With the announcement from the Canadian Government regarding the reopening of the US/Canada border to non-essential travel, Thursday, August 12th will be the final day of the Port’s emergency ferry service to Point Roberts.
The Port provided emergency ferry service to Point Roberts free-of-charge on San Juan Cruises 100-foot vessel the Salish Express for nearly a year and Whatcom Transportation Authority supported passengers with transit connections throughout Whatcom County.
The Port’s three elected Commissioners directed staff to provide emergency ferry service until the US/Canada border was re-opened to non-essential travel to help Point Roberts residents who have been unable to access critical goods and services.
“We anticipate the border opening will relieve stress on this community but are here to help if something changes” said Port Commission President Ken Bell.
Whatcom County reimbursed the Port for a portion of the cost of providing emergency ferry service with Federal CARES Act funding and the Port is very appreciative given the many financial needs related to the Coronavirus public health emergency.
Non-essential travel into Canada was banned beginning in March 2020 to mitigate the spread of Covid-19. Point Roberts is part of Whatcom County but it is geographically separated from the rest of the United States by two border land crossings.
Due to vessel availability, August 5th and August 9th Point Roberts sailings will have a 30-person capacity, and advanced reservations are highly recommended. Reservations can be made for individual segments of the ferry trip at www.portofbellingham.com/pointrobertsferry If reservations are full, people are welcome to show up and try to ride ‘stand-by’ in the event there are no-show passengers. This emergency ferry service is intended for Point Robert’s residents needing to access services in Whatcom County.
Transit connections in Bellingham are available near the Bellingham Cruise Terminal at Fairhaven Station. WTA Route 1 services Fairhaven Station (Fairhaven Transportation Center) at :21 and :51 past each hour. For transit schedules and route information, please visit http://www.ridewta.com/
Face masks are required on both ferry and WTA connections, and the number of passengers will be limited.
Departure and arrival times as well as the sailing frequency may change based on passenger input and demand, so please check www.portofbellingham.com/pointrobertsferry for the latest schedule information.