Thanks to reforms, efficiencies and costs savings, fewer bus cuts will be needed for Metro Transit than previously estimated. The new total was announced today (Sept. 17) putting the figure at 400,000 service hours instead of 550,000 hours. The details are part of King County Executive Dow Constantine’s proposed two-year Metro Transit budget that will be delivered to the County Council on Sept. 22.

Cutting transit by 11 percent instead of 16 percent is still going to affect a lot of riders. Rounds 1 and 2 of cuts will mean a loss of an estimated 5 million rides a year out of the roughly 118 million rides Metro provides. General Manager Kevin Desmond spoke with reporters Sept. 17 to explain the details.

You can watch video highlights (part 1 or part 2) from the announcement, or the entire 33 minutes.

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YouTube link: Part 1

 

 

 

 

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YouTube link: Part 2

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There’s much more information on Metro’s website, including:

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