Kitsap Transit selects preferred site for bus driver training facility

A Kitsap Transit routed trainee drives a bus in a parking lot at the Kitsap County Fairgrounds.

In the spring of 2024, Kitsap Transit started scouting potential locations for a bus operator training facility, which will provide a permanent home for our operators to practice bus driving skills year-round. Last month, we selected a site near Bree Drive SW as the preferred location for the facility.

The Bree Drive SW site was selected from four sites countywide. It offers Kitsap Transit the best combination of favorable characteristics and lowest impacts to our community, while also scoring well on the top two criteria of concern identified in the public feedback: residential impacts and traffic congestion.

The next step in the project is to work on permitting and funding with our local, state and federal partners, including the city of Bremerton and the Federal Transit Administration.

Why is a training facility important?

Right now, Kitsap Transit trains our operators at either the Bremerton National Airport or a parking lot at the Fairgrounds. A permanent facility, owned and operated by Kitsap Transit, would allow our trainees to practice the skills necessary to obtain a state Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) without scheduling around other uses. A CDL is required to legally operate our buses.

The 10-20 acre facility would include classroom space for operators, paved space for driving classes, charging facilities for battery-electric buses, and areas for staff parking, bus storage and maintenance.