The recent election of the former head the Seattle Transit Riders Union Katie Wilson to be Seattle’s mayor occurred less than a month after Councilmember Alexis Mercedes Rinck announced her ‘Better Bus Lanes’ Campaign. In the spirit of that campaign I offer suggestions for improvements that can be accomplished in the near future:
Continue reading “Better Buses in Seattle” | 15 commentsWeekend Open Thread: Federal Way’s Big Day
We’ll all be at the Federal Way Link opening today. Try out the new stations. Tell us your experiences below.
There will be no Sunday Movie this week. We’re planning a retrospective article after the event, but its timing will depend on what happens today and whether we can assemble the content by tonight for tomorrow. If you have any video from the event you’d like to share, you can email a link to contact at the website.
This is an open thread.
87 commentsFederal Way Link Extension: New Stations
On December 6, Sound Transit will open the Federal Way Link Extension (FWLE). This extension will add three new stations along eight miles of new track south of Angle Lake station. The stations are Kent Des Moines, Star Lake, and Federal Way Downtown. Each station will feature connections to local bus service, pickup and drop-off areas, and lots of parking. Wesley Lin discussed the walkability of each station in a previous article.
Kent Des Moines Station
The northernmost new station, Kent Des Moines, is located southeast of Pacific Hwy S & S Kent Des Moines Rd. The area around the station includes Highline College, car-oriented big box stores, a self-storage facility, and I-5. Excluding Highline College, these are far from ideal land uses around a Link station. Sound Transit and the City of Kent plan to develop two plots immediately west of the station, previously used for construction staging.
Continue reading “Federal Way Link Extension: New Stations” | 10 commentsFederal Way Link Extension: Sneak Peek
On Tuesday, Sound Transit invited members of the media to preview the Federal Way Link Extension (FWLE) that opens on Saturday. This extension will add three new stations to the 1 Line south of Angle Lake: Kent Des Moines, Star Lake, and Federal Way Downtown. Terri Mestas, deputy CEO for megaproject delivery at Sound Transit, welcomed the group and highlighted the recently completed bridge near the McSorely Wetland in Kent. This bridge is a recent addition to the FWLE; it was conceived after a 2022 landslide revealed more unstable soil conditions than expected. At 1,100ft, this is the longest bridge used by Link (so far). After the introductory remarks, we entered Kent Des Moines station and began our journey to Federal Way.
Spoiler Alert: This article has descriptions, pictures, and videos of inside the new stations and from the train. If you prefer to wait and see the new stations in-person, do not continue reading.
Continue reading “Federal Way Link Extension: Sneak Peek” | 59 commentsMidweek Roundup: Othello Station Closed
Update at 7:15am: Othello station is open and trains are back to normal service.
Othello station on the 1 Line closed around 2:30pm Tuesday and will remain closed through Wednesday’s morning commute at least, due to an ongoing police investigation. Shuttle buses are running between Rainier Beach and Columbia City stations. Link is running north and south of there. Travel times through the area may be long due to heavy traffic and street closures. The Link maintenance planned Tuesday night in North Seattle was postponed.
This started around 1:30pm Tuesday when police shot and killed a man who was allegedly waving a gun near MLK & South Othello Street. The Seattle Times posted a short followup at 9:30pm.
Sound Transit has a chart of alternative bus routes between 1 Line station pairs if want to avoid a 3-seat ride through the area and potential delays.
Regular roundup news links are below the fold.
Continue reading “Midweek Roundup: Othello Station Closed” | 111 commentsFederal Way Link Extension: How We Got Here
In just a few days, the first Link train with passengers will travel to Kent and Federal Way. Since the first official discussions of building light rail to Federal Way over 15 years ago, the Seattle Transit Blog has followed its progress. Take a trip down memory lane as we look back at the discussions, designs, and construction that have led to the celebration this Saturday.
In November 2007, the Roads and Transit ballot measure was rejected by voters. The “roads” part of the ballot measure would have invested in state highways, bridges, and local roads in an attempt to fix key chokepoints. The “transit” part of the package would have extended Link north to 164th St/Ash Way, south to Tacoma Dome, and east to Overlake/Microsoft in Redmond. The plan would have also funded additional ST Express service, the First Hill Streetcar, and planning studies for potential transit extensions.
