Bainbridge Island has a large number of sustainable transportation needs. Maybe too many.

“I want to put a man on the moon by a certain date,” task force member Don Willott said at a recent online meeting.

He was referring to the task force’s plan of over 300 projects and the need to pick a few winners so the public can see progress.

“We need to wrestle that number down,” said task force member Susan Loftus.

Consultant Jennifer Wieland said her team has been “knitting together” and consolidating ideas and has linked related networks, but would love help from the task force to help whittle them down even more. “Nothing is set in stone at this point,” she said.

There’s so much information, “Perfect is the enemy of good,” said Kirk Robinson, another task force member.

David Reynolds-Gooch said some need to be eliminated. “It’s like we don’t want to say no to anything,” he said. “That will not produce good results.”

Lauren Squires, who works with Wieland, said task force members have recently been working in subcommittees such as: bicycle projects, All Ages and Abilities network, Sound to Olympics trail, Highway 305 crossings and trail connections, new transit and shared mobility projects.

Willott said even though STO is a long-range goal there is a need to start applying for grants. “It’s not just planning for the future. It’s happening now,” he said.

Wieland said the group is in the process of using scoring criteria to prioritize the projects, programs and policies. There are 14 quantitative measures using data and 12 qualitative measures using more subjective material and professional judgment. “It’s grounded in research, best practices and local expertise,” she said. “It’s straight criteria and straight scores. Otherwise I’m pretty sure all of our heads would explode.”

Squires said categories for projects include: Climate action, natural systems and rural character, safety and comfort, equity and accessibility, connected and convenient, and implementation and funding.

Quantitative scores

Giving an example of the point system she talked about the goal of crash reduction. Points would be given for projects in locations where more accidents occur. Wieland said projects that connect people where they want to go received points on how much they are used. More points were given to projects that took people to work or school than to trails, for example.

Task force member Helaine Honig asked why so much emphasis is being placed on new projects when there already is an existing bike network that would be used more if repaired. “People bike now,” she said. “The clock is ticking.” She said new projects are just a distraction from the primary goal – which is getting people out of their cars.

Wieland said the goal is to get more people of all ages and abilities riding, not just commuters who already do. Reducing greenhouse gas emissions will take new biking networks, not just the ones already here. “Not everything is going to be done right away,” she said. “We have to be thoughtful and strategic.”

Honig said parents need to get their kids to bike to school. They don’t even use the school buses. “How do we get parents to quit taking their kids to school?” she asked.

Public Works director Chris Wierzbicki said the city has already talked to the BI school district about expanding busing so more kids will use mass transit.

Willott said it’s a chronic problem with government committees that change over the years and the focus also changes. “The energy and work done before is easily lost,” he said. “Staff time and community effort are wasted. We don’t want to lose momentum on things already lined up.”

Loftus said people should have a choice. “Right now children don’t have a choice to bike,” she said, adding an active lifestyle is important to their health and wellness. She doesn’t like that “our children aren’t important enough to give them that option.” She said if children get used to biking when they’re younger, “this work will impact the rest of their lives.”

Robinson questioned the accuracy of some of the data, especially when it comes to biking. “What is the terrain?” he asked. “Some proposals came from looking at a map and not field testing. An engineer probably could make it work, but it could hurt the aesthetics.”

Wieland responded, “That’s why we want your expertise in scoring these.” She showed a map of projects scored only with a quantitative measure. The highest scores were in the Winslow area with the lowest in the north and south portions of the island. She said that makes sense because of the different demographics, high density of people and connectivity.

Squires added that the scores serve the most people and connect them to destinations. She listed some issues and explained why they scored higher.

• Crash reduction: Winslow rated the highest because of its density of crashes.

• Equity: Using U.S. Census data, Crystal Springs and Winslow showed the greatest need.

• Connectivity: Winslow had the highest concentration, followed by west and north island.

• All Ages and Abilities: Spread out over much of the island, except to the West.

Wieland said the AAA bikeway on Lynwood Center Road scored 23 points. It scored well because it connects to schools and transit and is accessible.

Willott said regarding equity the discussion has not been broad enough. He said the task force needs to look in more detail with equity in mind – such as serving areas such as Suquamish and Bremerton rather than just “highly privileged” BI.

Wieland said that is a good point, looking at options people have who work on the island.

Reynolds-Gooch agreed, saying there needs to be more connectivity in the north.

Qualitative scores

Wieland then shared information on qualitative scoring. She scored some as examples then asked task force members to do the same. Different factors included electric, climate change, scenic characteristics, accessibilty, feasiblity and partnerships. Examples include reducing vehicle miles, removing a barrier, improving access to transit and connecting trail or bike networks.

She scored the idea of a bike education and encouragement program with a 13 out of a possible 24 points, “in the middle of the pack.” She then had task force members rate projects in real time. The first one was Vision 0 and Speed Reduction. It was outranked by a policy that would require biking and walking in all transportation projects.

City Councilmember Brenda Fantroy-Johnson said: “Improving walking and biking will allow me and others to do more. It’s a good option to getting people out there.”

“It will get people to change behavior quicker than slower speeds,” Wieland said as an interpretation.

Also scoring well was the AAA Lynwood Center bikeway.

A project that scored high, but also had some strong opposition, was an express bus service from the ferry to Poulsbo with a stop at the casino.

Robinson asked how that would help as it already exists.

Wieland said Kitsap Transit has identified that as a potential popular route.

Task force member Barb Zimmer wanted to see the data behind that. To know if it would be a good program or not she would have to see how many people come over from Seattle and want to go to Poulsbo. She also wanted to know how many workers would use that service.

City Councilmember Leslie Schneider also had her doubts. “I rarely go to Poulsbo,” she said.

Loftus said she also doesn’t think that would keep many vehicles off the road. “It’s hard to get high numbers of people to use transit,” she said. “For those who use it it would be great.”

Three subcommittees were created to continue scoring the projects.

Wieland told task force members to remember that “climate change is our north star,” along with equity in ranking the projects, as directed by the City Council. The next step is creating an action plan bringing “all these pieces together. Your judgment is going to be an important part of how we score these,” she said.