COVID-19 ridership update: Ridership remains steady, fare suspension continues through June
Ridership on King County Metro continues to remain generally steady at about 112,000 daily trips across our reduced service network, and transit fares on Metro services will not be collected at least through the month of June. We encourage riders to follow the public health directive to wear masks or face coverings on public transportation in King County, to help protect operators, crew, and other riders who are using Metro to make essential trips.
Metro analyzed preliminary extrapolations to create an unofficial estimate of weekly ridership, which remains substantially lower compared to a year ago.
Highlights
- From May 18-22, the average weekday bus ridership was estimated to be about 112,000, compared to 413,000 for the same time in 2019, or a 73% drop.
- Some pending ridership tallies from added bus trips is expected to show an additional slight and positive trend.
- Similarly, an estimated 73% fewer passengers used Metro’s Access paratransit service from May 18-22 compared to a year ago. Water taxi routes also are seeing significantly reduced ridership, with 95% fewer riders during the same weekdays.
- During the morning commutes last week, estimated ridership dropped about 80-83% compared to last year; the afternoon commutes were down 74-78%. Midday ridership was down about 63-67%, evening ridership down by 56-66%, and late-night ridership is down an estimated 46-59%, depending on the day of the week. (More detailed tables are below.)
Metro has identified and increased service on routes where current demand made it harder for riders to maintain social distancing. Those routes – RapidRide A, D and E lines, and routes 7, 36 and 180 – have supplemental daytime trips using 18 buses. Night service on route 7 and the RapidRide A and E lines also have additional trips using 6 buses to help spread out and reduce the number of riders on each bus. (Ridership estimates for these additional trips are not yet included in these daily estimates and extrapolations.)
Gov. Inslee’s “Stay Home, Stay Healthy” order remains in effect and we ask people to please continue to reserve transit for essential trips for work and for access to food, medicine, and similarly essential needs.
Please help support the health of other passengers and our frontline essential staff – the operators and crews, supervisors, and maintenance staff—by:
- Staying home if you are sick
- Wearing a mask or face covering
- Washing your hands often and using sanitizer
- Covering your cough or sneeze
- Staying as far apart as possible from other people
King County Metro bus ridership
*Unofficial total ridership estimates are preliminary and based on samples and extrapolations
| Date | Baseline (2019) | Current (2020) | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3/2/2020 | 416,885 | 389,103 | -7% |
| 3/3/2020 | 430,822 | 396,544 | -8% |
| 3/4/2020 | 425,431 | 381,634 | -10% |
| 3/5/2020 | 411,763 | 344,562 | -16% |
| 3/6/2020 | 399,641 | 301,111 | -25% |
| 3/9/2020 | 408,494 | 283,259 | -31% |
| 3/10/2020 | 417,616 | 275,642 | -34% |
| 3/11/2020 | 424,583 | 269,362 | -37% |
| 3/12/2020 | 415,904 | 230,570 | -45% |
| 3/13/2020 | 397,707 | 207,253 | -48% |
| 3/16/2020 | 404,158 | 181,732 | -55% |
| 3/17/2020 | 410,204 | 163,519 | -60% |
