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Innovative improvements at downtown bus stops are part of
tunnel closure project Over the summer, Metro Transit crews have been busy working on improvements to bus shelters in the Central Business District of Downtown Seattle. The shelter upgrades are part of the $16 million in mitigation projects associated with the upcoming closure of the Downtown Seattle Transit Tunnel, but it’s also an opportunity for Metro to try out a cool new technology – solar-lighted bus shelters. “We’ve wanted to add lighting to our downtown bus shelters for many years,” said Dale Cummings, project manager for bus shelter lighting. “But, it’s really hard to bring in traditional electricity when an area is as built up as downtown. It can be very costly to rip up streets and sidewalks to wire a shelter for electricity.”  Knowing that many shelters were going to be refurbished before the
tunnel closes on Sept. 24, Metro’s Transit Route Facilities group began
investigating solar power. They worked with a British Columbia company
that specializes in transit lighting to develop a system unique for
Metro that is well adapted to the Seattle climate.The 37 solar-lighted shelters are in 13 locations downtown. Most shelters have two solar panels on top, each approximately 2 feet by 5 feet. Sunlight is collected by the panels, stored in batteries, and then used to power four light fixtures in each shelter. The light fixtures are made of LEDs (light-emitting diodes), which are silicon chips the size of the head of a nail. LEDs are particularly efficient because they convert most of the electrical energy into light rather than heat. There were also a few locations around downtown where new shelters were installed and traditional electrical lighting was added. “Lighting in the shelters helps our customers feel safe and secure, and it also helps our bus drivers more clearly see that passengers are waiting for the bus,” said Sharon Slebodnick, acting supervisor of Transit Route Facilities. “We will be monitoring the new solar-light units, and hope they will give us more lighting options for areas throughout Metro’s system.” Overall, as part of the tunnel closure preparations, the Transit Route Facilities unit has upgraded bus stops or installed new shelters at approximately 100 locations in the Central Business District. In addition to new lighting systems, there are also more benches and litter receptacles in these locations, and some bus zones have been lengthened to accommodate more buses. On Fourth Avenue South, just north of Jackson Street, Metro is building a new transit island on the west side of the street. Once the tunnel closes, this new stop will be served by routes traveling north on Fourth Avenue, turning on Prefontaine Place, and then continuing further uptown via Third Avenue. Buses traveling through on Fourth Avenue will continue to use the existing bus stop on the west side of Union Station south of South Jackson Street. This will help split the bus volumes and keep general-purpose traffic flowing up the center lane on Fourth Avenue South. For more information about the upcoming tunnel closure and the changes ahead for downtown traffic and transit, visit Metro Online or www.seattletunnel.org. |
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