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Week of May 7, 2007
Children’s Hospital teams with Metro for first ‘Transit Now’ partnership
 Patients and staff at Children’s Hospital in Seattle will be among the first to benefit from a groundbreaking partnership program sponsored by King County Metro Transit.
When voters approved the “Transit Now” initiative last November, one of the ways identified to deliver new bus service was through public-private
partnerships. Transit Now sets aside resources for these partnerships with major employers and cities, potentially leveraging millions in additional funding from other sources to add new service in rapidly expanding employment centers.
This first partnership with Children’s Hospital and Regional Medical Center will create more transit service and more incentives to ride the bus for staff and patients traveling to and from the medical campus in North Seattle.
Starting in September, there will be more frequent and convenient bus service running at least every 30 minutes seven days a week to the campus. This added service is expected to encourage even more hospital employees to leave their cars at home.
It will also provided benefits for regular riders and potential new passengers on Metro’s routes 25 and 75. As part of the service partnership with Children’s, Metro is adding 63 trips to the routes. More frequent service will be added to the eastern half of Route 75 operating between Northgate, Lake City, Sand Point, and the University District. Trips added to the Route 25 will require just one transfer for those traveling from the Eastside via State Route 520 and Montlake.
These additional bus trips will cost about $700,000. With this partnership and others to come, Metro will match the partner’s financial contribution on a two-to-one basis. Children’s will contribute approximately $235,000 annually to help fund the service expansion.
Metro hopes its service partnership with Children’s Hospital and Regional Medical Center is just the first of many partnerships to come, which will be partially funded with revenues generated from Metro’s Transit Now initiative. As part of that initiative, Metro also plans to expand transit service by up to 20 percent countywide over the next ten years.
Metro has another partnership program that will soon be more fun than a barrel of monkeys. The transit agency is teaming up with the Woodland Park Zoo to offer zoo members a chance to reduce their drive-alone trips and earn some incentives. Within the next week, Metro and the zoo will invite the 38,000 members who receive the zoo's magazine to “take a pledge” to reduce two drive-alone trips a week over a period of eight weeks. Participants will be offered Metro Free Ride tickets, an extra zoo guest pass, and an opportunity to request information that can help them switch to alternative modes. As part of the partnership, the Partners in Transit program will be promoted through zoo publications. The program helps the zoo support its mission of sustainability, conservation and education. And this Sunday on Mother's Day, Metro is offering free shuttle service to the zoo from the Northgate Transit Center for the "Mom & Me at the Zoo" event. The free shuttle will run between 9:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. See Metro Online for details. This will be the second “Partners in Transit” agreement for Metro, after the program's launch last year with PCC Natural Markets.
The Seattle Mariners return home this week to start a nine-game homestand, including this weekend’s battle with the dreaded Yankees. Remember that Metro Transit is a great way to get to and from the ball game, either with regular service that travels near Safeco Field or special shuttles on weekends and after night games. For regular service to the game, Metro’s convenient online Trip Planner allows you to easily research which routes provide the best connection from your home or office to the ballpark. This premium park-and-ride service operates after weeknight games and both before and after weekend games. It is not available for weekday games that begin before 5 p.m. The fare for special buses is $3 each way. Detailed information for all Mariners service is available on the Metro Online website. Or, call (206) 553-3000 (voice) or (206) 684-1739 (TTY). |
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Spot auction set for Wednesday 
The next King County Spot Bid auction will take place Wednesday, May 9 and features a wide array of computer equipment being surplused from county service. There is also an assortment of exercise equipment in this auction. The auction is managed by the Fleet Administration Division and includes both King County surplus and items from other government agencies. Previews are on auction day only, from 10 a.m. until the start of the bidding process at noon. Check out the Spot Bid website to see a few photos of items in this month’s auction. There will be approximately 50 lots up for bid, so come early to give yourself plenty of time to check out all of the items. The auction will take place at Fleet’s warehouse at 707 S. Orcas St., Seattle. For information, photos and driving directions, visit the auction website. |
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