Add Route 14 to the list of Seattle bus routes undergoing a stop consolidation. On September 4, 73 bus stops will be cut to 53, affecting 19% of riders and increasing average spacing to 950 feet.
You can look at the list of stops, and comment before August 20th, at the website for this project. Previous routes that recently received this treatment are the 3, 4, 7, 8, 16, 28, and 49.
There is a stop on the 14 that Metro apparently doesn’t even know about! It’s not marked on the consolidation map page, the data Google Maps has, or the map data OneBusAway has, but it’s there, and get some use. It is just west of 25th Av S on Jackson, in the westbound direction. IMO it should be eliminated, since it is around 370 feet from the next stop and on the same contiguous block.
Agreed. When I drove the 14 last year, virtually everybody waiting at that stop was waiting for another bus.
Love the addition of the stop at MLK – I was never sure whether to call out “MLK” for the stop a block before or a half block after MLK. The stop at E Roy St and Bellevue was a popular one but the next stop, only 2 blocks away, was even more popular. I’d give this a thumbs up, but I’m just the driver – I don’t have to walk 2 extra blocks in the rain.
For what it’s worth: It was nearly impossible to keep any of my trips on time, except the first one from the base to Mt. Baker. And even with that trip it was difficult unless the kids at Washington Middle School had the day off.
As someone who drove the 14, how do you feel about the proposed removal of the stops right by WMS? (By the way, I go to Grafield and used to ride one of your 14 trips home.)
The stop right by the school (East Bound) is pretty useless after school anyway as buses are blocking that zone. It’s kind of hazardous for both the kids and the bus to try and get to the curb and back out to traffic as school is letting out. Better to have the stop some distance down the block, out of the way of the yellow school buses.
‘Twould be nice if planners took into account whether school is in session or not – at least for shakeups during the school year, but word is that they don’t one way or the other. Is also an issue with regular routes serving Franklin, Roosevelt, Rainier Beach, and smaller colleges like SPU.
One of the two eastbound stops on that block should be consolidated. Beavis is right about yellow buses blocking the zone right in front of the school – I frequently had to stop in the middle of the street.
This is great news! The 14 used to be my “second car” since I live in the Mount Baker area. Now it’s my “third car” (behind Link). The less stops the better and the more consolidation the better. I sent off my comments to Metro as well.
Hooray!
I wonder if any of these saved hours, plus re-stop-spacing the 27, could be used to extend the 27 that last mile to Mount Baker Station. Maybe then combine the 27 and the 38, so the 38 becomes a 1-seat ride from somewhere to somewhere.
Bring on more stop consolidations!
I’ve been mulling these over in a fantasy plan (which I’ll publish soon). The 38/8 could be made into a Link shadow, from Beacon Hill stn to Mt Baker stn to Tukwila Intl Bv stn. The north part of the 8 would be split at Mt Baker TC, which might make it more on-time.
Another idea: with the coming First Hill Streetcar, combine the tails of the 14 and 27, going from Mt Baker to 12th/Jackson, north to Yesler, and east to Leschi. Or combine the 14 and 36, going from Mt Baker to 12th/Jackson to Beacon to Othello stn. The 36 has a Link alternative, and the 14 and 27 are the least important of the 7/14/27/36 corridor.
The 38 used to go into SODO too, so perhaps a fantasy 38/8 Link shadow could go down Holgate again and connect with SODO or Stadium.
Making the tail ends of the 14,27 into one route with a transfer to the First Hill Streetcar sounds good….but the Streetcar doesn’t go through downtown. Then making the ride to Mt Baker or Leschi a three seat ride and requiring two tranfers from the CBD. Bus or Link from downtown to Int’l Dist, then Streetcar up to meet the 14 or 27, then riding that bus home. Thats not cool!
Stop elimination has markedly improved my (thankfully rare) trips on the 3. Next up Route 2, please? Several locations have <400 ft. stop spacing, such as {12th & Madison/12th & Union} and {7th & Seneca/6th & Seneca}.
Yeah, it’s improved trips on the Queen Anne end of the 3 as well.
I sent in a comment in support of and demand for more routes to get the treatment.
Metro is planning to do stop spacing reduction programs to something like 10 routes each year. They really liked the outcome of the first project (The 7, right?) but they realized they spent too much time on the process. So now they’re doing them faster with fewer community meetings and other things to slow it down.
That’s great to hear!
Perhaps the stop consolidation process could be consolidated. If several routes serve a similar corridor (e.g. 121/122/123/131/132/134/139), then use the same community meetings and mailings to consolidate stops on as many routes as possible at once.
They’ve already done this to a certain extent with the 49 stops that affected other routes too.
Yeah I think they are learning that if they make a big deal about it they will just get stuck in the process. The Council has to give Metro planners to do what they think is best.
As far as I’m concerned, notices on the bus stops ought to be sufficient.
#5 should be a priority, as should 21, 116, 54 and other routes serving California St. and Admiral Dist.
The 5 has already been through a stop reduction years ago, it has alot of stops, but it’s a long route. As a driver I all for reducing stops, but I don’t think they should take out more than a few stops….they are already almost 3-5 blocks apart in most cases.
The 54 I could agree with on California Ave, but the rest of the route each stop doesn’t get used that often, so each trip you’re not making every stop usually until you hit Calif. Ave….plus it will be tr=aken care of next year with Rapid Ride.
