PORT ANGELES — A long-desired link between Jefferson Transit Authority’s Kingston Express and Clallam Transit System’s Strait Shot is finally taking shape.

Comprehensive site plan work by SCJ Alliance in Seattle is now underway to prepare for paving the parking lot at Gateway Visitor Center, 93 Beaver Valley Road (state Highway 19), where bus passengers will be able to transfer between the two routes.

A best-case scenario will the have service available in fall 2026.

After design documents, survey, geotechnical engineering and other plans are delivered, the transit agencies and Jefferson County will develop a budget and apply for construction grants this fall, with paving taking place next summer.

The current gravel parking lot is in “pretty bad shape,” Clallam Transit General Manager Jim Fetzer said.

A Transit Coordination grant from the state Department of Transportation will pay $90,000 of the $100,000 project. Jefferson and Clallam’s transit systems and Jefferson County are splitting the 10 percent match, which amounts to $2,900 each.

Fetzer anticipated high demand for the connected routes.

”I’ve gotten regular requests from people in Jefferson County that want to catch the Straight Shot to go to Bainbridge Island,” he said. “We’ve got customers who want to go up to Kingston to catch the ferry.”

He also foresees people driving to the Gateway Visitor Center, parking their vehicles and taking a bus to a ferry.

How the agencies will coordinate route schedules and services has not yet been addressed.

“We’re going to have to work that out when we see that the project’s really going to move forward,” Fetzer said. “There will have to be some agreement for how we handle transferring the passengers. Their system is free and we charge $10, so we’ll have to work those details out.”

The Kingston Express runs from the Haines Place Park and Ride in Port Townsend to the Kingston ferry terminal, with stops at Four Corners Park and Ride and Gateway Visitor Center. In Kingston, passengers can take the ferry to Edmonds or the Kitsap Transit Fast Ferry to Seattle. In Edmonds, they can connect with Community Transit, SoundTransit light rail and King County Metro.

Clallam’s Strait Shot runs from the Gateway Transit Center in downtown Port Angeles to the Bainbridge Island ferry terminal with stops at the Sequim Transit Center, Discovery Bay, the North Viking Park and Ride in Poulsbo and state Highway 305 and Suquamish Way in Suquamish.

Support for WSDOT’s Transit Coordination grant program comes from the state’s Climate Commitment Act.

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Reporter Paula Hunt can be reached by email at paula.hunt@peninsuladailynews.com.