| 3/18/2020 | 413,908 | 159,033 | -62% |
| 3/19/2020 | 403,555 | 149,350 | -63% |
| 3/20/2020 | 384,736 | 146,983 | -62% |
| 3/23/2020 | 377,285 | 131,543 | -65% |
| 3/24/2020 | 394,904 | 117,852 | -70% |
| 3/25/2020 | 394,545 | 115,874 | -69% |
| 3/26/2020 | 391,104 | 109,210 | -72% |
| 3/27/2020 | 376,578 | 109,633 | -71% |
| 3/30/2020 | 412,936 | 108,418 | -74% |
| 3/31/2020 | 426,257 | 109,490 | -74% |
| 4/1/2020 | 429,250 | 117,709 | -73% |
| 4/2/2020 | 426,229 | 108,079 | -75% |
| 4/3/2020 | 396,491 | 113,640 | -71% |
| 4/6/2020 | 386,962 | 109,611 | -72% |
| 4/7/2020 | 399,581 | 102,590 | -74% |
| 4/8/2020 | 396,974 | 105,624 | -73% |
| 4/9/2020 | 388,329 | 106,453 | -73% |
| 4/10/2020 | 377,581 | 107,688 | -71% |
| 4/13/2020 | 414,207 | 105,947 | -74% |
| 4/14/2020 | 423,523 | 104,672 | -75% |
| 4/15/2020 | 421,208 | 106,603 | -75% |
| 4/16/2020 | 416,347 | 106,735 | -74% |
| 4/17/2020 | 389,484 | 107,565 | -72% |
| 4/20/2020 | 402,532 | 104,275 | -74% |
| 4/21/2020 | 420,503 | 98,176 | -77% |
| 4/22/2020 | 424,733 | 93,881 | -78% |
| 4/23/2020 | 418,512 | 100,304 | -76% |
| 4/24/2020 | 399,920 | 103,447 | -74% |
| 4/27/2020 | 411,029 | 103,657 | -75% |
| 4/28/2020 | 430,829 | 100,959 | -77% |
| 4/29/2020 | 422,600 | 104,234 | -75% |
| 4/30/2020 | 420,083 | 103,820 | -75% |
| 5/1/2020 | 405,511 | 114,059 | -72% |
| 5/4/2020 | 415,942 | 108,526 | -74% |
| 5/5/2020 | 431,041 | 109,176 | -75% |
| 5/6/2020 | 429,353 | 106,030 | -75% |
| 5/7/2020 | 423,637 | 109,253 | -74% |
| 5/8/2020 | 403,057 | 111,661 | -72% |
| 5/11/2020 | 411,566 | 108,348 | -74% |
| 5/12/2020 | 417,666 | 109,114 | -74% |
| 5/13/2020 | 431,341 | 111,375 | -74% |
| 5/14/2020 | 420,577 | 107,576 | -74% |
| 5/15/2020 | 400,239 | 114,122 | -71% |
| 5/18/2020 | 408,793 | 113,596 | -72% |
| 5/19/2020 | 423,028 | 112,591 | -73% |
| 5/20/2020 | 428,289 | 112,561 | -74% |
| 5/21/2020 | 423,225 | 110,007 | -74% |
| 5/22/2020 | 382,845 | 112,985 | -70% |
Key affected King County Metro routes – Average weekday ridership
*Unofficial ridership estimates are preliminary and based on samples and extrapolations
Week of May 18-22
| Route | Baseline (2019) | Current (2020) | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | 11,146 | 5,571 | -50% |
| 8 | 9,107 | 2,153 | -76% |
| 36 | 9,459 | 3,652 | -61% |
| 40 | 12,948 | 3,304 | -74% |
| 44 | 9,006 | 2,187 | -76% |
| 120 | 7,951 | 3,814 | -52% |
| RapidRide A Line | 9,921 | 5,489 | -45% |
| RapidRide C Line | 11,843 | 2,810 | -76% |
| RapidRide D Line | 14,237 | 4,579 | -68% |
| RapidRide E Line | 17,349 | 7,789 | -55% |
King County Metro bus ridership by time period
*Unofficial ridership estimates are preliminary and based on samples and extrapolations
Morning (5-9am)
| Day | Morning (2019) | Morning (2020) | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| May 18 | 112,245 | 19,929 | -82% |
| May 19 | 113,852 | 20,014 | -82% |
| May 20 | 116,349 | 20,500 | -82% |
| May 21 | 113,761 | 19,907 | -83% |
| May 22 | 96,852 | 19,406 | -80% |
Midday (9am-3pm)
| Day | Midday (2019) | Midday (2020) | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| May 18 | 114,825 | 42,813 | -63% |
| May 19 | 117,511 | 41,845 | -64% |
| May 20 | 127,482 | 42,281 | -67% |
| May 21 | 122,036 | 40,976 | -66% |
| May 22 | 120,649 | 44,052 | -63% |
Afternoon (3-7pm)
