.

WSF is the largest ferry system in the United States and the third largest in the world. The system consists of 28 vessels and 20 ferry terminals, transporting over 24 million passengers annually.

GPA?s relevant design experience includes the SOLAS certified passenger vessels Empress of the North and Coastal Queen, as well as the Susitna, also known as the E-Craft, a high speed ferry capable of carrying 20 vehicles currently under construction at Alaska Ship & Drydock for the Office of Naval Research.