PSE will use feedback throughout the routing process to better understand community values and inform the preferred route selection – because routing a transmission line requires PSE to decision on tradeoffs between different elements. Safety and reliability will always remain PSE’s core priorities when routing a transmission line. The Community Sounding Board will review the preferred route developed by PSE at their next meeting and share their feedback. PSE will work to incorporate feedback where feasible and make a decision on the preferred route, to be announced later in 2021.

Building a new transmission line on an island poses unique challenges and there are no route segments that completely avoid community impacts. PSE is committed to engaging the community to better understand and address these challenges. Thank you for sharing your feedback!

The next opportunity to interact with the project is the sixth CSB meeting, tentatively planned for summer 2021. All CSB meetings are open to the public to observe, and there will be a brief opportunity for public comment at each meeting. CSB meetings are held virtually while social distancing recommendations are still in place. The meeting access link and agenda will be posted on this website one week prior to the event. Subscribe to our e-newsletter to receive important project updates about upcoming CSB meetings and community workshops.

You can also share your feedback anytime — email us at info@psebainbridge.com or leave a message at 1-888-878-8632.

PSE is investing in transmission infrastructure that will make Bainbridge Island's electric grid more resilient and reduce the impact of any single transmission outage by focusing on redundancy. We'll build the "missing link" transmission line between the Murden Cove and Winslow substations to create a transmission "loop." This means each substation will be connected to two transmission lines so that if one line goes out, the other line can still feed the substation and provide power to customers. This will significantly reduce the frequency and duration of power outages for Bainbridge Island customers.

The photo on the right shows an existing transmission pole that includes a distribution line on the same pole. Transmission lines bring power to the substations from the generation source and distribution lines distribute the power from the substations to homes and businesses.

These are examples of construction for a typical vertical configuration 115kV transmission line using wood poles. A new roadside 115kV transmission line could look similar, though other vertical configurations or pole types are possible and may be desirable.

We will develop and share representative photo simulations of our proposed project once we have progressed into the design and permitting phases.

Bainbridge Island customers experience more frequent and longer outages than the average PSE customer, and nearly half of those outage minutes are due to issues with the transmission system and lack of redundancy. Challenges to reliability include:

• Trees: The combination of high winds, storms and tall trees mean trees are the #1 cause of outages on the island. Bainbridge transmission lines are heavily exposed to trees and 64% of outages are caused by trees.
• Radial transmission lines: Nearly two-thirds of Bainbridge customers are at risk of a prolonged outage. This is because their area is served by a substation – either Winslow or Murden Cove substation – that’s fed by a single transmission line with no back-up.
  • Customers served by the Winslow substation have the worst reliability on the island, followed by customers served by the Murden Cove substation.
  • Nearly 70 percent of transmission customer minutes of service interruptions were from the Winslow Tap transmission line that feeds the Winslow substation.
• Geography: The geography of an island also poses unique challenges for electric reliability, mainly the lack of neighboring infrastructure to serve as backup.

Electric reliability on Bainbridge Island needs to be improved. PSE’s customers have asked PSE to find solutions that improve reliability, meet this community’s growing energy needs, and align with the community’s values. It’s PSE's goal to understand community values and interests around the new transmission line, so we’re engaging the community to gather input and feedback. To help reach that goal we’re asking for the community’s feedback on the route segments under consideration.

Yes, PSE can build transmission lines underground if the location is feasible. However, it is up to the community to decide whether to invest in it. State regulations require PSE to first consider building overhead transmission lines because of their combination of reliability and affordability, both of which are important to our customers.

When a new line is constructed overhead, project costs are distributed evenly between PSE’s 1.1 million customers. Undergrounding is an option, but under these regulations underground transmission lines are considered a "local option" and the local community must pay the cost difference between overhead and underground lines. Most communities decide not to invest in undergrounding transmission lines because they have other investment priorities.

For more information, see our transmission undergrounding fact sheet.

PSE also held a joint information session on electromagnetic fields and underground transmission lines on September 17, 2020. See our Info Session 2 presentation slides and Info Session 2 summary to learn more about electromagnetic fields and undergrounding.