The Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission (WUTC) issued its Final Order recently in which it was ordered that the Bremerton Kitsap Airporter (BKA) reduce its fares by $2 across the board for all pick-up locations on its Kitsap County route. The matter has been and ongoing issue between the Port Orchard-based Airporter and the WUTC since December 2000.

“The issue has never been about our rates but rather it has always been about our profitability and growth — particularly in the Kitsap County communities,” said an obviously distressed Dick Asche, owner of Airporter. “They seem to believe they have the authority to control our profit, not our rates.”

When the dispute became public, Airporter customers readily came to the company’s defense, with no one publicly siding with the WUTC.

The WUTC has the legislative authority to set rates, but the formula it uses applies to “busses” and is not established in either its own rules (WAC) nor in state statutes (RCW).

“The stifling manner in which the WUTC currently determines our rates and its determination to ‘put an end to this Company’s long-standing over earning’ inhibits our profitability, and therefore our continued growth,” added Asche.

The company issued a statement that said, “Since the WUTC ordered rate reduction would assure future losses to this company, it is now necessary to make some operational changes to cut expenses and the manner we pride ourselves in doing business.”

The Airporter listed six areas it will have take action and where it will cut service. They are:

• A revised schedule of runs will be submitted to the WUTC that will reduce the daily number of runs from twenty to eighteen. The two discontinued runs are the least popular of its twenty-trip schedule.
• The ticket agent and service counter at Sea-Tac will be discontinued. That agent sells passenger tickets and generally assists the driver and passengers to assure prompt departures.
• Office hours are currently 24/7. The office will soon be closed for operations from 11 p.m. until 7 a.m. each day. Customers calling for reservations will get a recording asking them to call the following day.
• The full 20 scheduled trips on Saturdays, implemented this summer, will be discontinued.
• All plans for future schedule expansion and additional runs have been cancelled indefinitely.
• Further plans to operate two additional weekdays “No Stress Express” runs during the summer months and peak holiday periods have been abandoned. The express runs would operate twice daily and would make pick-ups only at the WestCoast Silverdale Hotel, Howard Johnson Plaza, Union 76-Sedgewick and Inn at Gig harbor.

   The statement concluded by saying, “It is with deep regret that we must make these cutbacks in our service to you, our loyal customers. Perhaps someday, if and when the WUTC rewrites their obsolete and inapplicable rules for determining Airporter rates, the above actions can be re-instituted. Until then, we remain hopeful and we will continue to serve our customers in the best manner that we are able.”.