The Alaska Marine Highway System's planned winter ferry schedule will have only one ferry serving Southeast Alaska's main route — once a week, traveling north to south through the inner channels from Skagway to Bellingham, Washington. The schedule is similar to last year, but some communities are exempt.

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The 550 inhabitants of Kake live on the northwest side of Kupreanof Island. The planned winter schedule only provides for a ferry dock in Kake once a month.

“For us, it's the same as it's been for several years. Basically, there's no service for Kake,” said Kake Mayor Lloyd Davis.

Davis spoke about the proposed timeline at a virtual meeting of the state Department of Transportation on June 26.

“Our seniors who have trouble getting on and off a plane sometimes just miss their appointments,” Davis said. “They miss these trips and so on because they have to wait for the ferry, because they can't get on and off these planes and because we pay high costs to fly around from Kake.”

Southeast Alaskans have relied on ferries for decades. Several large ferries operated through the region in the 1980s, 1990s and early 2000s. But service has been drastically reduced due to an aging, high-maintenance fleet and staff shortages. And flying is not an easy alternative.

“Flights to and from our community are very expensive,” said Anji Gallanos, Kake superintendent and principal.

Ferries used to be the first choice for transporting students to regional events, but Gallanos said the school district will have to budget $130,000 for air travel next year, even at a time of tight budgets.

“We rely on the ferry system to help our students and encourage them to participate in sports and student activities that are critical to their development and learning,” Gallanos said. “So we are simply advocating and asking the ferry service to offer more than just a one-time monthly service to Kake.”

Sitka is also off the beaten track when it comes to ferry service. It is located on the outer coast of Baranof Island and the ferry is scheduled to dock once a week, either to the north or south.

Melissa Wileman is a member of the Sitka City Council. Sitka residents used to use ferries to bring bulky waste back from Juneau. Now, she says, she feels like a broken record, constantly pushing for more service.

“I'm really frustrated this year with the lack of ferries going north,” Wileman said. “It's pretty devastating to our community that we can't go to Juneau. The costs here and in Sitka are astronomical and it's really hurting our community.”

According to Police Chief John Waldron, the northern part of the region in Yakutat has not had enough ferries for the past few years. That trend is expected to continue – Yakutat is not on the schedule this coming winter. Waldron said that due to limited local options, they need ferries to get their vehicles serviced – ferrying a truck by ship costs over $5,000 each way.

“I would just like to see the Kennicott, even if just once a month, stop in Yakutat on the north side and the other month come down and stop in the south side,” Waldron said. “Even if it's just once or twice, it gives us the opportunity to send some vehicles in and out.”

Some Southeast residents who testified at the public hearing suggested changes to the ferry schedule, such as adding additional stops in Kake, Sitka and Yakutat. State ferry officials said they would review those comments and plan to have a full winter schedule in place by the end of July.