[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 5]
[Senate]
[Pages 6303-6304]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                      ALASKA MARINE HIGHWAY SYSTEM

 Ms. MURKOWSKI. Madam President, today I wish to celebrate 50 
years of the Alaska Marine Highway System as an essential means of 
transportation to the people of Southeast Alaska. The Marine Highway 
began with one ship in 1963 and has grown to 11 vessels serving

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more than 350,000 passengers and 30 communities a year, along routes 
that total more than 3,000 miles.
  Growing up in Southeast Alaska like I did, or in other remote coastal 
communities, you grow to love the Marine Highway and depend on it. With 
656,425 square miles of rugged wilderness, scenic beauty and abundant 
wildlife, Alaska is a large and diverse State. Naturally, traveling in 
Alaska presents some unique opportunities and challenges. Unlike the 
lower 48, many of our communities are not accessible by a land-based 
road system, and our only means of travel is by air or sea. The Marine 
Highway is a significant part of our highway system, and where 
traditional roads do not exist, it is our link to the rest of the 
State.
  The Marine Highway began when the M/V Malaspina, a sleek blue and 
gold vessel named after a glacier in the panhandle of Southeast Alaska, 
docked in Ketchikan for the first time on January 21, 1963. Three days 
later it docked in Wrangell for the first time. My father, Frank 
Murkowski, whom at the time was president of the Wrangell Chamber of 
Commerce, was aboard the Malaspina for its maiden voyage to Petersburg. 
In its first year of service, the Marine Highway added the Taku and 
Matanuska ferries, which broadened service from Ketchikan to 
Petersburg, Sitka, Skagway, Wrangell and Prince Rupert, British 
Columbia. During that inaugural year the fleet moved more than 15,000 
vehicles and 80,000 passengers.
  In 2005, I attended the designation ceremony to name the Marine 
Highway as a National Scenic Byway--All American Road, the highest 
recognition that can be received under the Byways Program. This 
designation recognized that for Southeast Alaska, the ferry system is a 
piece of history, a tourist attraction, and a way of life. It is the 
primary transportation link for many of the 30 communities it serves 
that populates Alaska's 35,000 miles from Bellingham, WA, up the Inside 
Passage, across the Gulf of Alaska and out along the 1,000 mile stretch 
of the Aleutian Chain to the Bering Sea. It also enables Juneau to 
serve as the only United States capital city not accessible by road.
  The Marine Highway directly affects our school system in Southeast 
Alaska. Over 15 rural schools are given an economically feasible way to 
travel so that students may participate in competitive academic and 
sporting events. This allows young Alaskans opportunities that would 
otherwise be impossible, providing the chance to interact and identify 
with communities, families and other students from across the State.
  To commemorate this special occasion, this summer the M/V Malaspina 
will sail a special voyage inspired by the 1963 inaugural sailing. The 
celebration will include community events across Southeast Alaska 
showcasing the unique culture and heritage of each community.
  Much like the blue and gold of Alaska's state flag, the blue and gold 
ships on the Alaska Marine Highway System embody the spirit and 
fortitude of Alaskans. What was once called one of the most important 
and permanent achievements for Alaska since statehood, the Marine 
Highway has grown alongside the people it serves to improve life in 
Alaska. We share pride for our unique State, and pride in the Alaska 
Marine Highway System.

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