Ridership on King County Metro remains steady as public transportation continues to consistently serve those who need it most.
Metro collects data from on-board passenger counters and has analyzed preliminary extrapolations to create an unofficial estimate of weekly ridership. There continues to be strong ridership on routes and trips utilized by our customers who are unable to telework or otherwise rely heavily on transit.
Highlights
- From July 27-31, the average weekday bus ridership was estimated to be about 144,000, compared to 395,000 for the same time in 2019, or a 63% drop.
- An estimated 61% fewer passengers used Metro’s Access paratransit service from July 27-31 compared to a year ago. Water taxi route ridership has increased slightly recently, carrying an estimated 80% fewer riders compared to last year—about 500 riders per weekday compared to 2,500.
- Riders continue to board primarily at the rear doors and fare collections remain suspended through August.
- Buses remain limited to 12-18 passengers depending on the size of the coach to support physical distancing and to limit the spread of COVID-19.
Please 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
- 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
NOTE: This list revises and replaces previously published preliminary ridership estimates
| 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 | 131,545 | -65% |
| 3/24/2020 | 394,904 | 117,852 | -70% |
| 3/25/2020 | 394,545 | 115,874 | -71% |
| 3/26/2020 | 391,104 | 109,214 | -72% |
| 3/27/2020 | 376,578 | 109,635 | -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% |
| 5/26/2020 | 417,418 | 114,558 | -73% |
| 5/27/2020 | 429,906 | 117,030 | -73% |
| 5/28/2020 | 431,605 | 114,652 | -73% |
| 5/29/2020 | 420,732 | 118,749 | -72% |
| 6/1/2020 | 420,060 | 121,321 | -71% |
| 6/2/2020 | 422,246 | 117,222 | -72% |
| 6/3/2020 | 421,695 | 121,205 | -71% |
| 6/4/2020 | 425,747 | 116,014 | -73% |
| 6/5/2020 | 398,428 | 118,070 | -70% |
| 6/8/2020 | 405,479 | 118,718 | -71% |
| 6/9/2020 | 424,093 | 112,555 | -73% |
| 6/10/2020 | 432,885 | 124,046 | -71% |
| 6/11/2020 | 409,543 | 119,753 | -71% |
| 6/12/2020 | 385,757 | 75,635 | -80% |
| 6/15/2020 | 390,315 | 118,472 | -70% |
| 6/16/2020 | 397,498 | 125,676 | -68% |
| 6/17/2020 | 403,841 | 125,310 | -69% |
| 6/18/2020 | 394,152 | 131,358 | -67% |
| 6/19/2020 | 376,296 | 133,716 | -64% |
| 6/22/2020 | 393,715 | 135,909 | -65% |
| 6/23/2020 | 403,468 | 134,540 | -67% |
| 6/24/2020 | 400,175 | 134,358 | -66% |
| 6/25/2020 | 397,534 | 138,174 | -65% |
| 6/26/2020 | 371,294 | 136,236 | -63% |
| 6/29/2020 | 392,762 | 136,158 | -65% |
| 6/30/2020 | 381,373 | 127,904 | -66% |
| 7/1/2020 | 387,287 | 141,920 | -63% |
| 7/2/2020 | 283,945 | 138,687 | -51% |
| 7/6/2020 | 392,274 | 137,925 | -65% |
| 7/7/2020 | 402,201 | 135,432 | -66% |
| 7/8/2020 | 398,523 | 138,888 | -65% |
| 7/9/2020 | 399,924 | 136,454 | -66% |
| 7/10/2020 | 380,973 | 144,508 | -62% |
| 7/13/2020 | 387,939 | 140,442 | -64% |
| 7/14/2020 | 407,873 | 142,896 | -65% |
| 7/15/2020 | 399,059 | 144,591 | -64% |
| 7/16/2020 | 398,507 | 141,040 | -65% |
| 7/17/2020 | 380,873 | 138,877 | -64% |
| 7/20/2020 | 396,751 | 142,961 | -64% |
| 7/21/2020 | 405,454 | 142,331 | -65% |
| 7/22/2020 | 412,128 | 140,948 | -66% |
| 7/23/2020 | 401,439 | 140,623 | -65% |
| 7/24/2020 | 380,169 | 144,028 | -62% |