After the ballot measure failed, Sound Transit went back to the drawing board for ST2. In April 2008, the Federal Way City Council voted to support light rail through Federal Way to Tacoma. However, Sound Transit had a different plan. In July, Erica C. Barnett (then at The Stranger), shared a breakdown of the revised ST2 plan. This plan included:
Continue reading “Federal Way Link Extension: How We Got Here” | 49 commentsFederal Way Link Extension: Opening Celebration Details
Sound Transit’s Federal Way Link Extension (FWLE) will open to the public this Saturday, December 6. Festivities begin at 9:30am with speeches from community leaders at Federal Way Downtown station. Following the ribbon cutting at 11am, the first passengers will be welcomed onboard.
Between 11am and 3pm, each of the three new stations will host a community event. The celebration at Kent Des Moines station will feature seven themed “gardens” that highlight local culture, innovation and community. These include interactive art and history exhibits, food trucks, live performances, and youth-led activities. In addition, guests can explore community resources, meet local businesses, and enjoy performances from regional schools and cultural groups.
Continue reading “Federal Way Link Extension: Opening Celebration Details” | 47 commentsSunday Movies: Microtransit-Only City & Milan
Arlington, Texas (pop 400K) is the largest US city with no fixed bus routes, just subsidized Via app-taxis. (Classy Whale)
See Milan’s transit modes while learning Italian. (Easy Italian)
This is an open thread.
28 commentsFriday Roundtable: MEHVA Vintage Bus Tours
On a rainy Sunday in October, three Metro buses meandered through the beautiful Cascade foothills on their way to Black Diamond. Leading the pack was Metro bus 5034, a 1990 Breda DuoBus 350. Following the Breda was bus 3152, a 1987 MAN Americana SL40102L. Finally, a 2004 New Flyer DE60LF acted as the caboose for this trip. While the buses navigated the twists, turns, and hills (the MAN bus struggled up most hills), over 100 passengers enjoyed the views, both of the scenery and of the buses.
These three buses were operating the Metro Employees Historic Vehicle Association’s (MEHVA) Fall Foliage tour. The tour stopped in Black Diamond, where the tour participants could get a bite to eat at Black Diamond Bakery and learn more about the buses. The extremely knowledgeable operators shared insights about the buses and reminisced about driving in the Downtown Seattle Transit Tunnel.
Midweek Roundup: NIMBYs in a corner
Local Transit News:
- In a “special” media appearance on the Seattle Nice podcast, Mayor-elect Wilson said she wants to put BAT lanes on Denny (PubliCola)
- Amtrak ridership between October 2024 and September 2025 broke records in the PNW (The Urbanist)
- Sound Transit’s possible light-rail cost-cutting options floated at full-house West Seattle forum (West Seattle Blog)
- Sound Transit 2 Line Testing Enters a New, More Visible Phase (The Urbanist)
- Staffers Say Sound Transit Refused to Bargain on Return-to-Office Policy, Use of Consultants (PubliCola)
- SDOT’s seasonal street parking fee update puts parking in Pike-Pine at a premium (The Seattle Times, $). More details on the SDOT Blog.
- For sale: Two retired state ferries. Dreamers need not apply (KUOW)
- How Mayor-elect Wilson Can Hit the Ground Running, Walking, Rolling, and Biking (The Urbanist)
- Extended Rainier Ave Bus Lane Offers a Seamless, More Reliable Trip for Thousands of Daily Riders (SDOT Blog). SDOT also finished its refresh of the Ballard Bridge and 15th Ave NW including taking away a traffic lane, adding pedestrian signals, and red paint.
- Tale of Two Cities: Why Vancouver (BC) and Seattle Downtowns Look So Different (Post Alley)
Thanksgiving Holiday Service 2025
Thursday is Thanksgiving, so Puget Sound transit agencies are running reduced schedules. In addition, some agencies (indicated below) are running reduced service on Friday, the day after Thanksgiving. Click on an agency’s name to view the official announcement.
Sound Transit
Thanksgiving Day
- Link: Sunday schedule
- ST Express: Sunday schedule
- Sounder: No service
- T Line: Sunday schedule
Day After Thanksgiving
- Link: Saturday schedule
- ST Express: Weekday schedule
- Sounder: No service
- T Line: Reduced Saturday schedule
Sunday Movies: Berry Street & Climate
Berry Street in Brooklyn, New York. The best urban street in the US? (Fourth Place)
Sabine Hossenfelder, German physicist, is pessimistic about humanity’s ability to cope with climate change. (Sabine Hossenfelder)
This is an open thread.
101 commentsMidweek Roundup: hope this helps
Local Transit News:
- “Build the Damn Trains” is easier said than done (The Urbanist).
