Transit Now marks first anniversary by rolling out new routes and more service- King County

Feb. 6, 2008

Transit Now marks first anniversary by rolling out new routes and more service

Metro to deliver 100,000 hours of Transit Now service by year's end

Bus riders will see more than 16,000 new transit service hours, including two new Metro routes on the Eastside, beginning this Saturday. It marks the latest rollout of service from the voter approved Transit Now initiative, which is designed to attract 50,000 additional daily bus riders by 2016.

By the end of 2008, an estimated 100,000 hours of new bus service will be on the street since voters approved Transit Now.

"This is yet another Metro milestone as we continue to deliver on our promise to give people more travel options through Transit Now," King County Executive Ron Sims said. "This is another building block of a 21st Century bus system envisioned to support our growing region in an era of climate change."

Metro's service change that begins on Saturday, Feb. 9, includes revisions to more than 30 Eastside bus routes that will improve connections to major transit centers, work sites, shopping, and neighborhoods. The new service is designed to efficiently connect locations where transit service is in high demand. It includes two new bus routes between Eastside cities. Route 221 has all-day, daily service between Redmond's Education Hill and Bellevue's Eastgate area. And, Route 248 has daily service between east Redmond and downtown Kirkland.

This new service complements more than 38,000 hours of Transit Now bus service that was added in 2007. Over the past year, service was increased in communities such as lower Queen Anne, Capitol Hill, First Hill, Ballard, the University District, Juanita, Kenmore, Kirkland, and on South King County routes serving Renton, Tukwila, SeaTac, and Burien.

Now, Metro turns its attention to the needs of growing communities in East and South King County that currently have limited bus service. By the end of the year, Metro is proposing new or revised routes serving North Bend, Snoqualmie, Issaquah Highlands, Klahanie, Carnation, Maple Valley, Black Diamond, and the Kent East Hill. Specific routes will be finalized later this year following public input.

Bus riders This year, Metro also plans to finalize several new partnerships that will leverage Transit Now funding to pay for additional targeted transit service. Through these partnerships, cities and companies can contribute funding to help pay for enhanced bus service serving their employees and communities. Those partnerships, modeled after a program launched last fall with Children's Hospital, will be phased in over several years beginning in September 2008.

In addition to these short-term service improvements, Metro continues to develop five RapidRide routes to be introduced beginning in 2010. Those RapidRide corridors will include Pacific Highway South, Bellevue-Redmond, West Seattle, Ballard and Aurora Avenue.

New routes and more frequent service are just two benefits Transit Now delivers. As more service hours are added, the initiative is giving Metro better tools to ease overcrowding on buses, especially during busy morning and afternoon commute times. With Transit Now, Metro hopes to expand its system by up to 20 percent between 2007 and 2016 – an increase that will also produce huge benefits for the environment. By making it more convenient for people to take the bus instead of driving alone, Metro will have more tools to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and global warming as it helps fight congestion.

"We have already seen what happens when we expand bus service. Since introducing our Route 180 airport connector route 18 months ago, we're seeing more than 900 new boardings a day for those trips between Kent, Sea-Tac, and Burien," Sims said. "As we look toward replacing key structures such as the Evergreen Floating Bridge and the Alaskan Way Viaduct, the region must continue to look at ways to increase its transit commitment in an effort to keep people moving."

Related information

February bus service changes focus on Eastside
Redmond Transit Center opens Feb. 9
More bus service for Eastside commuters, Seattle Post Intelligencer

King County Executive, Ron Sims County news Executive initiatives Excellence in Government Executive offices Biography Contact information King County Executive Office Ron Sims, King County Executive 701 Fifth Ave. Suite 3210 Seattle, WA 98104 Phone: 206-296-4040 Fax: 206-296-0194 TTY Relay: 711	KING COUNTY HOME \| NEWS \| SERVICES \| DIRECTORY \| CONTACT King County Executive, Ron Sims King County Executive You're in: King County Executive, Ron Sims print Feb. 6, 2008 Transit Now marks first anniversary by rolling out new routes and more service Metro to deliver 100,000 hours of Transit Now service by year's end Bus riders will see more than 16,000 new transit service hours, including two new Metro routes on the Eastside, beginning this Saturday. It marks the latest rollout of service from the voter approved Transit Now initiative, which is designed to attract 50,000 additional daily bus riders by 2016. By the end of 2008, an estimated 100,000 hours of new bus service will be on the street since voters approved Transit Now. "This is yet another Metro milestone as we continue to deliver on our promise to give people more travel options through Transit Now," King County Executive Ron Sims said. "This is another building block of a 21st Century bus system envisioned to support our growing region in an era of climate change." Metro's service change that begins on Saturday, Feb. 9, includes revisions to more than 30 Eastside bus routes that will improve connections to major transit centers, work sites, shopping, and neighborhoods. The new service is designed to efficiently connect locations where transit service is in high demand. It includes two new bus routes between Eastside cities. Route 221 has all-day, daily service between Redmond's Education Hill and Bellevue's Eastgate area. And, Route 248 has daily service between east Redmond and downtown Kirkland. This new service complements more than 38,000 hours of Transit Now bus service that was added in 2007. Over the past year, service was increased in communities such as lower Queen Anne, Capitol Hill, First Hill, Ballard, the University District, Juanita, Kenmore, Kirkland, and on South King County routes serving Renton, Tukwila, SeaTac, and Burien. Now, Metro turns its attention to the needs of growing communities in East and South King County that currently have limited bus service. By the end of the year, Metro is proposing new or revised routes serving North Bend, Snoqualmie, Issaquah Highlands, Klahanie, Carnation, Maple Valley, Black Diamond, and the Kent East Hill. Specific routes will be finalized later this year following public input. This year, Metro also plans to finalize several new partnerships that will leverage Transit Now funding to pay for additional targeted transit service. Through these partnerships, cities and companies can contribute funding to help pay for enhanced bus service serving their employees and communities. Those partnerships, modeled after a program launched last fall with Children's Hospital, will be phased in over several years beginning in September 2008. In addition to these short-term service improvements, Metro continues to develop five RapidRide routes to be introduced beginning in 2010. Those RapidRide corridors will include Pacific Highway South, Bellevue-Redmond, West Seattle, Ballard and Aurora Avenue. New routes and more frequent service are just two benefits Transit Now delivers. As more service hours are added, the initiative is giving Metro better tools to ease overcrowding on buses, especially during busy morning and afternoon commute times. With Transit Now, Metro hopes to expand its system by up to 20 percent between 2007 and 2016 – an increase that will also produce huge benefits for the environment. By making it more convenient for people to take the bus instead of driving alone, Metro will have more tools to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and global warming as it helps fight congestion. "We have already seen what happens when we expand bus service. Since introducing our Route 180 airport connector route 18 months ago, we're seeing more than 900 new boardings a day for those trips between Kent, Sea-Tac, and Burien," Sims said. "As we look toward replacing key structures such as the Evergreen Floating Bridge and the Alaskan Way Viaduct, the region must continue to look at ways to increase its transit commitment in an effort to keep people moving." Related information February bus service changes focus on Eastside Redmond Transit Center opens Feb. 9 More bus service for Eastside commuters, Seattle Post Intelligencer
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	Updated: Feb. 7, 2008