Island Transit Launches First 20-Year Plan, Seeks Public Input on Future Routes

When Melinda Adams took over as Island Transit's executive director in 2024, the agency serving Whidbey and Camano Islands had no formal long-range plan. Two years later, she's launching one that could define how residents get around for the next two decades.

Island Transit kicked off "Roadmap 2047" this week, its first-ever 20-year planning process, inviting riders and non-riders alike to help shape future fixed routes, paratransit services, and infrastructure investments across both islands. The agency is gathering input through public meetings, pop-up events, and an online survey available in English and Spanish on its Roadmap 2047 project page.

Adams said the timing is deliberate. Initial years on the job focused on resolving operational and morale issues before the agency could think long-term. Roadmap 2047 is also being aligned with municipal and county 20-year comprehensive plan updates, so transit planning and land-use decisions can develop in tandem rather than at cross-purposes.

Planning and outreach director Brad Windler made the case directly to the Langley City Council this week. "Your suggestion could be the thing that spins up a new service at Island Transit," Windler told council members, framing public feedback not as input that gets filed away, but as the actual mechanism for building new routes.

Island Transit will bring the same presentation to the Oak Harbor and Coupeville councils in coming weeks, with pop-up events and public meetings continuing through spring and summer. Adams said the agency intends to reach a broad network of institutional partners, including school districts, the Navy, senior groups, the hospital, and nonprofits, alongside everyday riders.

"We want to reach as many community members that we possibly can," Adams said.

The push comes as the agency is posting real ridership growth: both fixed-route and paratransit services recorded year-over-year increases in February 2026. Island Transit runs fare-free on both service types, funded through a local sales tax supplemented by state and federal grants, a model that keeps buses accessible but makes long-range planning especially consequential for those who depend on it most.

The campaign runs under the motto "Your Ride. Your Island. Your Voice." The bilingual survey is available on Island Transit's project page, and residents can also contact the agency by phone or email.