State ferry ridership rises by nearly 1 million in 2025

A wave of close to 1 million more passengers pushed Washington State Ferries’ 2025 ridership to 20.1 million — a jump of 5% from 19.1 million the previous year, according to a ferry system news release.

The return of full domestic service propelled the year-to-year increase in annual ridership. In June, the Seattle/Bremerton route’s second boat was restored, and the Fauntleroy/Vashon/Southworth “Triangle” run resumed its daily three-boat schedule. In July, a second boat was added to the Port Townsend/Coupeville route on Fridays through Mondays for the busy travel season.

A decrease in canceled sailings also helped to boost ridership, Washington State Ferries (WSF) said. Cancellations declined from 2,620 in 2024 to 2,222 in 2025, the lowest since 2020. Canceled trips due to crew shortages saw the biggest drop. This improvement reflects WSF’s recent investment in building and supporting its workforce. In total, WSF operated more than 150,000 trips in 2025 – nearly 7,000 more than the previous year – and completed 98.6% of all scheduled sailings, thanks in part to roughly 400 fewer cancellations than in 2024.

Both the number of vehicles and foot passengers grew by about 350,000. Passengers in vehicles climbed by a more modest 250,000.

2025 route-by-route ridership highlights

The greatest year-to-year surge came on the Seattle/Bremerton route with the return of two-boat service. The Seattle/Bainbridge Island run was again the busiest with 5.2 million total riders, followed by Edmonds/Kingston with 3.9 million.

Other system highlights by route:

• Seattle/Bremerton: System-high year-to-year rise in total riders (31.9%), vehicles (26.1%) and foot passengers (35.7%).
• Seattle/Bainbridge Island: Total riders jumped 6.4%; vehicles increased 2%; 8.6% boost in foot passengers (busiest run for customers boarding without a vehicle).
• Fauntleroy/Vashon/Southworth: Total riders grew 4.7%; vehicles climbed 5.5%; foot passengers went down 7.4%.
• Port Townsend/Coupeville: Total riders surged 4.7%; vehicles soared 5%; foot passengers up 0.9%.
• Edmonds/Kingston: Total riders rose 3.4%; jump in vehicles of 4.5%; foot passengers increased 2.9%.
• Anacortes/San Juan Islands: Boost in total riders of 1.8%; vehicles grew 2.3%; foot passengers climbed 3.8%.
• Mukilteo/Clinton: Total riders up 0.9%; vehicles rose 1.2% (remained the busiest route for drivers); foot passengers jumped 6.3%.
• Point Defiance/Tahlequah: Total riders close to steady; vehicles increased 0.2%; foot passengers decreased 0.6%.

You can learn more about WSF’s 2025 performance, including other key numbers, major milestones, memorable moments and a glimpse at what’s ahead in 2026, check out WSF’s 2025 Year in Review.