Alaska ferry workers strike tangles tourist season

JUNEAU, Alaska — The first strike by Alaska ferry workers in over 40 years has snarled travel plans for thousands of people during the busy tourist and fishing season, leaving some stranded.

Members of the Inlandboatmen’s Union of the Pacific went on strike Wednesday after failing to reach agreement with the state on contract terms, bringing Alaska’s ferry system to a halt.

State transportation Commissioner John MacKinnon said the department had canceled reservations for more than 3,000 travelers and refunded more than $1 million in fares.

About 225 passengers and about 90 vehicles have been stranded in ports that aren’t their final destination, he said. He noted this is a peak travel time and that other options, including barges for vehicles and planes, have limited space.

A tweet Friday from former Vice President Joe Biden, who is seeking the Democratic nomination for president, calls on Republican Gov. Mike Dunleavy to restore full funding to the system, which lawmakers this year cut by more than $40 million. The cut was seen by some as a compromise with the Dunleavy administration, which initially proposed a deeper cut and has said it wants to find ways to reduce the cost of the system to the state.

The ferries, an important transportation link for many small communities not connected to Alaska’s road system, run along 3,500 miles of coast from Bellingham, Wash., through southeastern Alaska and the Gulf of Alaska to the Aleutian island chain. Some communities are only accessible by air or water, and even those options can be limited.

The last strike by ferry workers occurred in 1977 and lasted 20 days, said Meadow Bailey, communications director for the transportation department. She said the department is letting stranded passengers in Ketchikan with no other lodging options stay on board an idled...