Transit Alert – Ready when you are: See Metro’s COVID updates & recovery report; thank you riders, for wearing a mask and following safety guidelines

King County, Washington sent this bulletin at 10/09/2020 05:37 PM PDT

Ready when you are, Metro is committed to continuous improvement, and is developing and implementing innovations to improve your transit experience.

For a look at Metro’s recovery plan, visit the Metro Matters blog.

In preparation for last week’s resumption of front door boarding and fare collection, Metro added new safety measures. Tapping your ORCA card remains the fastest and safest way to pay your fare. Visit Metro’s website to learn about managing your ORCA account and all of the available fare paying options.

Please wear a mask and abide by posted safety guidelines while riding transit.

Current Metro service
Metro’s fall service revisions are in full swing. September 19 revisions include expanded transit service and improved mobility in the south and southeast areas of King County, modified service reductions in response to the ongoing impacts from the COVID pandemic and new safety innovations and guidelines.

It’s possible that Metro service may be intermittently and temporarily interrupted or rerouted during civic events in the downtown, Capitol Hill or other neighborhoods in its service area.  See below for information about planning ahead for possible service interruptions.

Community Ride & Rideshare
Community Ride is a reservation-based, on demand transportation service that travels within a service area instead of along a fixed route.

Sammamish Community Ride and Juanita Community Ride resumed operating on September 19.

The City of Bellevue and Metro partnered to launch a new service – Crossroads Connect – on October 1.

Visit RideshareOnline.com to find a vanpool or carpool match for your commute.

Ride safely
Metro thanks riders for following safety policies and guidelines, including:

  • Wearing a face covering in public while riding on transit.
  • Staying home if you are sick.
  • Maintaining 6 feet of distance from others.
  • Observing and abiding by posted directions and decals.

Watch for new or changing information.

Information

Transit service may be interrupted by civic events or activities
In areas where there are planned or unplanned crowds, traffic, weather or civic events disrupting normal travel patterns or activities, transit riders are advised to be aware of conditions in their immediate vicinity, such as street closures or detours, 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.

Be prepared for unexpectedly revised traffic or routing, and for delays in transit service. Transit riders are encouraged to know the alternate stops or routes that may be near their starting points and destinations.

Depending on the time and the nature of such events, Metro may not be able to provide real-time information or service updates via email or text.  Event start and end times and other details may be subject to change.

For non-transit traffic or other local updates, check media sources, follow

@seattledot
or visit
- https://twitter.com/seattledot
- https://twitter.com/SeattlePD

Know before you go
During events that disrupt transit service, online customer information planning tools and third-party apps may be inaccurate. While these tools will be updated to reflect fall service change schedules, they may not reflect all temporary schedule changes.

These systems may still provide useful information, such as maps and bus stop information.

  • Check to see the status of a trip by using ‘Next Departures’ in Metro’s Trip Planner, or Text for Departures by texting your stop ID to 62550.
  • Riders can contact Metro Customer Information at 206-553-3000 Monday through Friday, 6 AM-8 PM, or reach us on the web using our comment form for assistance.
  • Sound Transit’s Link and Sounder rail services and some ST Express bus routes may also be affected. Transferring riders should check Sound Transit’s service alerts.

 Thank you for riding and for using Metro’s services.  Be safe.