| Day | Afternoon (2019) | Afternoon (2020) | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| May 18 | 140,803 | 31,533 | -78% |
| May 19 | 146,011 | 31,594 | -78% |
| May 20 | 136,571 | 31,911 | -77% |
| May 21 | 139,035 | 31,201 | -78% |
| May 22 | 121,573 | 31,416 | -74% |
Evening (7-10pm)
| Day | Evening (2019) | Evening (2020) | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| May 18 | 28,961 | 12,849 | -56% |
| May 19 | 32,040 | 12,687 | -60% |
| May 20 | 33,631 | 11,787 | -65% |
| May 21 | 34,116 | 11,760 | -66% |
| May 22 | 29,394 | 12,170 | -59% |
Late Night (10pm-5am)
| Day | Late Night (2019) | Late Night (2020) | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| May 18 | 11,959 | 6,471 | -46% |
| May 19 | 13,614 | 6,450 | -53% |
| May 20 | 14,256 | 6,082 | -57% |
| May 21 | 14,278 | 6,164 | -57% |
| May 22 | 14,377 | 5,941 | -59% |
King County Metro Water Taxi ridership
| Date | Ridership |
|---|---|
| Feb. 24 | 1,910 |
| Feb. 25 | 1,982 |
| Feb. 26 | 1,962 |
| Feb. 27 | 2,043 |
| Feb. 28 | 1,540 |
| March 2 | 1,778 |
| March 3 | 1,892 |
| March 4 | 1,739 |
| March 5 | 1,383 |
| March 6 | 838 |
| March 9 | 958 |
| March 10 | 936 |
| March 11 | 845 |
| March 12 | 686 |
| March 13 | 452 |
| March 16 | 370 |
| March 17 | 274 |
| March 18 | 271 |
| March 19 | 262 |
| March 20 | 208 |
| March 23 | 183 |
| March 24 | 212 |
| March 25 | 208 |
| March 26 | 145 |
| March 27 | 115 |
| March 30 | 147 |
| March 31 | 136 |
| April 1 | 156 |
| April 2 | 144 |
| April 3 | 125 |
| April 6 | 80 |
| April 7 | 102 |
| April 8 | 71 |
| April 9 | 81 |
| April 10 | 85 |
| April 13 | 83 |
| April 14 | 90 |
| April 15 | 78 |
| April 16 | 81 |
| April 17 | 72 |
| April 20 | 108 |
| April 21 | 81 |
| April 22 | 92 |
| April 23 | 83 |
| April 24 | 54 |
| April 27 | 95 |
| April 28 | 88 |
| April 29 | 109 |
| April 30 | 95 |
| May 1 | 70 |
| May 4 | 101 |
| May 5 | 109 |
| May 6 | 97 |
| May 7 | 110 |
| May 8 | 72 |
| May 11 | 108 |
| May 12 | 104 |
| May 13 | 103 |
| May 14 | 104 |
| May 15 | 118 |
| May 18 | 121 |
| May 19 | 107 |
| May 20 | 113 |
| May 21 | 97 |
| May 22 | 78 |
got passed by 6 times this morning Metro. So is this your plan for hospital workers? “We’ll get you there” SOMETIME? Either increase capacity or have a follower bus during peak commute times. Some of us HAVE TO go to work and can’t drive there!
I agree with Felsen and Jason. I commute to work using Link and route 70. Metro REALLY needs to restore the cancelled northbound route 70 trips between 5 AM – 7 AM and the cancelled southbound trips between 2 – 5 PM. The northbound morning trips get a lot of construction workers who are transferring from the inbound Sounder trains, so the 5th Ave../S. Jackson St stop often gets approximately 10 people just from Sounder and then is at capacity by the time it gets to the 3rd Ave./Columbia St. stop because it picks up more construction workers at the Prefontaine stop. The construction workers start work by 7 AM, so they start getting off work around 2:30 PM; yet Metro’s scheduling doesn’t account for that. You need more service during the early morning and early afternoon commute to account for when the construction workers are traveling. The route 70 buses are routinely at or over capacity during work commute times now, which is only going to get worse once other places such as the UW, Amazon, or Fred Hutch start reopening their campuses.