- Building planned infill stations for the damn trains to serve might be even harder (The Urbanist)
- Pierce Transit received national and local sustainability awards (Pierce Transit News)
- New and improved services are coming to Metro’s Access Paratransit service, including same-day pickups, more reliable reservations, and more (Metro Matters)
- The West Seattle Light Rail Visioning Forum was rescheduled to Monday, Nov. 24 (West Seattle Blog)
- What it looks like to get from Seattle to Portland using only local transit (The Seattle Times, $)
- Community Transit’s Swift Gold Line is very popular, but residents have concerns over exchanging parking for center-running bus lanes (Everett Herald)
King County Metro’s Most Productive Routes
King County Metro recently completed the 2025 System Evaluation, which is expected to be published later this month. This report is a review of Metro’s service in 2024 and highlights where additional service is needed. This article will focus on the Route Productivity data shared in Appendix H. Upcoming articles will discuss other sections of the report.
King County Metro measures route productivity using two metrics:
- Rides per platform hour (RPPH): how many people are using a route relative to how many hours it is in operation
- Passenger miles per platform mile (PMPPM): how far people are traveling on a route relative to how many miles the route serves.
Both are important measures for how well a route is serving communities in King County. Routes with a high number of rides per platform hour are serving a lot of trips. Routes with more passenger miles per platform mile are used by passengers for longer trips.
Most Productive Routes By Rides Per Platform Hour
The System Evaluation reports each route’s RPPH by weekday peak, weekday off-peak, weekday night, Saturday, and Sunday. To simplify this analysis, we’ve calculated the weighted average RPPH for each route. The top ten routes are listed below, along with the RapidRide routes that did not make the top ten. Click/tap on a route to see its schedule and map. Note: Only routes that run during all time periods were considered.
Continue reading “King County Metro’s Most Productive Routes” | 53 commentsSunday Movies: One-Way Streets & Self Storage
All about one-way streets. (City Beautiful)
Americans have gone crazy for self-storage units. (Wendover Productions)
This is the last of the movie backlog, so future Sunday Movies will depend on if I can find more relevant movies.
This is an open thread.
79 commentsFriday Roundtable: Tokyo’s Trams vs Seattle’s Streetcars
At first glance, the passenger rail systems in Seattle and Tokyo have nothing in common. Seattle has seven passenger rail lines (1 Line, 2 Line, S Line, N Line, First Hill Line, South Lake Union Line, Seattle Center Monorail). Meanwhile, Tokyo has 102 passenger rail lines. Seattle’s system has 130 thousand daily passengers while Tokyo’s has 41 million daily passengers. Despite these differences, there is one commonality between the transit systems: both Seattle and Tokyo each have two disconnected streetcar routes. (Note: “Tram” and “Streetcar” are used interchangeably in this article)
Trams in Tokyo
Tokyo’s passenger rail network is one of the best in the world. Subways, regional trains, and Shinkansen high speed trains carry over a million people every hour. Before many of these services were built, Tokyo had a dense network of trams called the Tokyo Toden. At its peak, the Toden system had 41 routes. Over the past 75 years, almost all of these routes have been replaced by subways or buses, except the Arakawa Line. The Arakawa Line is a 12.2km (7.6mi) cross-town route that connects several neighborhoods and ten subway lines. The route primarily uses a dedicated right-of-way (ROW) but it does have a short segment in mixed traffic. Despite 5 minute frequencies during the day, the trams are consistently full. In 2018, the Arakawa Line carried over 48,000 passengers every day.
Katie Wilson is Seattle’s Next Mayor
After an 8-month campaign and 8 days of election results, Katie Wilson has been elected as the 58th Mayor of Seattle. As of Wednesday afternoon, Wilson has a 1,976 vote lead over incumbent Mayor Bruce Harrell. Harrell is expected to concede in a speech at noon today.
Since founding the Seattle Transit Riders Union (TRU) in 2011, Wilson has been an effective force in local and regional politics. In 2014, Wilson and TRU successfully lobbied King County to create ORCA Lift, a reduced-fare transit access program for low-income riders. She was driver of efforts to raise the minimum wage in Burien, SeaTac and Tukwila, many of which were successful. Wilson also played a key role in getting the JumpStart Payroll Expense Tax passed in 2020. Although not quite as charismatic as the Mayor-elect of NYC she is often compared to, by all accounts Wilson is a skilled coalition builder and an impactful proponent of progressive policies.