The 21 yes, and cut the Arbor Hts. Loop off, exee3pt for Express service…As a driver, I hate going through that loop….moswt times you don’t pickup/drop off anyone.
The 116? It’s an express. After 1st and Jackson is only stops 4 times in SODO and 5 in West Seattle before the Ferry Terminal. Not sure what you would change about that, except putting in to the Viaduct…..but then you would have no direct service to the ferry or service along the Fauntleroy Way between Alaska and Calif Ave.
True, they already did the 5. But the segment between 80th and 70th is still painfully almost every block. I don’t know why this was not considered when they were looking at the Phinney route.
Why does the 5 jog over to Phinny at 43rd rather than 50th? Is there too much delay at 46th? It seams like you would want it to go right past the zoo.
I’d have to do some research, but the current 5 follows in part the route of the old interuban – also called the #5.
I’d call the segment between 85th and 46th pretty unbearable. There are still stops approximately every 2 blocks. The 2 stops on Fremont between 43rd and 38th aren’t even that far apart.
Does anyone know why the light at 46th and Fremont (and many other places in the city) is configured the way it is?
The logical way to run that light would seem to be:
– E-W protected left
– E-W green
– N-S protected left
– N-S green
Instead, it’s something like this:
– E green + protected left
– W green + protected left
– E-W green
– N green + protected left
– S green + protected left
– N-S green
I’m sure some traffic engineer could explain why this is actually optimal, but to me, it just seems like it helps a very small number of left-turning cars (and no buses) at the expense of almost everyone else.
There aren’t any E-W left turn lanes there so they can’t do only protected lefts without reconfiguring the intersection. By doing “E green + protected left” they allow ALL east-moving traffic to clear the intersection before the “W green + protected left.” Also, there is no E-W green as far as I know.
There are a couple of particularly weird stops on the 5, though:
– South only, Phinney & 44th (less than a block from 43rd and Phinney)
– North only, Fremont & 42nd (less than a block from 43rd and Fremont *and* from Fremont & 41st)
I totally understand having 2-block spacing along Fremont rather than 3, due to the grade. But these extra stops seem both superfluous and underused.
I’d love to see route 5 get similar treatment. It’s extremely slow through Phinney and Fremont right now. Route 28 is much better since the reduction!
I sent in a statement of strong support. Personally, I think the biggest need is in some skip-stop or stop consolidation on the mess that is 15th Ave NE at peak times.
Please note that the 8 has not “received this treatment.” Many of its stop-removal notices mention a date as far away as 2011.
Proposing something doesn’t actually have the same desired effect as doing something!
OFF TOPIC:
What is the physical street address for the Beacon Hill Link Light Rail Station?
According to the ST web site, Beacon Ave S & S McClellan St (no street numbers given).
Thanks. That’s the info I had found, too.
2702 16th Ave S, according to sign at the station entrance, confirmed by DPD records.
I’m really, really curious why one of the two northbound stops on Bellevue (between Pine and Olive) isn’t on the chopping block. Those stops are probably a couple hundred feet apart, and both are shared with the 43 and the 545. I sent my comments to Metro asking them to remove one of these and supporting all/more consolidations.
Are you sure about that? I ride the 545 a lot, and I’ve never noticed it stop twice in Capitol Hill. Sound Transit’s website also says that there’s only one stop, at Bellevue & Olive.
The only evidence I can find for a second stop is OBA, but it’s wrong about the 545 in a few ways — in the morning, for example, only half the trips are listed.
Only the mid-block stop is for the 545. I suspect the stop closest to Olive is designed to allow transfers to buses headed up the hill but frankly, it could go too.
Oh yeah, you’re right, I was using OBA but sure enough saw this morning that the Bellevue & Pine stop just lists 14 & 43. I’d say it could go since I can’t imagine anyone does that transfer up the hill (they could just wait for the correct bus at any of the previous stops in/from downtown).
Sorry I misread your post, Velo. I thought you were talking about transferring from the 14/43 at the Pine stop.
What would be a nice ST project would be to modify the NB I-5 entrance off of Olive to accommodate the 545 throughout the day. Right now, the 545 detours to the hill in the AM but then later in the day runs straight down Olive to I-5. With a new stop on the ramp, you could eliminate that mid-point stop on Bellevue.
Mike, the Sound Transit 2010 SIP [PDF] mentions a potential new stop/shelter for the 545 at the Olive Way on-ramp to I-5.
I haven’t heard anything about it beyond that, unfortunately.
Preach it brother! Amen!
Virtually every driver that drives the 545 comments on how the folks who use that stop have to walk back up-hill from 9th & Stewart when they come home in the evening. The stop makes *no* sense to most of us.
That said, once this shelter is complete, that will be a handy addition.
I think a lot of us just take the Connector home ;)
I thought I had read that somewhere. Thanks, David!
the bus zone at bellevue-pine isn’t long enough for the 545 to stop at after it turns from pine, that’s why it doesn’t stop there. equally spaced bus zones may be the goal but Metro should consider destination points, too, and not just distnace between bus zones
Is there any evidence from the previous stop consolidations on their effect? Has reliability improved? Have travel times been reduced? I’d love to see a Metro report. The real test is in the next shake-up after a consolidation: will they reduce the scheduled travel time?
the 16 purportedly saved thousands on fuel costs and i think three minutes for each trip; I take it regularly and can say that at least it’s on-time most of the time since the stop consolidation