According to the National Weather Service, snow is in the forecast for the Greater Seattle Area this evening through tomorrow morning. Metro is staffing up and preparing for possible snow accumulations and also encourages riders to prepare as weather conditions develop.

Metro will be monitoring reports across King County overnight, and depending on where snow develops and accumulates, will announce snow reroutes on our website, MetroWinter.com and issue transit email and text alerts. Reroutes will be on a case-by-case basis, depending on what Mother Nature decides.

The decision whether to chain up the fleet will be based on what routes are affected and where, and we’re getting ready just in case. Base crews will be on point to chain up buses as needed. In addition, chained shuttle buses designed to connect riders from areas that are less accessible in adverse weather to major transit routes will be on stand-by.

If snow accumulations are limited to hilltops, riders might see snow routes implemented first in those areas. King County’s Road Services will be available to sand and plow roads starting with key arterials so that vehicles, including buses, can keep moving. For the latest Roads information, click here.

Either way, riders should start preparing for snow routes, reduced service and very cold temperatures so they aren’t surprised first thing Monday morning. Weather conditions can change suddenly.

  1. Metro customers are urged to sign up for transit alerts and familiarize themselves with the planned snow route for their regular bus. We provide a Snow, Ice & Flood map that shows areas in the county that have been moved to their snow routes.
  2. In the event of snow, riders are urged to dress warmly, bring a bottle of water, and if safe to do so, walk to bus stops on flat or level portions of roadways or at major transfer points to make it easier for buses to reach them. When streets become snowy or icy, we may reroute buses away from hills and onto less-steep roads, or shift buses from neighborhood streets onto arterials that are more likely to be plowed.
  3. Metro provides trip cancelations in its Next Departures feature and in its Text for Departure SMS tool, however predicted departure times at stops in any system may not be as reliable when buses are rerouted or otherwise affected by the weather. Metro’s Online Trip Planner and bus tracker do not show service revisions or specific delays. This also applies to other trip planning programs not provided by King County. 
  4. Metro recommends that intending riders use the published schedules for the routes they want to ride, be aware of local conditions and service revision notifications and be prepared for delays.

Please note: The SR 99 tunnel opening Monday could also make travel times unpredictable as drivers adjust to the new facility and connections to downtown Seattle.

Resources for travelers             

For weather and route information