Also, I think Metro needs to reinstitute fare collection. Another big reason why route 70 has overcrowding problems is that a lot of homeless people get on at the Prefontaine, Columbia St., and Pike St. stops, Many of them get on buses just to sleep or just travel between bus stops so they can loiter with friends who are also hanging out at stops to kill time instead of going to a specific destination. Also, many of them get on buses even if they’re only traveling as far as the next stop on the route. Most of the route 70 drivers aren’t monitoring passenger loads at all or monitoring who gets on. Even if the bus is already at capacity,they’re letting homeless joyriders get on who take up space needed for essential workers. Reinstating fare collection for ALL passengers would help to keep out people who are riding short distances just because the bus is free or who are making multiple non-essential trips to kill time. Most of the essential workers who still use buses such as route 70 or the First Hill hospital routes get subsidized ORCA cards through their employers, so Metro should issue those workers priority boarding cards. Essential workers don’t want to have to worry about either being bypassed because the bus is full or being exposed to COVID-19 because they have to ride on overcrowded buses full of people who don’t wear masks or follow social distancing.
This is my next point: Metro needs to enact a no shirt, no shoes, no mask = NO SERVICE rule. Not only is route 70 a bus that’s routinely at or over capacity, it’s also a route where about half the riders are homeless. Almost none of these homeless riders wear masks or follow social distancing rules. Many of them get on the bus and immediately sit down behind or next to other passengers even if the bus is empty enough for them to be able to maintain the 6′ social distancing. These people make no effort to sit away from others and are generally bad about not covering their coughs or sneezes. I often see other riders moving away as soon as they hear someone cough or sneeze, so I’m not the only one who thinks you need to enforce the mask rules! I think Metro needs to have a security person actually riding on heavily used routes such as route 70 and have that person both monitor passenger loads and enforce social distancing/mask rules.
Metro has handled the service cuts and social distancing rules so poorly that I think a lot of the white-collar workers who used to commute on Metro won’t return once the COVID-19 shutdown ends. Most people who have the option of working from home, driving, or using UBER for commuting will continue to do so because they’re at the point where they no longer feel safe on buses or find the reduced schedule makes buses infeasible.
I was a daily 8 and 48 rider before covid19, and will not return until face masks are required (or a vaccine is available). There should be a no mask = no ride policy, and without one it’s clear that driver and rider safety are not Metro’s highest priority.
And, start collecting fares! I should add, I will not return to Metro if the passenger experience remains as dismal as a dystopian science fiction plot.
Metro management punishes, up to and including termination, drivers who engage in any conflict with passengers, especially over the fare. Drivers are trained thoroughly to never get into fare disputes. So reinstating the fare does nothing to keep the transients, drug addicts and similar off the buses, except for those drivers disobeying management’s very clear policies on the matter.
“Overall, Metro will operate approximately 42% fewer buses…” -AND- “From May 18-22, the average weekday bus ridership was 112,000, compared to 413,000 for the same time in 2019, or a 73% drop….”
WELL, DUH! When there are only 58% of buses running and only allowing 12 or 18 riders per bus, then of course you’re going to see 27% of regular ridership! Only 114,000 passengers are given the opportunity to ride. PLEASE REINSTATE FARES and give us back some of the eliminated routes; the last 7 weeks have been the worst commutes I’ve ever experienced on this backwards transit agency. I think I’m not alone in this, as so many more people are now driving to work because they’ve had their buses canceled indefinitely or can’t tolerate the conditions on what few buses are still available. After 19 years of daily round trip commutes, I think I’m finally pushed too far and am about to become part of the problem and join the swarms of single occupant vehicles on I-5. Lord knows I tried!
When #143 route restarts?
When will route 190 start?