A Ferry Tale
Sen. Murkowski brought U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg to Southeast this summer. We gave him the full experience. First his flight to Haines was delayed by weather. Then it was cancelled. His team had to rearrange his meetings because he took the ferry instead. Then the ferry had mechanical trouble. Finally, the Seaplanes flight back to Juneau just made it out during a narrow weather window. Sen. Murkowski joked that while the Secretary's team brought a 'backup plan B,' the day actually ended on plan D or E.
None of this is news to those of us who live here. But the folks visiting from Washington D.C. learned a lot. Sec. Buttigieg saw first-hand how lower 48 transportation solutions (i.e. asphalt everywhere,) often don't fit Alaska.
While the mercurial logistics sent the strongest message, I also talked in depth with Sec. Buttigieg, both at community meetings and aboard the Hubbard. He heard from community leaders, AMHS employees and ferry passengers, and aviation experts in both Juneau and Haines. along with Tribal representatives from T&H, the Chilkoot Indian Association, and Klukwan. That’s something we Alaskans could stand to learn: tribal consultation shouldn’t be limited to the feds.
I spent a lot of time talking about the work to modernize the ferry fleet, head off future maintenance backlogs, and crew the vessels. I think the Secretary left with a strong sense of Alaska's commitment to use the once-in-a-generation Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funding responsibly.
Sen. Murkowski did a great job making this trip happen. Alaska has serious, often unique transportation needs and our federal partners need to understand them.