Throughout her campaign, Wilson emphasized the importance of fixing Seattle’s streets to make them safer, minimizing the planning and permitting delays for Link extensions, and expanding bus service. Here are a few major opportunities she’ll have to achieve those goals as Mayor:
Continue reading “Katie Wilson is Seattle’s Next Mayor” | 42 commentsMidweek Roundup: too flipping expensive
Elections, Events, and Campaigns:
- As of yesterday afternoon, Mayoral Candidate Wilson now leads Incumbent Mayor Harrell by 1,346 votes (0.49%). PubliCola reports there are very few ballots remaining to count, and that this is the closest Seattle mayoral race since 1906 and may trigger a mandatory recount. The Northwest Progressive Institute dove into the details; there are still about 1,500 ballots with missing or mismatched signatures. Go here to make sure your vote was counted!
- Transportation Choices Coalition (TCC) is hosting a “West Seattle Light Rail Visioning Forum” on Monday, November 17th (West Seattle Blog) Participants will include KC CM Teresa Mosqueda, KC Exec. Sharon Braddock, ST CEO Dow Constatine, ST Director of Capital Delivery Brad Owen, and TCC Exec. Kirk Hovenkotter.
- TCC will launch its “Build the Damn Trains!” campaign tomorrow (Campaign Website). Key points: no cancelled Link projects, no more delays, and no more subarea equity barriers.
- Sound Transit is running another Passenger Experience Survey. Share your thoughts before December 6.
Local Transit & Streets
- Another week, another driver gets their car hit by a Link train on MLK, shutting down service for hours on Friday (The Seattle Times, $)
- The end of an article about parking at “The Summit at Snoqualmie” mentions efforts by the Cascade Backcountry Alliance to get Metro to run winter shuttles to Snoqualmie Pass (The Seattle Times, $)
- Sound Transit selected private bus operator MV Transportation to run its Stride BRT network (The Urbanist)
- Systems integration testing continues on Crosslake section of the 2 Line (The Platform). ST is also testing mixed 1 and 2 Line operations in Seattle during “select morning and evening peak hours” with a single out-of-service 2 Line car.
- Bothell Advances Citywide 20 MPH Residential Speed Limit (The Urbanist)
Denny Way Mode Share
By JASON LI
King County Metro’s Route 8 is the slowest and least reliable bus route in the entire city. That was proven this summer when hundreds of transit advocates outwalked and outdanced the bus doing the slowest things we know during our Race the L8 event. The reason for this is painfully obvious: buses are constantly stuck in the traffic towards the I-5 entrances that brings Denny Way to a standstill. Despite all of its issues, Route 8 still manages to attract 7,000 daily riders. This makes it Metro’s eighth most popular route and is a testament to how vital it is as the only east-west bus route between downtown and the ship canal.
That’s why the Fix the L8 campaign has been advocating for bus lanes on Denny Way for years, including writing a three part series for the Seattle Transit Blog earlier this summer. We were honored to have been able to stand and speak with City Councilmember Alexis Mercedes Rinck when she echoed our call for full-length two-way bus lanes on Denny via Better Bus Lanes campaign. She even secured majority support in City Counci for this with councilmembers Hollingsworth, Saka, Juarez, and Solomon as co-sponsors. This issue has even prompted responses from representatives in every level of local government, including County Councilmember Teresa Mosqueda and State Representative Julia Reed.
Unfortunately, SDOT seems content on allowing Route 8 buses to continue festering in traffic. It recently announced it has decided to forgo bus lanes where they are most needed along Denny Way. This decision was predicated on a fundamentally flawed traffic study, which assumed that zero drivers would switch to taking transit or switch to alternate streets after bus lanes are installed or seek alternate routes. Despite the glaring error, the study did still include some incredibly insightful data, revealing that the Route 8 riders match drivers headed to Capitol Hill on Denny Way and even outnumber drivers headed to I-5 S when combined with pedestrians as shown below.
Continue reading “Denny Way Mode Share” | 87 commentsSunday Movies: Honolulu Metro & Toronto LRT
Honolulu’s automated metro had an extension open last month, and a third phase started construction this summer. The video discusses four levels of automation, and the last section talks about how to partly automate Chicago’s Blue L Line. (Car Free Keith)
Toronto’s Eglington light rail project is a long saga. (Andriyas Redel)
Fill out the ST Express restructure survey by November 11th if you haven’t already. Here’s our overview of the proposal and Alex’s alternative.
This is an open thread.
52 comments