Transit Alert – Metro's fall service revisions begin September 23

 On Saturday, September 23, Metro’s fall service changes begin. Revisions include new purple timetables, schedule or other adjustments to 43 routes, and a restructure of Metro’s Night Owl service in King County that will replace routes 82, 83 and 84 with enhanced night service on 13 other existing local and RapidRide routes.

Service revisions
Added service funded by the City of Seattle Metro will be adding trips and adjusting schedules to improve service reliability and on-time performance on 43 routes. Also, priority trips will be added to address peak period overcrowding where existing trips are experiencing ridership growth on routes 28, 40, and the RapidRide C, D and E lines.

Metro will also be adding trips to routes 60, 131, 169 and 269 to improve service levels. These investments are being made as part of the adopted 2017-2018 Metro budget which includes the addition of more than 300,000 annual service hours to improve service throughout King County. The City of Seattle is providing additional funding to improve service frequency and to expand service on routes 3, 4, 8, 14, 41, 44, 48, 50, 60, 65 and 67.

Route 62 routing revisions
Route 62 has routing revisions both in downtown Seattle due to the Center City Connector project, and in the Magnuson Park area.

Columbia Street bus stop revision
As part of Columbia Street’s conversion to two way operation, the bus stop at Second Avenue will be closed, and routes heading to the Alaskan Way Viaduct will serve a new stop southbound on Third Avenue just north of Columbia Street as their last downtown stop before turning down the hill. 

Four Routes will be deleted
Night Owl routes 82, 83 & 84 Enhanced service will replace Night Owl routes 82, 83 and 84 in the East Green Lake, Maple Leaf and Madison Park areas.

Group Health Express Route 601 The RapidRide F Line will serve the new Kaiser Permanente facility on SW 27th St in south Renton, just south of the Sound Transit Sounder Station.

Night Owl Service Restructure
Metro’s Night Owl Routes 82, 83, and 84 will be replaced with enhanced night service on 13 other existing local and RapidRide routes, with new trips operating between about 2:00–5:00 AM.  As part of the Night Owl service restructure, early AM trips on Route 124 will be extended to SeaTac Airport, to provide a direct connection to/from downtown Seattle when Link light rail does not operate.

The Night Owl network is made up of some of Metro’s most popular routes. In addition to serving neighborhoods, communities, and the downtown Seattle area, Night Owls provide connections to Sea-Tac Airport, park & ride lots and transit centers. Expanded service on Seattle routes is funded by the City of Seattle. Seattle’s investments will establish new late-night connections throughout the city and provide cross-town Night Owl transit options for the first time.

Ride transit to Autumn activities
Autumn hiking Until the end of October, ride regular transit service to - or park at - either the Renton Highlands park-and-ride or the Issaquah Transit Center and ride Trailhead Direct, a seasonal weekend transit route that combines with regular bus service, or parking at nearby facilities, to provide direct service to several Issaquah area trailheads.

Football In addition to this fall’s service revisions, Metro provides non-stop shuttle and regular service to and from home Husky and Seahawks games.

In the interests of ease of travel, and reducing traffic congestion, Seahawks and Husky football fans are encouraged to ride regularly scheduled transit service, including Sound Transit’s Link light rail, to and from games.

There are many area park-and-ride lots where fans can park for free and ride regularly scheduled transit service to the event.

Metro provides non-stop park-and-ride lot shuttle service for weekend Seahawks home games. There are no shuttles for weekday games.  And, in partnership with the University of Washington, Metro provides P&R Shuttle, neighborhood special service and regular service for weekend Husky football games.

Find information
Fall service revisions are posted online, and are also included in new purple timetables and in the special rider alert brochure. Revised timetables are on Metro Online as of Friday afternoon, or customers can call Metro Customer Information at 206-553-3000.

During times when Metro’s Customer Service offices are closed, transit customers can use online resources to submit comments or manage their ORCA account, or to access Metro’s Puget Sound Trip Planner desktop and mobile apps for iOS and Android. 

When planning a trip in Metro’s online Trip Planner, use a date of September 23 or later in order to see new fall information. Use the Trip Planner to find a route or schedule, find a stop, track your bus or plan a trip.

Find out about other transit revisions in the greater Seattle and Puget Sound  area by visiting Metro’s transit partners at Community Transit, Everett Transit, King County Water Taxi, Pierce Transit, Seattle Streetcar, Sound Transit or the Washington State Ferries.

Fall is a busy time for schools, sports and other events, as well as construction projects that may have impacts on transit service.  Metro encourages everyone to ride transit to and from events, sign up for Transit Alerts, be aware of activities in your area, allow plenty of time, remember to plan your return trip and always check the online Service Advisories page before traveling, in order to know if there are any known events that might affect service.

Unexpected service disruptions
In addition to known service disruptions, delays or reroutes that may be in effect for pre-planned events, it is also possible for unexpected disruptions and delays to occur that are beyond Metro’s control, due to many possible reasons, including, weather, traffic, crowds and events.

In areas where there are crowds, traffic or unscheduled events, transit riders are advised to be aware of conditions in their immediate vicinity – such as street closures, detours, police directions, etc. - and be prepared for delays or to make revisions to travel plans – such as using a different bus stop or a different route - based on specific circumstances.  During these kinds of events, be prepared for unexpectedly revised traffic or routing, and for delays in transit service.

If buses are operating along their normal routes, but delayed, it may be possible to get more specific information by visiting Metro’s Puget Sound Trip Planner and checking the ‘Next Departures & Stops’ feature.  Please note, however, that real time information may be less reliable in adverse or unexpected conditions.

For non-transit traffic or other local updates, check media sources, follow @seattledot or visit - https://twitter.com/seattledot - https://twitter.com/SeattlePD

Finally, with these revisions, Metro encourages riders to review and revise their Transit Alert subscriptions as necessary.