News from King County Department of Transportation
Release date:  Feb. 5, 2007

First ‘Transit Now’ bus service rolls out Saturday

Beginning Saturday, Feb. 10, King County Metro Transit will start rolling out more bus service thanks to a transit initiative recently approved by voters.

The “Transit Now” sales-tax increase passed at the polls in November, and will allow Metro to increase bus service in King County by up to 20 percent over the next 10 years. The first Transit Now funded improvements are included in Metro’s February service change, and increase service on nine heavily used routes: 8, 44, 101, 120, 140, 194, 234, 245, and 271.

It is just the first of several years of bus service improvements funded by the increase of one-tenth of one percent in the county sales tax. As the sales tax revenues become available, Metro will proceed with plans to purchase more buses for additional regular route improvements, and also continue to develop plans for bus rapid transit service – dubbed “RapidRide” – in five key corridors.

“With the passage of Transit Now, some of the first things we wanted to address was overcrowding on popular routes and adding more service during the midday periods and weekends,” said Metro General Manager Kevin Desmond. “We wanted to move quickly to add this service, even before Metro begins collecting the additional sales tax in June.”

It all kicks off with 14,700 hours of more bus service in February, which includes:

• Adding several trips during the morning and afternoon commute to offer bus service every 15 minutes between Seattle Center and Capitol Hill;
• Adding early evening service on weekdays to achieve a 15-minute frequency between Ballard, Wallingford and the University District;
• Doubling the amount of Saturday daytime service between Seattle, White Center and Burien;
• Adding two early morning trips on Saturdays and Sundays between downtown Seattle and Sea-Tac International Airport to better serve airport workers and travelers with early flights;
• Increasing evening service between Kenmore, Juanita, Kirkland and Bellevue;
• Doubling Sunday service between Kirkland, Rose Hill, Overlake, Crossroads, Eastgate, and Factoria; and
• Increasing afternoon service between the University of Washington campus and Eastgate.

In addition to the Transit Now funded improvements, Metro is also making other adjustments to bus schedules as part of the February service change. Metro updates its routes and scheduling three times a year to improve service and keep up with the changing needs of transit passengers.

Two of the revisions are being made to deal with the beginning of transportation improvements in Redmond and the completion of projects in Kingsgate:

• There will be new temporary bus stops near the Redmond Park-and-Ride for passengers who ride routes: 220, 230, 232, 249, 250, 251, 253, 254, 265, 266, 291, 922 and 929. Most of these routes will serve new stops located on 161st Avenue Northeast – just north and west of the park-and-ride. Two routes – 230 and 232 – will stop near the Redmond Library at Northeast 85th Street and 160th Avenue Northeast. These changes are being made to accommodate the upcoming construction of transit improvements at the park-and-ride; and
• Sometime in the next few months, buses in the Totem Lake and Kingsgate areas north of Kirkland will be routed to use the new Interstate 405 center ramps and overpass at Northeast 128th Street. Watch for Rider Alerts in this area to stay updated on the construction. The new routing will eventually affect Metro routes: 230, 237, 238, 252, 255, 257, 277, 291, 311, 342, 630, 644, 935 and 952.

Bus passengers can find all the February changes detailed in the Special Rider Alert brochure now available on buses and in Metro information racks. New purple timetables are also in those locations, and online information is now in Metro’s Online Trip Planner. Enter a travel date for Feb. 10 or later to find trips that reflect Metro's changed service.

Sometimes people need more than bus service. That’s where Rideshare Services can help by providing resources for carpooling, vanpooling or vansharing. Carpooling and vanpooling match people traveling to common destinations. VanShare helps those who need to make a connection to or from bus service. You can VanShare from home and connect to your bus, or use VanShare from the bus stop or park-and-ride lot to complete a trip to work.

For information about all the services Metro provides, visit Metro Online, or call Metro Rider Information at (206) 553-3000.