Evan Edinger tries the buses in suburban southern New Jersey.
That video got a lot of comments saying why public transit can’t work in the US. So Evan made another video refuting these claims. It’s a comedy.
The second video also refers to his walking to school video, which we covered in September
This is an open thread.
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Yesterday, Sound Transit’s Rider Experience and Operations Committee shared an update on the agency’s 2026 Service Plan. Along with aggregated community feedback on the previously shared ST Express service changes, the Sound Transit announced a pilot night-owl route between Sea-Tac Airport and downtown Seattle.
Last year, Sound Transit shared a proposal for three night-owl routes between Seattle and Everett, Lakewood, and Redmond. This proposal was well received with about 90% of survey respondents supporting the proposed routes. Negative feedback on the night-owl routes focused on travel times and the proposed routes not serving all stations.
Before the three night-owl routes are (likely) implemented in Fall 2026, Sound Transit will pilot a night-owl route between downtown Seattle and SeaTac Airport. The new route will provide service between SeaTac/Airport, Tukwila International Blvd, SODO, Stadium, International District / Chinatown, Pioneer Square, Symphony, and Westlake stations. Buses will run every 30 minutes between 12am and 4am.
This route will begin service on March 28 and connect late night/early morning travelers and airport employees with most of King County Metro’s night owl network.
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This morning, Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson announced two executive orders delivering on campaign promises: one will accelerate production of emergency shelter and affordable housing, and the other will quickly implement transit improvements starting on Denny Way. Executive Order 2026-01 directs SDOT to “design and install at least one dedicated bus lane on Denny Way, with the goal of significantly improving the reliability, speed, and performance of Route 8 and other transit services operating in the corridor.”
Route 8 has long suffered from chronic congestion on Denny Way in South Lake Union (SLU). The crosstown route uses the only east-west corridor that connects the Seattle Center and SLU with Capitol Hill. Unfortunately, this corridor is also a popular feeder street for I-5. In 2018, an eastbound bus lane was installed on Denny between Minor Ave and Steward St. Despite the one-block-long bus lane, Route 8 continued to flounder in traffic. As South Lake Union has grown, the route’s reliability has continued to suffer. In July 2025, the Fix the L8 campaign hosted a race during which people walked, danced, and paraded on Denny between Dexter and Stewart Avenues faster than a Metro Route 8 bus. Consequently, construction of more dedicated bus lanes on Denny became a significant promise of Wilson’s campaign for Mayor.
Continue reading “Mayor Wilson’s First Orders: Denny Way Bus Lanes and Housing” | 15 commentsOriginally Ballard was going to be served by a bridge over the Ship Canal along 14th or 15th Ave NW with a station along on that street. Either way such station would be far from the old town or the current center of Ballard along Market Street. While 3 stations were proposed for West Seattle, now that a tunnel is preferred, Sound Transit should consider another station further west and closer to the center of Ballard. This station may even be a surface or very shallow station. It could be designed as the last station on the line or allow for an extension along 24th Ave NW with the ultimate goal to connect back to the 1 Line further north.
Sound Transit should also consider how an east/west line towards Fremont and UW could connect to the Ballard station. If such connection could be made south of the Ballard station and if it would also include a crossover, then trains coming from UW could either turn around and head back or continue towards downtown.
One possible route would go one block further north parallel to Market Street on NW 56th St. and stop at the Ballard Library. A second station could serve the brewery district on 14th (or 15th) Ave NW. A UW line (thin line) could join from Leary Way.
Another possible route would go closer to the old town along Leary Way NW with a single station close to Market Street. A UW line (thin line) could add another station close to Fred Meyer.
Either way, the line would need dive not only under the Ship Canal, but also avoid the stormwater and sewage tunnel north of the canal which extends up to 120 feet below the surface.
It seems a single station along 15th Ave, or even worse 14th Ave, would not be enough to serve Ballard. In particular, if Sound Transit decides to truncate the Ballard line for now, it should consider a station closer to the heart of Ballard at a later time.
