Picture This!
What's
new this week in transportation
Water
Taxi celebrates record-breaking season
People
ride the Elliott Bay Water Taxi to get to work, visit
Alki Beach, catch a Mariners game, or, like Carol Viger
(above), visit the Pike Place Market once a week for
fresh flowers. As a regular passenger, Viger says,
"Seattle needs to support the Water Taxi."
Metro's Elliott Bay Water
Taxi
sailed away with a record-breaking number of riders this
past summer. And this year, the popular service continues
into the fall.
In previous
years, the service stopped at the end of summer. This
year, it will run through the end of December, with the
possibility of service being extended until next spring.
The Water Taxi schedule changed in September to adjust
for slightly longer crossing times during the stormier
fall and winter months.
"This
season has been very successful for the Water Taxi on
several levels," said Paul Toliver, director of the King County
Department of Transportation. "Not only have
we seen ridership jump, but we have also been able to
lower operating costs."
Toliver said
the main purpose of the 2001 extended season is to
determine the level of ridership that can be expected
during the fall and winter. He said it will be an
important factor in the decision to continue the water
taxi as a permanent service.
The Water
Taxi has become one of Metro Transit's popular success
stories. Started in 1999 as a demonstration project under
the support of King County
Councilmember Greg Nickels, the Water Taxi has
seen a 78 percent overall increase in daily passenger
trips since its inception while at the same time reducing
its cost per rider by about 57 percent.
"More
than 100,000 trips were taken on the Water Taxi between
late May and mid September," said Councilmember
Nickels, who represents West Seattle. "That is a
record for the Water Taxi and proof that people are
willing to get out of their cars to use a variety of
public transit options."
Fall is a
wonderful time to experience the Water Taxi. You don't
need to look any farther than across the bay to see the
spectacular autumn color that makes Seattle one of the
most picturesque cities in the country. This time of
year, it's hard to miss the fiery red, orange and yellow
hues along the Alki Spit in West Seattle.
The Elliott Bay Water
Taxi
makes dozens of trips every day between Pier 54 at the
foot of Madison Street on the downtown Seattle waterfront
and Seacrest Park in West Seattle.
Related
links
The Elliott Bay Water
Taxi
schedule, fares and information
"Water Taxi marks 100,000th rider," news release, Oct. 2, 2001
"Water Taxi offers the
$2 vacation in under an hour," The Seattle
Times, Aug. 23, 2001 [external link]
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