The Route Ahead | December 2020 | Community Transit News

Washington Exposure Notifications - WA Notify

What is WA Notify?

Washington Exposure Notifications (also known as WA Notify) is a new tool that works through smartphones, without sharing any personal information, to alert users if they may have been exposed to COVID-19. It is completely private, and doesn’t know or track who you are or where you go.

How does it work?

When you enable WA Notify, your phone exchanges random, anonymous codes with the phones of people you are near who have also enabled WA Notify. The app uses Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) technology to exchange these random codes without revealing any information about you. If another WA Notify user you’ve been near within the last two weeks later tests positive for COVID-19 and adds their verification code to the app, you’ll get an anonymous notification that you’ve had a possible exposure. This lets you get the care you need quickly and helps prevent you from spreading COVID-19 to the people around you. To learn more, please visit www.wanotify.org.

$5 fee waived for new ORCA cards through February

At Community Transit, we recommend using an ORCA card as the easiest way to pay your bus fare. That’s never been more important, as an ORCA card provides a fast and contact-free payment option when health and safety matters most.

With ORCA, you can just tap and go — no need to handle cash and change when paying to ride the bus. ORCA also makes it simpler if you transfer to another bus — just tap your ORCA card each time you get on a bus and you will only be charged once. Paying with ORCA automatically gives you a two-hour transfer that credits the fare you've already paid when you transfer to another bus.

To encourage contact-free payment and quicker boarding, we are waiving the $5 fee for new ORCA cards through Feb. 28, 2021. Read more about the offer here.

Swift Blue Line celebrates its 11th anniversary

Last month Swift Blue Line celebrated its 11^th anniversary providing bus rapid transit (BRT) service in Snohomish County. Swift Blue Line marked the start of the first bus rapid transit line in the state of Washington. On Nov. 30, 2009 at 5 a.m., about 1,500 people boarded the new bus line. Since then we have celebrated many milestones including celebrating our 15 millionth rider and extending the Swift BRT network with Swift Green Line.

Read the full story about our past and future milestones here.

Community Transit’s adopted 2021 Budget prioritizes safety and increased outreach

Community Transit’s adopted 2021 Budget will continue to prioritize safe travel for Snohomish County residents and includes an increase of approximately 4,000 hours of new service in 2021, a more moderate expansion than in previous years.

The modest service increase corresponds with the “Slow Recovery” economic projection described in the agency’s 2020-2025 Transit Development Plan (TDP). It also follows a recession-related service reduction in 2020 as transit ridership and revenues fell due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The new budget will continue to prioritize the health and safety of riders, employees, and their families. The transit agency has put in place many additional safety measures on vehicles and at bases to ensure a safe ride and a safe working environment for its employees. The 2021 budget will continue to fund nightly disinfecting of buses and thorough cleaning of the agency’s operating bases, as well as providing personal protective equipment for employees. To learn more about the new budget, please visit www.communitytransit.org/budget

Thank you

Former Community Transit CEO Emmett Heath shares his thoughts and welcomes new CEO Ric Ilgenfritz.

As I reflect on my career, including the past 15 years at Community Transit, I find myself thinking the most about all the people who have shared the journey with me. I am grateful for the many colleagues and mentors who have brought joy to my life and meaning to my work. I am thankful for the people in communities all across the region I’ve worked with and served. And I am grateful for the people who have trusted me to deliver results “better than promised” and then held me accountable to do just that. I’ve learned from the best over the past 40 years, beginning in the early days when I started as a maintenance manager all the way through my role as CEO. Through it all, it’s been the engagement with my colleagues and the community that I will value and remember the most.

Read the full text of Emmett Heath's "Thank you" at http://bit.ly/3mYwLvO.