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Week of Feb. 18, 2008
Park-and-ride usage surged in 2007
Northgate Park-and-Ride | With bus ridership up across King County, it’s probably no surprise that park-and-ride lots are busier than ever.The park-and-ride numbers are just in for 2007, and King County Metro Transit is reporting a 7 percent increase in daily usage of the lots. That’s the same increase seen in Metro’s overall ridership last year. While the two figures are connected, there isn’t a direct correlation because not every bus rider uses the lots. Still, on a daily basis, more than 17,700 commuters, students, and other bus riders find the park-and-rides a great way to connect with bus service and reduce their drive-alone miles. “It’s a coincidence that ridership and park-and-ride usage are up by the exact same percentage, but it is all part of the same demand trend,” said Metro General Manager Kevin Desmond. “There’s quite a bit of ‘build-it-and-they-will-come’ philosophy with both bus service and transit facilities right now,” said Desmond. “Almost all of our new bus routes, park-and-rides, and transit centers are popular and well-used from the minute they are rolled out.” In recent years, the I-90 corridor has been one of the biggest success stories for Metro and Sound Transit. There are six park-and-ride lots either adjacent or very close to the highway between Preston and Mercer Island, including multi-story garages at Eastgate, Issaquah Highlands, just-opened Mercer Island, and soon-to-be-open Issaquah.
The four I-90 lots that were open in 2007 held almost 3,000 vehicles each weekday, and drew the bus riders and vanpoolers from as far away as Carnation and Black Diamond. That doesn’t include other boarding passengers who transfer, walk, or are dropped off at the lots. Desmond said everyone – no matter how they travel – benefits from having 3,000 fewer cars on that stretch of I-90 each day.“Eastgate and Issaquah Highlands are two of our newest facilities, so we expected it could take a few years for them to fill up,“ said Desmond. “It hasn’t. Both are over 85 percent full on any given weekday and they are very large garages.” Capacity is an issue for many of the lots in the system. Metro has 66 permanent lots and 64 smaller lots that are leased from private property owners such as churches and businesses with parking to spare. Of the permanent lots, more than 15 are routinely over capacity each weekday. That means people are parking in fire lanes, along curbs, or in other unmarked spots. “Even our lots that are technically under-capacity are still well more than 80 and 90 percent full each day,” said Desmond. He said during 2007, the daily usage average for the north end permanent lots was close to 90 percent. Usage in the Eastside lots continued to grow rapidly. And, Metro is seeing a surge at the South King County lots, particularly those that are served by both buses and commuter trains. “With the cost of gas and urban parking continuing to rise, I don’t think demand for park-and-ride spaces is going to decrease any time soon,” said Desmond.
Revised shuttle service for annual Flower and Garden Show 
The popular Northwest Flower and Garden Show opens this week at the Washington State Convention Center in downtown Seattle. Once again, Metro is providing special shuttles to the show, only this time there’s a new location for the shuttle pick-up. The show runs Wednesday through Sunday, Feb. 20-24. There are many regular bus routes serving the Convention Center on weekdays and weekends, use the Online Trip Planner to figure out which one is best for you. This year, Metro is offering shuttle service each day from the North Seattle Community College southeast and southwest upper parking lots. The college is located at: 9600 College Way. N., Seattle. The shuttles begin running at 8:15 a.m. each day. The roundtrip fare for the shuttle is $2 – cash only – collected at the Convention Center. Children 5 and under ride free with a fare-paying adult. For more information about transit service to the flower and garden show, visit Metro Online or call (206) 553-3000. |
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The annual Seattle Spring Home Show continues at the Qwest Field Events Center, and Metro is offering free weekend shuttles from Bellevue, Northgate and Renton. For regular service and routes, use Metro's online Trip Planner. Or, call Metro Rider Information at (206) 553-3000 for trip planning assistance. Full details about service to the show are posted on Metro Online. The special shuttles will be available Saturday and Sunday, Feb. 23-24. They travel between Qwest Field and the Northgate Transit Center, South Bellevue Park-and-Ride, and the South Renton Park-and-Ride. The free shuttles will operate from approximately 9:20 a.m. until the show closes for the day.
The King County International Airport at Boeing Field recently passed all phases of the annual FAR Part 139 Certification Inspection with no deficiencies at all. “This is a significant accomplishment for any airport, and required a combined effort by all employees,” said KCIA Assistant Director Mike Colmant. The inspection covered: Aircraft Rescue Fire Fighting (ARFF); operations; training and training Records; airfield signage; runway striping and lighting; and overall facility condition. | Subscribe to DOT DashSign-up to receive an e-mail text version of "Transportation Today," along with other significant DOT news by sending an e-mail to us with subscribe King County DOT Dash in the subject line.
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