EconomyAlaska · September 4, 2026
410 million for the ferries
The ferry money Alaska was promised and then did not get for a year just showed up, and it is $410 million.
Daily Alaska staff · September 4, 2026
and the biggest single piece of it replaces a boat that has been running the same route since 1974.
Four hundred ten million dollars just landed for the Alaska Marine Highway. This is money that was approved years ago and then sat, delayed, all through last year.
The largest chunk, about a hundred fifty three million, designs and builds a replacement for the ferry that has run Juneau to Sitka since 1974. If you have ridden it lately, you know it has earned the retirement.
Another hundred sixty one million goes to simply running the system. Not new boats, not new buildings, just operations and maintenance.
The rest goes into terminals. One village terminal gets modernized so it can handle the bigger boats in the fleet. A seaport near Ketchikan gets expanded to move freight better.
And the terminal being built north of Juneau is supposed to cut about a third off the run up to Haines and Skagway.
None of this is glamorous. It is the kind of spending you only ever notice when it stops.
There is also four million for the reservation system, which anyone who has tried to book a summer sailing already has opinions about.
Our senior senator announced it, and summed up the last year in six words. Until you have it, you don't have it.
In this story
Questions people ask
How much ferry money did Alaska get?
410 million in federal grants plus 304,476 in operating assistance for the Alaska Marine Highway System, money that had been promised but didn't come through for a year.
What is the biggest ferry project in the funding?
153.4 million to design and build a replacement for the M/V LeConte, which has run the Juneau to Sitka route since 1974.
Who announced the Alaska ferry funding?
Senator Lisa Murkowski.
What does the Cascade Point ferry terminal do?
It's expected to cut roughly a third off ferry travel time to Haines and Skagway, helping passengers get where they're going faster.
Evidence
Sources
Claims and where they come from
- The Federal Transit Administration announced $410 million in grants for the Alaska Marine Highway System. · akbizmag.com
- $153.4 million will fund design and construction of a replacement for the M/V LeConte, which has served Juneau to Sitka since 1974. · akbizmag.com
- The Cascade Point terminal north of Juneau is expected to cut roughly a third off ferry time to Haines and Skagway. · akbizmag.com
- A previous grant of $106.4 million is already funding the M/V Tustumena replacement. · akbizmag.com
Produced with AI assistance, narrated with Slav Lund's voice clone with his consent, and reviewed by a person before publishing. How we use AI →