by Vee Hua 華婷婷
curated by Vee Hua 華婷婷
by Ben Adlin
Trying to get from one place to another in the South End? A newly refreshed service from King County Metro offers on-demand rides in much of South Seattle and the surrounding region — all for the price of a bus ticket.
Continue reading Need a Ride? Metro Program Will Send You a Minivan for the Price of Bus Fareby Ronnie Estoque
According to data provided by King County Metro, there were 46 drug-related reports made by operators and customers on King County Metro buses in 2019. That amount grew exponentially to over 1,885 reports in 2022 alone, according to Jeff Switzer, a public information officer with King County Metro.
“The following drug-related reports are employee-reported and are not verified. Metro has worked diligently with frontline staff to encourage reporting and to streamline the incident reporting system,” Switzer said. “We are seeing the results of that effort with an increase in reports coming over the last 18 months, which has allowed us to deploy transit security resources to where they can be most effective.”
Continue reading Increased Drug Use on King County Buses Raises Safety Concerns for Employeescurated by Vee Hua 華婷婷
A light-hearted News Gleams for this scorching week! We cover free transit passes for youth and major updates on West Seattle Bridge which put it closer to reopening — plus The Seattle Public Library’s head librarian wants to hear from you!
—Vee Hua 華婷婷, interim managing editor of the South Seattle Emerald
P.S. Check out our Voting Guide for the Aug. 2 Primary Elections, and don’t forget to vote! It’s part of our recently launched series of South End Guides.
Continue reading NEWS GLEAMS | Free Transit Passes for Youth, Updates on West Seattle Bridge, & Moreby Lizz Giordano
Sound Transit is bringing back fines for non-payment on its trains and buses this fall after the agency paused fare enforcement during the pandemic, but it has also instituted a more lenient and accommodating system for riders who don’t pay their fare.
Continue reading Sound Transit Board Passes a More Lenient Policy Toward Non-Paying Ridersby Erica C. Barnett
(This article originally appeared on PubliCola and has been reprinted with permission.)
Join me in helping the Emerald create ripples and sparks everywhere! Information is Power! Imagine media for, by, and accountable to the community — thankfully, you don’t have to, because the Emerald already exists! As a founding board member living in a community so often treated as powerless, I’ve seen the Emerald grow to become a beacon of light that reminds us of our power, our wisdom, and our agency. But we can’t continue to do it without sustainable financial resources that allow us to thrive. Help us celebrate authentic community stories during the Emerald’s 8th anniversary campaign, Ripples & Sparks at Home, April 20–28, by becoming a recurring donor! —Bridgette Hempstead, Community Activist, Founding Board Member, & Rainmaker
Sometime in the not-too-distant future, King County Metro plans to rip out its existing fare boxes, which accept cash, tickets, and ORCA transit passes, and replace them with a cash-free payment system — part of a long-term plan to expedite boarding, integrate the County’s bus system with Sound Transit, and reduce conflicts between riders and drivers. “Every second you save at the curb is money you can reinvest at keeping service operating,” said Carol Cooper, Metro’s Market Innovation Section manager.
Continue reading Metro Wants to Get Rid of Cash Fares. Will Vulnerable Riders Be Left Behind?by Lizz Giordano
Two years after Sound Transit acknowledged that internal data showed Black and low-income riders were more likely to be cited and punished for failing to pay on trains, the agency is still searching for a solution for fare enforcement equity.
According to 2018–2019 rider surveys and enforcement data, 9% of light rail and Sounder train riders were Black but accounted for 21% of the people cited or fined by officers. And nearly 60% of the riders cited had a household income of less than $50,000.
Continue reading Sound Transit Searching for Equitable Fare Enforcement Solutionsby Lizz Giordano
As Steven Wayne and Emoke Rock crossed the light rail tracks near the Columbia City Station last summer, they were unaware a light rail train was barreling toward them about to hit and kill the couple, according to a recently completed investigation of the July 2 collision.
“At no point does either pedestrian make any movement to get out of the path of the train or acknowledge its presence,” concludes the “Final Accident Report” written by King County Metro Transit. The bus agency is contracted by the light rail agency to operate the trains.
The report is sparking renewed discussions about pedestrian safety along the light rail corridor, a critical conversation for Rainier Valley residents.
Continue reading A Light Rail Train Was Bearing Down on Them — They Had No Idea.by Ben Adlin
A groundbreaking ceremony in Madison Valley this week marked the official start of construction of a new RapidRide bus route — the G Line — expected to carry nearly 12,000 people daily along Madison Street between downtown and Martin Luther King Jr. Way.
The 2.3-mile transit expansion, projected to open in 2024, will include major upgrades to roads and sidewalks, including 240 curb cutouts to increase accessibility, new traffic signals, more visible crosswalks, signs that show real-time bus arrivals, and raised-curb stations designed to make it easier to get on and off buses — which will come every six minutes at peak times and have doors on both sides.
In the short-term, the $133 million project will likely mean a snarl of construction traffic on Madison, only adding to the region’s growing pains. But the investment of time and money will eventually mean a more connected, built-out transit system that links some of the city’s densest neighborhoods, speakers at Thursday’s, Sept. 30, event said.
“In some cities, the best lines of communication are from the city center to the suburbs,” said the Rev. Patricia Hunter of Mount Zion Baptist Church, where the groundbreaking ceremony was held. “But in Seattle, one of the best lines of transportation will serve those within the city, all along Madison.”
Continue reading Construction Begins on RapidRide G Line to Open in 2024
