Looking to the future: Kitsap Transit’s Long-Range Transit Plan
A Kitsap Transit captain pilots the M/V Enetai away from Pier 50 at sunset.
On Dec. 6, Kitsap Transit’s Board of Commissioners voted to approve our Long-Range Transit Plan, a comprehensive document that will guide our service improvements and capital investments over the next 20 years.
Over 18 months, our project team and consultants from Nelson/Nygaard reached out to thousands of Kitsap Transit residents for feedback on the most important improvements they’d like to see made to their transit system. We held two community-wide surveys – including sending a postcard to every household in the county – to capture as much community input as possible.
The plan proposes a wide range of different service improvements, including:
More frequent bus service
New bus routes that serve new areas
High-capacity transit lines
New circulators to improve inter-community connections
Expanded On-Demand ride service
A Bremerton-Tacoma Express route
Potential new ferry routes
In addition, the plan proposes a slate of new capital projects to support our operational improvements:
New operating facilities and transit centers
Multimodal hubs
Speed and reliability upgrades
Fleet expansion
High-capacity transit corridor upgrades
Additional Park & Rides
The improvements will require additional funds. The current transit sales tax in Kitsap County is 1.1%, which consists of 0.8% for bus and demand-response transit and 0.3% for ferry transit. In the second survey, 46% of respondents said they would support an increase in the transit sales tax if it produced a higher level of service. Among those in favor of or unsure about a sales-tax increase, 47% said they would pay an additional 0.3% transit sales tax.
The LRTP is non-binding, meaning we aren’t locked into any of these projects. But our hope is that this plan will help guide our discussions and help build a more robust and equitable transit system for everyone.