News from King County Department of Transportation
Release date:  March 16, 2006

Mercer Island P&R closes this weekend for construction start on new garage

On Sunday evening, March 19, King County Metro Transit’s Mercer Island Park-and-Ride will close for approximately one year for the construction of a new parking garage. Sound Transit is building the new garage with 450 stalls on two levels.

The new garage will be nearly double the capacity of the existing park-and-ride lot, which currently fills to capacity very quickly. Several improvements will also be made to the rider loading area on North Mercer Way including: an additional bus bay in each direction; new passenger shelters; wider platforms; bicycle storage; and other passenger amenities.

During the temporary closure of the park-and-ride lot, all Metro and Sound Transit buses that now stop at the North Mercer Way boarding locations near the Mercer Island Park-and-Ride will continue to stop there. Several parking alternatives are available for transit passengers, both on and off the island.

Metro and Sound Transit are providing shuttle service via routes 202 and 205 to three nearby parking locations to help island residents connect with off-island bus service. There is also an island-only shuttle service on Route 202. The on-island trips together with the regular trips on routes 202 and 205 operate every 10 to 15 minutes during peak commute hours allowing for frequent connections at the Mercer Island Park-and-Ride bus stops. This increased frequency offers better local bus service for customers wishing to leave their cars at home. All of the trips are listed in the current green timetables for routes 201, 202, 204 and 205.

Non-island residents who currently use the Mercer Island Park-and-Ride are strongly encouraged to use one of the other park-and-ride lots along Interstate 90 – particularly the Eastgate Park-and-Ride or the new Issaquah Highlands Park-and-Ride.

For more information about bus service and alternative parking locations during the closure of the Mercer Island Park-and-Ride, visit Metro Online.

For information on the new parking garage, visit Sound Transit Online.