Hundreds of tourists fill Lincoln Street this afternoon during the second street closure day of the tourist season. The cruise ships Radiance of the Seas and Norwegian bliss were in town today with a combined passenger capacity of 6,503. (Sentinel Photo by James Poulson)
By SHANNON HAUGLAND
Sentinel Staff Writer
The first big cruise ship day of the year on Saturday went well but definitely left room for improvement, said Chris McGraw, manager of the Sitka Sound Cruise Terminal.
“We need to work to improve transport on both ends,” McGraw said, referring to the shuttle bus stops at Centennial Hall and the terminal at 4513 Halibut Point Road.
The Royal Princess and Ovation of the Seas were in town with a combined total of 5,500 passengers.
Saturday was also the first day that Sitka closed downtown Lincoln Street to vehicular traffic under the Short Term Tourism Plan that puts the closure into effect on any day when more than 3,000 cruise visitors are expected.
Today was another two-ship day, this time with a total of fewer than 4,000 passengers but still enough to trigger the street closure again.
McGraw said he was prepared for some of the challenges but surprised by others that emerged on Saturday.
“Tour departures worked well; shuttling people didn’t work well,” he said.
Road construction in the 700 block of Halibut Point Road added time to the shuttle round-trips as did the bottleneck in the left turn lane for inbound traffic on Lake Street at the Lincoln Street traffic light.
“We had people waiting up to an hour (for shuttles),” McGraw said.
Sitkans on Harbor Drive noted the long lines of visitors waiting for buses back to the Halibut Point Road dock, but McGraw said the lines moved quickly and he received no complaints from the cruise lines.
It’s the first time in years Sitka has seen that many cruise ship visitors at once, and the first time McGraw has accommodated that many at his new terminal.
The season opening of the terminal was celebrated Friday with a well attended open house at the cruise terminal sponsored by the Chamber of Commerce/Visit Sitka. There was a ceremonial presentation of a Royal Caribbean Group contribution to Sitka Trail Works for $75,000 at the event.
McGraw said that after the Saturday experience he is thinking of adding more shuttle buses, staggering departures from the dock, and adding an additional drop-off and pickup spot downtown to ease congestion at Centennial Hall. He said he will work with the cruise lines and community members on solutions.
“Congestion at Centennial Hall increases the round-trip time,” he said. “To move that many people you have to load and unload multiple buses at a time. ... “
McGraw said many passengers decided to walk into town, despite the large sign noting that it is a five-mile walk and the warning: “Walking Not Recommended.”
McGraw said he is hoping to work on options with Sitka Trail Works to improve the walking-to-town experience. STW executive director Ben Hughey said a connector trail from the dock to the Cross Trail on the upland side of Halibut Point Road will be open next season.
“It’s dependent on grant funding,” Hughey added.
McGraw also said he hopes to work with the Department of Transportation on ways to improve traffic flow and ease bus congestion at the Lake and Lincoln street traffic light.
From the perspective of Mayor Steven Eisenbeisz, Saturday went “very well for a trial run.” Eisenbeisz is the co-owner of Russell’s, in the 200 block of Lincoln Street.
“What surprised me was the amount of locals who took advantage of the street closure to come downtown,” he said. “I received comments from those who came downtown: they enjoyed the casual pace of being able to walk up and down the street, walking their dog up and down the street, and their kids running around. ... I think it provided a nice atmosphere for (residents and visitors).”
Rachel Roy, executive director of the Chamber of Commerce and Visit Sitka, agreed that the day went well, including the street closure. She added that the team working on the closures, including the city, is open to feedback for improvements at sitkatourism@gmail.com and 907-747-4088. The closure schedule is at visitsitka.org, under “partner services” at the bottom of the page.
