King County Metro connects communities

At King County Metro, fall is always the most popular time of year to ride transit. This September was particularly notable — with the new RapidRide G Line, updated bus connections to four new Sound Transit Link 1 Line light rail stations and the addition of 3,700 daily bus trips. – Michelle Allison, King County Metro General Manager

This op-ed originally appeared in the Puget Sound Business Journal.

While spring is the season of rebirth, fall is also a time of fresh beginnings. After the enjoyable respite of longer, warmer days; breaks from school or work; and trips near or far, we gather together again with fresh eyes and renewed energy.

At King County Metro, fall is always the most popular time of year to ride transit. We’re proud to get you to school, the workplace, the stadium, the store and countless other destinations to explore, learn and meet up. This fall also marks the third anniversary of youth 18 and younger being able to ride transit anywhere in Washington for free.

A September to celebrate

This September was particularly notable as we celebrated a number of achievements that make it even easier to get around. Most visibly, the new RapidRide G Line — our first bus with doors on both sides of the coach — is now the fastest way to travel between Madison Valley, Capitol Hill, the Central District, First Hill and downtown Seattle.

We also updated our bus routes to connect to the four new Sound Transit Link 1 Line light rail stations that recently opened in Mountlake Terrace, Shoreline and Lynnwood. In addition, we expanded Metro Flex — our app-based, on-demand service that costs the same as a Metro bus fare — to Northshore.

I’m particularly proud though of our agency-wide work to provide you with more bus service, just like you asked. In recent years, we’ve innovated through supply chain issues, travel pattern shifts and workforce challenges to be able to add 3,700 daily bus trips this September. You’ll see a 5% increase in weekday trips and an 8% increase in weekend trips.

Our commitment

We always want Metro to be your favorite way to travel. From door-to-door, our goal is for your journey to be accessible, clean, enjoyable, reliable and safe. Our recent investments — including in cleaning, outreach and transit security — have increased the number of people who ride, enhanced their experience and further decreased the already low number of safety incidents on our system.

When your trip doesn’t meet expectations, we want to make it right so please let us know. While 911 is always best for emergencies, please also take the time to tell us how we can improve or, even better, to recognize a Metro employee who made your day a little bit brighter. You can visit kingcounty.gov/metro/contact or call 206-553-3000.

Please know that every single one of my colleagues takes tremendous pride in ensuring service excellence every time you ride Metro: from the service planning teams adding service to meet growing demand, to the facilities and vehicle maintenance staff who clean your bus and bus stop, to the mechanics finetuning the brakes and steering, to the web team helping you track your bus, to the operator opening the door and warmly greeting you.

Looking forward

Thank you for riding and supporting King County Metro. We take seriously our role as public servants, and we strive each day to bring people together and to help move all of us forward.

Visit kingcounty.gov/metro to plan your next trip.

Michelle Allison is general manager of King County Metro. She was previously deputy general manager and is only the second woman to lead Metro. Allison joined King County in 2010 and Metro in 2017, where — prior to becoming general manager — she oversaw the agency’s bus operations, facilities, marine, rail and vehicle maintenance divisions.