74 commentsUpdate: The entire T Line will be replaced by buses from Tuesday January 20 at 6:12pm through Friday January 23 evening to replace broken rails. Saturday January 24 may also be affected if necessary. The shuttle buses will have the same schedule as Link and will be free.
Update 2: Metro is looking for part-time drivers. Apply by January 23.
On Monday, Sound Transit announced seats on all Link trains will be upgraded to use vinyl inserts instead of the current cloth covers. This change comes following feedback the agency received during a pilot of these seats in 2024. The vinyl inserts are similar to the vinyl seats that King County Metro first started using in its fleet in 2011.
During the pilot, Sound Transit solicited rider input on the cleanliness, comfort, appearance, and overall satisfaction of the vinyl seats vs the cloth seats. The vinyl seats ranked higher in every category. Additionally, maintenance data showed the vinyl seats are more durable and easier to clean.
Continue reading “Vinyl Seats are Coming to All Link Trains” | 32 commentsWhen Toronto faced escalating cost on their relief line, instead of extending their existing subway network, they decided to build a separate Ontario line and use lighter and shorter automated trains rather than their prior subway trains. Lighter trains mean faster acceleration, allowing steeper climbs including from within a tunnel to shallow stations and even elevated portions and smaller tunnel diameters. Shorter trains mean smaller stations which can fit more easily into the existing urban landscape. A separate line minimized the impact on the rest of the transit system.
As Sound Transit ponders escalating construction cost, it may want to consider the same. It may not only save them money during construction and operation, it may also provide a better ridership experience.
Continue reading “Learn from Toronto: Automate Ballard Line” | 171 commentsAdam (aka AdamDoesNotExist) is at it again, traveling from Washington DC to Boston via only local buses, regional trains, and ferries. Previously we covered his San Francisco to Seattle trip. DC to Boston takes 3 days via local transit, vs 6 hours via Amtrak Acela.
Part 1: Washington DC to New York City:
Part 2: New York City to Boston:
This is an open thread.
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On Friday, King County Councilmember and Sound Transit Boardmember Claudia Balducci shared a series of updates regarding the cross-lake connection of the Link 2 Line via BlueSky.
In a series of posts, Claudia Balducci shared she previewed the unopened section of the 2 Line with project partners from WSDOT, King County Metro, Sound Transit, and the Federal Transit Administration, saying “the ride was smooth and truly exciting.” The line is performing pre-revenue testing now, but will begin simulating full-time service between Lynnwood and Redmond in February. Answering a question long asked by transit afficionados: Sound Transit is planning to allow passengers to board 2 Line trains operating between Lynnwood and CID during simulated service.
Continue reading “2 Line Update: simulated service beginning February” | 137 commentsThis week Sound Transit announced another batch of work for which it will be “strategically closing” sections of the 1 Line for upgrades and complex maintenance. In summary:
Friday, January 9 to Sunday, January 11 (Now): Buses will replace trains between Capitol Hill and SODO each night from 10pm Friday to noon Saturday and 10pm Saturday to noon Sunday. This closure is for continued installation of advanced signals (ATP) in the former DSTT.
Tuesday, January 13 to Thursday, January 15: Buses will replace trains between Stadium and Mount Baker each night after about 9-10pm, with normal service resuming each morning. This work is part of ST’s monthly maintenance program.
Friday, January 16 to Sunday, January 18: Buses will replace trains between Capitol Hill and SODO each night from 10pm Friday to noon Saturday and 10pm Saturday to noon Sunday for continued ATP installation.
Friday, January 23 to Monday, January 26: Buses will replace trains between Capitol Hill and SODO from 10pm on Friday through the weekend with normal service resuming on Monday morning. This longer closure is for ATP installation and testing.
Check Sound Transit’s service alerts for up-to-the-minute updates. Sports fans will be enthused with a few additional updates ST included in Thursday’s press release:
Continue reading “1 Line Update: more strategic closures” | 11 comments