| 7/27/2020 | 388,056 | 141,911 | -63% |
| 7/28/2020 | 402,466 | 143,605 | -64% |
| 7/29/2020 | 401,242 | 146,027 | -64% |
| 7/30/2020 | 405,975 | 144,566 | -64% |
| 7/31/2020 | 378,263 | 146,161 | -61% |
Top 10 King County Metro routes ranked by current ridership
*Unofficial ridership estimates are preliminary and based on samples and extrapolations; sorted by highest ridership retention
Week of July 27-31
| Week | Route | Baseline (2019) | Current (2020) | Ridership retained |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| July 27-31 | 180 | 4,824 | 3,573 | 74% |
| July 27-31 | 7 | 11,408 | 7,582 | 66% |
| July 27-31 | RapidRide A Line | 9,429 | 5,870 | 62% |
| July 27-31 | 106 | 5,935 | 3,471 | 58% |
| July 27-31 | 120 | 8,739 | 4,804 | 55% |
| July 27-31 | RapidRide E Line | 17,716 | 8,581 | 48% |
| July 27-31 | 36 | 9,423 | 4,474 | 47% |
| July 27-31 | RapidRide D Line | 14,040 | 5,059 | 36% |
| July 27-31 | RapidRide C Line | 11,609 | 3,730 | 32% |
| July 27-31 | 40 | 13,834 | 3,941 | 28% |
King County Metro Water Taxi ridership
| Date | Ridership |
|---|---|
| 2/24/2020 | 1,910 |
| 2/25/2020 | 1,982 |
| 2/26/2020 | 1,962 |
| 2/27/2020 | 2,043 |
| 2/28/2020 | 1,540 |
| 3/2/2020 | 1,778 |
| 3/3/2020 | 1,892 |
| 3/4/2020 | 1,739 |
| 3/5/2020 | 1,383 |
| 3/6/2020 | 838 |
| 3/9/2020 | 958 |
| 3/10/2020 | 936 |
| 3/11/2020 | 845 |
| 3/12/2020 | 686 |
| 3/13/2020 | 452 |
| 3/16/2020 | 370 |
| 3/17/2020 | 274 |
| 3/18/2020 | 271 |
| 3/19/2020 | 262 |
| 3/20/2020 | 208 |
| 3/23/2020 | 183 |
| 3/24/2020 | 212 |
| 3/25/2020 | 208 |
| 3/26/2020 | 145 |
| 3/27/2020 | 115 |
| 3/30/2020 | 147 |
| 3/31/2020 | 136 |
| 4/1/2020 | 156 |
| 4/2/2020 | 144 |
| 4/3/2020 | 125 |
| 4/6/2020 | 80 |
| 4/7/2020 | 102 |
| 4/8/2020 | 71 |
| 4/9/2020 | 81 |
| 4/10/2020 | 85 |
| 4/13/2020 | 83 |
| 4/14/2020 | 90 |
| 4/15/2020 | 78 |
| 4/16/2020 | 81 |
| 4/17/2020 | 72 |
| 4/20/2020 | 108 |
| 4/21/2020 | 81 |
| 4/22/2020 | 92 |
| 4/23/2020 | 83 |
| 4/24/2020 | 54 |
| 4/27/2020 | 95 |
| 4/28/2020 | 88 |
| 4/29/2020 | 109 |
| 4/30/2020 | 95 |
| 5/1/2020 | 70 |
| 5/4/2020 | 101 |
| 5/5/2020 | 109 |
| 5/6/2020 | 97 |
| 5/7/2020 | 110 |
| 5/8/2020 | 72 |
| 5/11/2020 | 108 |
| 5/12/2020 | 104 |
| 5/13/2020 | 103 |
| 5/14/2020 | 104 |
| 5/15/2020 | 118 |
| 5/18/2020 | 121 |
| 5/19/2020 | 107 |
| 5/20/2020 | 113 |
| 5/21/2020 | 97 |
| 5/22/2020 | 78 |
| 5/25/2020 | No service |
| 5/26/2020 | 131 |
| 5/27/2020 | 162 |
| 5/28/2020 | 125 |
| 5/29/2020 | 145 |
| 6/1/2020 | 122 |
| 6/2/2020 | 128 |
| 6/3/2020 | 158 |
| 6/4/2020 | 146 |
| 6/5/2020 | 98 |
| 6/8/2020 | 134 |
| 6/9/2020 | 136 |
| 6/10/2020 | 141 |
| 6/11/2020 | 146 |
| 6/12/2020 | 117 |
| 6/15/2020 | 150 |
| 6/16/2020 | 171 |
| 6/17/2020 | 190 |
| 6/18/2020 | 158 |
| 6/19/2020 | 134 |
| 6/22/2020 | 314 |
| 6/23/2020 | 348 |
| 6/24/2020 | 420 |
| 6/25/2020 | 428 |
| 6/26/2020 | 388 |
| 6/29/2020 | 424 |
| 6/30/2020 | 321 |
| 7/1/2020 | 326 |
| 7/2/2020 | 303 |
| 7/6/2020 | 426 |
| 7/7/2020 | 430 |
| 7/8/2020 | 407 |
| 7/9/2020 | 372 |
| 7/10/2020 | 384 |
| 7/13/2020 | 425 |
| 7/14/2020 | 498 |
| 7/15/2020 | 492 |
| 7/16/2020 | 490 |
| 7/17/2020 | 369 |
| 7/20/2020 | 461 |
| 7/21/2020 | 516 |
| 7/22/2020 | 407 |
| 7/23/2020 | 439 |
| 7/24/2020 | 380 |
| 7/27/2020 | 474 |
| 7/28/2020 | 527 |
| 7/29/2020 | 500 |
| 7/30/2020 | 485 |
| 7/31/2020 | 507 |