MV Tazlina

In late 2006, the Alaska Marine Highway System began a study for a new Lynn Canal ferry. A number of different concepts were explored over the years and succeeding governors had different ideas for new ferries. In 2010 the Alaska legislature appropriated $60 million for the first "Alaska-class" ferry. This was to be matched by $68 million of federal funding. Later in 2010 Governor Sean Parnell made the decision to forgo any federal funding of the ferry, opting instead to give the contract to an Alaskan firm in order to bring jobs to the state and stimulate the local shipbuilding industry.[1] The legislature backed the governor, appropriating an additional $60 million for the ferry in 2011 to make up for lost federal funding.[2] In April 2012 the Alaska Department of Transportation contracted with Alaska Ship and Drydock, later acquired by Vigor Industrial,[3] to assist in the design of the ship with the expectation that it would bid on its construction at the shipyard it managed in Ketchikan.[4]

By the end of 2012 cost estimates for the proposed 350 feet (110 m) vessel significantly exceeded the $120 million that had been appropriated.[4] Governor Parnell ordered a halt to the project and redirected the effort towards two smaller, cheaper day-use vessels.[5] The Elliott Bay Design Group of Seattle, Washington[6] delivered a preliminary design study for the smaller day boat Alaska-class ferries in the summer of 2013 and a final design in 2014. Based on this design, a request for proposal was sent to Vigor Alaska on August 1, 2014. Negotiations between the state and Vigor resulted in a contract signing on October 16, 2014 for the construction of two ferries for a guaranteed maximum price of $101,513,651.[7]

Tazlina's keel was laid in a ceremony attended by Governor Bill Walker on December 13, 2014.[8] The vessel was built as 23 prefabricated modules that were assembled into the ship. She was the first Alaska ferry and the largest vessel ever built in the state.[8] She was launched on May 16, 2018 with little fanfare.[9] The public ceremony came on August 11, 2018 when she was christened in Ketchikan by former Alaska First Lady Donna Walker.[10]

Tazlina is 280 feet (85 m) long, with a beam of 67 feet (20 m), and a full-load draft of 13 ft 11 in (4.24 m). Her hull is constructed of welded steel plates. She displaces 3,016 long tons. Her gross tonnage under international rules is 5,304, while her U.S. gross register tonnage is 3,217.[11] She has vehicle loading doors in her transom, bow, and port side to accommodate different port configurations.

Stern loading on M/V Tazlina

She cruises at 16.5 knots, at which speed she burns 250 gallons of diesel fuel per hour. Her maximum speed is 17.9 knots. She has two Electro-Motive Diesel 12-710G7CT3 engines which produce 3,000 bhp each. They drive two four-bladed variable-pitch propellers which are 8.5 feet (2.6 m) in diameter. The ship also has a bow thruster. Electrical power on the ship is provided by three Caterpillar C-18 generators capable for producing 500kW each.[12] Her tanks hold 49,900 US gallons (189,000 l) of diesel fuel and 18,000 US gallons (68,000 l) of potable water.[13][14]

She has a vehicle deck with 850 feet (260 m) of lanes which can accommodate 53 standard-sized vehicles. She has a single passenger deck which can carry 300 passengers. The passenger deck is equipped with a cafeteria, solarium, quiet room, and children's play area. Tazlina was built as a day boat, so she has no crew quarters for overnight accommodation or passenger staterooms. She normally carries a crew of 14.[11]

All Alaska Marine Highway Ferries are named after glaciers. Tazlina's namesake is the Tazlina glacier. She received her name in 2016 through an essay contest for Alaska school children. Seventh-grader Malea Voran of Port Alsworth nominated Tazlina because it is an Athabaskan word for "swift river", which she thought appropriate for the ferry.[15]

Tazlina made her maiden voyage on May 7, 2019 from Juneau to Haines. Her regular schedule during the 2019 summer season was to sail from Juneau to Haines to Skagway and back to Haines where she spent the night. The crew went ashore and stayed in a hotel. The next day Tazlina reversed her route and returned to Juneau. She was scheduled to complete this round-trip three times a week.[16] Tazlina replaced M/V Fairweather on this route.

Tazlina and the rest of the Alaska Marine Highway System was idled when ferry workers struck on July 24, 2019. A settlement was reach and she returned to service on August 4, 2019.[17][18] She was idled again at the end of the summer season but returned to service in Lynn Canal on November 22, 2019 as a replacement for two ferries with maintenance issues.[19] She was idled again in mid-January for repairs and warranty work, returning to service on March 5, 2020.[20]

The cost of Tazlina's overnight crew accommodations in Haines during her summer 2019 runs exceeded budget by $400,000.[21] This overnight stop was the result of the fact that Tazlina is too slow to complete a Juneau-Haines-Skagway-Juneau round-trip in a single 12-hour shift. U.S. Coast Guard regulations specify that ship crews can work no more than a 12-hour shift. The lack of quarters for a second crew on Tazlina effectively limits her to routes that can be completed in 12 hours or less. The Alaska Marine Highway System proposed to retrofit crew quarters into Tazlina and Hubbard. This would allow them to complete longer routes, but at a cost of over $30 million.[22] The legislature appropriated almost $17 million to retrofit one of the ships, but Governor Mike Dunleavy vetoed the appropriation in April 2020.[23] Instead, the ship was scheduled for separate Juneau-Skagway and Juneau-Haines roundtrips during the summer of 2020.[24]

In the face of state budget cuts and reduced ridership due to Covid-19, Tazlina did not sail during the summer 2020 season.[25] As of August 2020, Tazlina remained idle, moored at the Auke Bay ferry terminal.[26]