The first of three public meetings next week on the fate of the Mukilteo ferry terminal will be Tuesday in Langley.

The meeting, scheduled by Washington State Ferries and its consultants to gather comments on long-range options for the cramped and aging facility, is 5 to 7 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 12, at South Whidbey High School.

A similar meeting will be from 5 to 7 p.m. Wednesday at Mukilteo City Hall, 11930 Cyrus Way. Also, an online meeting, joined by registration, will be from 5 to 7 p.m. on Thursday.

The meetings are the first of many planned to consider proposed options for the Mukilteo terminal.

Those options range from doing nothing to improving the existing terminal, moving it down the Mukilteo waterfront or relocating it to Everett or Edmonds.

The Clinton-Mukilteo ferry route is a major section of well-traveled Highway 525. Future usage of the route is expected to increase 73 percent by 2030.

Earlier planning for the future of the terminal was suspended by the state Legislature in 2007 for funding and other reasons, but was reauthorized this past February.

Current approved funding for the project is $63 million.

The timetable, sprinkled liberally with more public meetings, calls for public comments collected and an environmental impact statement obtained by 2012, a design completed by 2015 and construction completed by 2019.

For more information, e-mail hrodero@prrbiz.com or visit www.wsdot.wa.gov/projects/ferries/mukilteoterminal/multimodal.