To the editor:

There is no disagreement that parking in Winslow is difficult at times and getting worse. And certainly if we project the present into the future there is a good argument for adding more parking spaces.

However, this is where it is necessary to take a step back and observe events taking place on the East Coast. Boston now has the first Lyft (Urber competitor) robotic taxi operating in its Seaport District. Pittsburg, Phoenix and Las Vegas are running similar evaluation programs.

Bainbridge Island is a perfect place for a robotic ride-sharing service. With a finite boundary, low-speed side streets and a senior population ready to shed their cars, an island robotic ride sharing service would dramatically reduce the amount of vehicle traffic with an even greater impact on parking. Imagine getting picked up at your house by one car that takes you to T&C and drops you off, and then picked up by a second car that takes you home. In between, both cars are taking other people to where they need to go.

The point is that within the next five years personal transportation is about to experience the biggest revolution since Ford invented the horseless carriage. Building new parking facilities now is equivalent to constructing more hitching posts at the beginning of the 20th century.

If I ever do buy another car, it will be a self-driving car that while I shop at T&C it will be out earning money by taking other people around the island.

The parking issue is about to dramatically change. As Yogi said, “The future ain’t what it used to be.”

BILL SAMS

Bainbridge Island