ST’s twitter feed is reporting that the July 18 ridership figures have been updated to 51,000.
Meanwhile, the preliminary 4 pm Sunday count is 29,800, putting us at over 80,000 with two hours left to go.
Also, they’re reporting that the last roundtrip train leaves each end at 4:47pm tonight. That means the last train in each direction should be 5:20-ish from the endpoints.
The shuttle buses will continue to run.
UPDATE: Final ridership numbers this weekend are 92,000!
My friends and I rode LINK this morning … round trip to Tukwila Station as we were near the airport anyway …
All I can say is that our expectations were exceeded! I cannot wait for this line to be extended!
And special thanks for those of you here who helped out with the launch under the hot sun this weekend.
The opening weekend of Link is a success. But, there is a long way to go.
There are many who will continue to diminish the achievements and capabilities of this system. And, there are no guarantees of success. However, the high ridership numbers for this weekend finally mean Seattle has started to experience what every major western city has experienced in the last decade: a see change. One friend will tell another, and there will be no going backward.
Seattle will never be the same. Yes, there will be nay sayers. Yes, there will be problems which we must overcome, but in the long term, we will never be the same city or region again. No city with light rail or metro rail ever has.
Seattle will never be the same. Things will only get better as our citizens have more choices and our planet slowly begins to heal. Every bit of change matters.