Here’s my experience riding the 2 Line Starter Line for my regular trip from Seattle to Lake Hills. I’ve been doing this trip once or twice a month since 2022 to visit an elderly relative in an adult family home (AFH). The endpoint is near 164th & Main, a single-family area southeast of Crossroads. I grew up a mile from here, and now my relative is spending their last years here. This trip is typical for anyone living east of Crossroads going to Seattle without a car, or for people going to any AFH or outlying business/service not on a frequent bus arterial.

In the lists below I compare my travel times before Link, with Link in June, with Link in July, and speculation about the full 2 Line. The most variable part is the bus routes in east Bellevue (221, 226, 245, B) — different routes are better in different phases and directions — so I’ve put those route numbers in boldface.

“Seattle: Picture of a Young City”, 1976, a collection of vintage video clips by the Seattle Engineering Department.

This is an open thread.

SDOT is in the early stages of planning on 130th North between the freeway and Aurora. They are further along with the planning east of there. While it is likely too late to add BAT lanes in that project (or even prevent the loss of a queue jump) we can add BAT lanes where they will do the most good — between Aurora and the future station.

This week is all RapidRide as we review the Candidate Corridors analyzed in Metro’s recently published RapidRide Prioritization Plan.

King County Metro Corridor 1049, a potential RapidRide conversion of Route 150, was recently set as a Tier 1 priority corridor, expected to be constructed before 2039 after the current RapidRide projects are finished. Route 150 connects Kent to Seattle via Southcenter and currently averages around 4,000 weekday boardings. When it gets upgraded to RapidRide service, Metro expects a 60% ridership increase and a 22% travel time savings.

This line will be the first RapidRide line to use a freeway alignment. Currently the route follows I-5 and the SODO busway downtown. Because the busway is planned to be taken over by the West Seattle light rail line, it would need to use 4th Avenue South instead.

This week is all RapidRide as we review the Candidate Corridors analyzed in Metro’s recently published RapidRide Prioritization Plan.

King County Metro Corridor 1012, a potential RapidRide conversion of Route 44 — traveling between Ballard, Wallingford, and UW — was recently set set as a Tier 2 priority corridor for future RapidRide expansion.

Conversion of Route 44 would build on upgrades included in SDOT’s recently-completed Transit-Plus Multimodal Corridor project, and include additional transit priority treatments in Ballard, Wallingford, and around UW.

This week is all RapidRide as we review the Candidate Corridors analyzed in Metro’s recently published RapidRide Prioritization Plan.

King County Metro Corridor 1064B, a potential RapidRide conversion of Route 36 — traveling between Othello, Beacon Hill, Jackson Street, and Downtown Seattle — was recently set as a Tier 1 priority corridor for future RapidRide expansion. Metro also considered a northward route replacing much of Route 49, from Capitol Hill to the U-District, but ultimate prioritized focusing on Route 36.

The proposed conversion would add speed and reliability connecting South Seattle to the rest of the city. Metro’s primary recommendation for RapidRide-ization of the route is the construction of a moderate amount of BAT (business access and transit) lanes.

This week is all RapidRide as we review the Candidate Corridors analyzed in Metro’s recently published RapidRide Prioritization Plan.

King County Metro Corridor 1993, a potential RapidRide conversion of Route 40 — traveling between Northgate, Ballard, Fremont, SLU, and Downtown Seattle — was recently set as a Tier 2 priority corridor for future RapidRide expansion.

The proposed RapidRide conversion adds BAT (business access & transit) lanes, provides time savings, and extends it to First Hill. Originally proposed as a RapidRide Fremont in the 2015 Levy to Move Seattle, the line was delayed after a lack of funding. Metro’s RapidRide Prioritization Plan investigated minor alignment changes, and possible transit speed and reliability improvements for the route.

RMTransit explores how the space between transit stops (“stop spacing”) is a careful balance between convenience and speed.

Oh The Urbanity! looks at transit-oriented development (“TOD”) in Montreal and discusses the promises and perils that come with this style of dense construction.

This is an Open Thread.