Remember, “It’s a great day to ride Metro” to get to events and activities where there is often traffic congestion and limited parking.

Weekend Service Impacts

• Route 4 will be rerouted off of 5th Avenue N near the Seattle Center on Sunday, December 31 starting at 9 p.m. during New Year's at the Needle event;

• Route 21 will be affected in both directions during the NHL Winter Classic; stops on portions of 1st Avenue S will not be served on Monday, January 1; use alternate stops on 4th Avenue S instead;

Service Reminders

• Take transit to all your holiday, sporting and community events in Seattle. Metro and Link light rail serves riders heading to T-Mobile Park, Husky Stadium, Lumen Field and Climate Pledge Arena;

Seattle Kraken host the Philadelphia Flyers at 7 p.m. on Friday at Climate Pledge Arena; The Seahawks will play the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday, December 31st at 1:05 p.m. at Lumen Field; T-Mobile Park will host the NHL Winter Classic of the Kraken vs Las Vegas Golden Knights at 12 p.m.; Click here for an larger version of the map.  Water Taxi will continue a year-round midday and weekend sailing schedule;  West Seattle and Vashon Water Taxi will not run on New Year's day. Check out our holiday sailing schedules; Seattle Center Monorail will be open late from 8:30 a.m. to 1 a.m. for New Year's Eve on Sunday and will open late from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. this weekend. The Monorail will depart approximately every 10 minutes; Riders can use Text for Departures by texting their stop number to 62550 to get next departure times; Remember, it's free and easy to sign up for email or text alerts about King County Metro service. Alerts can be tailored to your favorite route(s).

Metro News

• Ride fare-free from football to fireworks this New Year’s Eve

• Take transit to the outdoors to watch the NHL Winter Classic

• Paying it forward: Metro and its largest labor partner create mentoring program for new drivers

King County Metro, Sound Transit and other regional transit partners are teaming up to provide free rides for one of the busiest New Year’s Eves in years.

Whether you’re headed to see the Seattle Seahawks fight for the playoffs at Lumen Field, are a hockey fan making their way to the NHL Winter Classic Fan Village, joining the large crowds for the fireworks at the Space Needle or going out to other events throughout the region transit’s got you covered.

King County Metro Buses will operate on their regular Sunday schedule and be fare-free from 3 a.m. Sunday, Dec. 31, through 3 a.m. Monday, Jan. 1. Other Metro services operating fare-free include DART, Metro Flex, Community Van, and Access service.

During Dec. 31 service riders can travel without paying fares on King County Metro, Water Taxi, Metro Flex, Sound Transit Link, Sounder trains, Community Transit, Everett Transit and the Seattle Streetcar.

Avoid the “hangover” of searching for parking on New Year’s Day and ride transit to the celebration of outdoor hockey as T-Mobile Park hosts the National Hockey League’s annual Winter Classic.

Metro has many options to take you within short walking/rolling/biking distance of T-Mobile Park, and we’ll be operating post-event shuttles to help you get from the stadium after the final horn sounds. Sound Transit’s Sounder Game Train will also be in service for the Winter Classic. The King County Water Taxi will not sail on New Year’s Day. We encourage riders to allow extra travel time and board available transit swiftly within the half hour after the game lets out. Thank you in advance for your patience. For more information check out the Metro Matters blog.

Paying it forward: Metro and its largest labor partner create mentoring program for new drivers

As King County Metro increases the number of bus drivers serving our community, we’re also making sure our new colleagues are supported and set up for success. In collaboration with the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) 587, many of our new operators will gain experience and knowledge from the best teachers around: veteran drivers.

“Mentors Moving Metro,” a pilot program developed by Metro and ATU, will match experienced operators with new, part-time operators for six to 12 months.

The mentorship pilot is informed by best practices at similar programs at transit agencies within the United States and Canada. In a recent briefing presented by the ATU, Metro Chiefs and Superintendents learned about a mentorship program at the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority (RTA). During that program’s first two years, RTA saw a 36% increase in employee retention, a 30% decrease in absenteeism and a 50% decrease in late arrivals by employees.

Following this pilot program, the ultimate goal is to provide a trained mentor to each new driver that joins Metro. A team appointed by Metro General Manager Allison and ATU 587 President Price will begin signing up mentors and mentees early next year. We’re excited in bringing many new operators onboard and connecting them with “Mentors Moving Metro.”

Learn more on the Metro Matters blog.

Metro is hiring part-time and full-time transit operators (bus drivers) and trades professionals to keep the region moving. Learn more on our website.