A few months ago, I was thinking of ways to improve transit service up in the Issaquah Highlands. I thought a peak hours shuttle bringing people from the Issaquah Highlands to the nearby Park and Ride would increase ridership, increase the capacity for the Park & Ride, and help some folks cut down from 2 cars to 1.
I made some initial inquiries into the issue with Hopelink, Metro and my neighborhood’s association. I got some price estimates, but really didn’t get much farther. My neighborhood association didn’t see a path to paying for it, and I couldn’t imagine Metro increasing service after cutting service in September 2014. The association did mention that they would survey folks to see if there was interest and try and advocate to Metro and/or the city to help pay for some service.
Imagine my surprise when I saw that the new 628 (which started this week) route provides almost exactly the bus service I was calling for, albeit in not quite the way I expected.
As covered here, it provides service from North Bend and Snoqualmie to the Issaquah Highlands Park & Ride. But it also has 5 optional stops (like other DART buses, you must contact Hopelink at least 24 hours in advance to get them to go to the stop) in the Highlands which would help many people folks not within walking distance of the Park & Ride to easily get there without driving.
I guess the next step is to try and get people to take it. I’m hopeful that the bus is overcome with Highlands folks that Meto sees the need to provide the shuttle I originally suggested. Our association has done some publicity to get the word out — now, how would you get people to take the bus?
It’s a great idea, although I’m not holding my breath for the 628 to make much of a dent in getting people to and from the P&R. The need to make an advance reservation makes the service somewhat of pain, and the need to go through Hopelink creates a subtle message whether intended or not, that the service is for poor people and any self-respecting person should not use it. I would personally find it easier to not bother and just walk – every the furthest shuttle stop is just 22 walking minutes away from the P&R, according to Google Maps. Meanwhile, for those with a car to stash, just waiting for the shuttle, in and of itself, is likely to already be longer than the drive time.
I still think that technological solutions exist that have the potential to be much more cost-effective than a dedicated shuttle bus. For instance, imagine a smartphone app specially geared towards matching riders and drivers for purposes of trips between home and a P&R. Drivers and passengers would log into the app before leaving home in the morning, or on board the bus out of downtown in the evening, and the matching would happen in real time. The entire system would be closed to anyone not living in the community, so rides would be shared among neighbors, not strangers. Fares each way would be $2 between the P&R and one of the designated shuttle stops, or $4 for door-to-door service (with 2 people able to ride for the price of one if traveling together and getting on and off at the same location). All the fare revenue would go to the driver (passengers would normally pay the driver cash, but an optional for a credit card payment with a transaction fee would exist), with public subsidy being limited only to the development and maintenance of the service.
Ideally, the ride-matching service would be provided by a company that would market itself to numerous communities. Thus, instead of a single community like Issaquah Highlands needing to develop and maintain the system themselves, the neighborhood association would simply pay the company that runs it a few dollars a month, and everything would be done for them.
A system like this is not perfect, as any fare high enough to be worth a driver’s time is likely to be higher than someone who is truly poor would be able to pay – especially since the shuttle fare would not provide any bus transfer credit. It is also assumed that a backup option, such as walking, exists when a ride is unavailable.
However, it is important not to let the perfect be the enemy of good, and a system like this sure beats waiting around for a transit agency to operate a $150/hour shuttle bus and having nothing in the meantime.
Great comment. It should be noted that the stop you mentioned that is 22 minutes from the park and ride is up a huge hill — 22 minutes isn’t exactly walkable to a stop in the first place, but the hill makes it worse.
And the Hopelink-run service costs close to $75/hr, so it is cheaper than you might think.
Agreed, this isn’t perfect, but better than nothing.
Well, if a supermarket was delivering groceries, then it would be going all around the neighborhood anyway…. And it could deliver pizzas too, and things from other businesses, and take people to the P&R.
Are you saying that the Domino’s driver should become an Uber driver as well?
I cringe at the idea. I cringe at the potential name. But it also might work.
Not Uber, but something less expensive that’s limited to the neighborhood. Or since the city of Issaquah is so small, it could be a circulator throughout the city.
Immediate suggestion: Can non-English versions of that Hopelink webform be made / be made easily discoverable?
On the topic of service in the Highlands…… Just wanted to point out, June shakeup will bring the 200 up to Issaquah Highlands P&R. It’s about time, since the extension isn’t very far from the current terminal at Fred Meyer’s. Unfortunately, it will go straight to the P&R, layover, and straight back down the hill, without looping through any neighborhoods, not even up and around Safeway and back.