King County Metro is upgrading Route 160 to RapidRide I Line. Visit our online open house to Have a Say on roadway and intersection changes to make the new route even faster and more reliable.

STORY

Metro is working to bring better bus service to people living and working in Renton, Kent, and Auburn. Building off of the efforts put forth in the Renton-Kent-Auburn Area Mobility Project, Metro plans to upgrade the Route 160 into RapidRide I Line by 2023.

The new Route 160 began operating in September 2020 and provides residents with a single route connecting Renton, Kent and Auburn, and service every 15 minutes on weekdays. The RapidRide I Line will use the same pathway and offer riders even faster, more frequent and reliable bus service, fast all-door boarding, and enhanced stations and passenger amenities.

With the community’s input, Metro has identified the I Line route, station locations, and areas to make it easier to walk, roll, and bike to the bus. Now, we need to hear from the community to make decisions about:

  • Projects, such as dedicated bus lanes and roadway changes, that improve bus speed and reliability and enhance safety for all who travel in the area.
  • Additional projects, including crosswalks and sidewalks that make it easier and safer to get to the bus.

How can the community get involved?

1) Visit Metro’s online open house and provide comments through Jan. 25. The online open house is available in English, Russian, Simplified Chinese, Spanish, and Vietnamese.

2) Visit the project website to learn more and sign-up to receive email updates.

Metro is committed to prioritizing investment where needs are greatest, such as communities historically underserved and areas with higher percentages of people of color and residents with low income or limited English proficiency. This includes south King County, the area served by the future I Line, where ridership has remained the highest throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.

About King County Metro RapidRide

RapidRide is celebrating 10 years of making transit rides easier and more convenient. King County Metro began planning efforts in 2006 and launched the RapidRide A Line in 2010. Today, Metro operates six lines across King County, offering riders more frequent and reliable service, efficient off-board ORCA fare payment, bus station amenities, fast all-door boarding and on-board Wi-Fi. RapidRide routes carry tens of thousands of people each weekday— about 70 percent more than the bus routes that served the same areas before the RapidRide lines were launched. RapidRide is up to 20 percent faster, saving an average of about five minutes per trip.

King County Metro is the Puget Sound region’s largest public transportation agency. Metro provides bus, vanpool, paratransit and water taxi services, and operates Seattle Streetcar, Sound Transit Link light rail, and Sound Transit Express bus service. Metro is committed to providing safe, equitable and sustainable mobility, and prioritizing where needs are greatest.

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