Metro thanks passengers for a smooth morning commute


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		News from King County Department of Transportation Release date: Aug. 13, 2007 Metro thanks passengers for a smooth northbound morning commute Elliott Bay Water Taxi sets record for single trip Click here to see the video It appeared to be “smooth sailing” both on land and water this morning for King County Metro Transit, as local residents turned to public transportation to avoid the construction zone on northbound Interstate 5. “The public response was great,” said Metro General Manager Kevin Desmond. “Traffic on northbound I-5 was lighter than normal, and we saw more people on the bus, train and water taxi this morning. We really want to thank people for taking so many cars off the road today.” Ridership on Metro’s Elliott Bay Water Taxi set a record with 191 passengers on the third sailing of the morning. All together, almost 600 people rode the Water Taxi between 6-9 a.m. today. The increased passenger loads caused some schedule delays, but Metro is looking at ways to speed up the boarding process. Metro also saw heavier than normal bus ridership before 7 a.m. this morning, indicating that many people got an early start on the commute. But, while buses were generally full for the remainder of the morning commute, Metro did not see significant delays. “All of our preparations paid off,” said Desmond. “The 139 bus trips that we detoured off of I-5 averaged delays of less than 10 minutes, and none of our standby buses were needed.” There were some early trips that were quite crowded, and Metro is looking at using the standby buses on those routes if the demand continues. Traffic to and from Safeco Field for this week’s Mariners games will also be closely monitored. “The I-5 project still has two weeks to go, and we hope people keep doing what they did this morning,” said Desmond. “The traffic conditions for all of us could quickly change if more people try to drive I-5.”

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Updated: August 13, 2007

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