Ridership Patterns for King County Metro Route 36

King County Metro's Route 36 travels inbound from Othello Station to downtown Seattle, primarily through Beacon Hill and the International District. Outbound trips travel in the reverse direction. Between Massachusetts St and the Dr. Jose Rizal Bridge in North Beacon Hill, inbound trips serve stops along 12th Ave while outbound trips stop along 14th Ave. In October 2024, Route 36 had 7,059 average weekday boardings.

Route 36 Map from King County MetroAverage Ridership Per Trip

The plots below show the average weekday ridership by stop in each direction, color-coded by time of day. For a more detailed breakdown of how the plots are set up, please refer to the How to Read the Plots section of the article discussing Route 70.

Average Weekday Ridership per Route 36 Trip: March 2023 to March 2024. Inbound" is toward downtown Seattle; Outbound" is toward Othello Station. Click the plot to view at full-resolution in a new tab.

The overall ridership patterns for Route 36 show a route that is primarily used to travel between Beacon Hill and downtown Seattle, while also operating as a feeder route to Link at the Beacon Hill Station. Some Observations:

• The southern terminus of Route 36 has decent ridership. The surrounding area has several large apartment buildings, dozens of shops and restaurants, a Safeway grocery store, and the Othello Link Station.Stops in this area also serve routes 50 and 106.
• Only a few riders use Route 36 to get between the single family homes near Myrtle St and Holly St and Othello Station. Most riders from this area travel north on Route 36. For passengers heading to Beacon Hill Station or further north, taking Route 36 to Beacon Hill Station is faster than taking Route 36 to Othello Station and transferring to a northbound Link train.
• Outbound morning trips see a slight spike in departures at Myrtle St & Beacon Ave. This is likely from Mercer Middle School students as the school has been temporarily located at the Van Asselt Interim Site since August 2023.Passengers can transfer here to Route 107.
• On Beacon Ave between Myrtle St and Dawson St, inbound trips primarily pick up passengers. More passengers board in the morning than at any other time of day. Midday trips see about half as many passengers as morning trips. For outbound trips, passengers primarily alight at these stops. Afternoon trips drop off more passengers than trips at other times, followed by evening and midday trips.
• The stop at Beacon Ave & Columbian Way serves a small commercial area with a few restaurants and shops, and provides transfers to Route 50. Inbound trips still primarily see passengers board here, but more passengers board midday than in the morning. Outbound trips have more passengers departing than boarding, mostly in the midday, afternoon, and evening. The higher midday use of this stop compared to the stops further south suggest this area is a destination for local trips. Due to Route 50's lower ridership and nearby connections to Link (at Columbia City and SODO), it is unlikely that a lot of passengers transfer between the two routes.
• Just one stop north, the Veterans Administration Hospital (VA) stop has a different ridership pattern. Inbound morning trips see some passengers alight while midday and afternoon trips see more passengers board. Outbound trips drop off most passengers in the morning or midday, and have a few passengers board in the afternoon. The spike in departures for outbound morning trips is likely due to VA employees who transferred from Link at Beacon Hill Station.
• The two stops between Jefferson Park and the golf course (Beacon Ave & Jefferson Golf Course and Beacon Ave & Jefferson Community Center) have minimal ridership.
• North of Jefferson Park, the three stops immediately south of Beacon Hill Station follow the same pattern as stops south of Columbian Ave. Inbound trips see a decreasing number of passengers board at each stop further north. Outbound trips see the same pattern in the opposite direction with more passengers alighting at stops further south (Spokane St). The lower ridership at stops closer to the Beacon Hill Link Station may be due to potential riders choosing to walk to the station instead of waiting for a Route 36 bus.
• At Beacon Ave & Lander St, Route 36 stops right outside Beacon Hill Station on the Link 1 Line. On inbound trips, about 30% of passengers on the bus alight at this stop. Slightly fewer passengers board inbound trips at this stop. Outbound trips see a similar pattern in reverse with some passengers alighting and more passengers boarding. This stop also serves a few apartment buildings, numerous restaurants and shops, a grocery store, and routes 60 and 107.
• At Beacon Ave & 15th St (inbound)/ Bayview St (outbound), Route 36 trips see strong inbound boardings and outbound departures throughout the day. This stop is adjacent to the north end of the commercial area and a few apartment buildings.
• Along 14th Ave and 12th Ave (inbound trips north of Massachusetts St) between Beacon Ave and Golf St, most stops have some passengers board inbound morning trips. Outbound trips have some passengers alight at each stop with significantly more passengers alighting at 14th Ave & Massachusetts St. This stop is adjacent to a high rise apartment building and numerous mid-rise apartment buildings. The lack of a corresponding boarding spike for inbound trips at this stop is likely the result of inbound trips serving additional stops on Massachusetts St and 12th Ave. Route 60 also serves all stops along this segment.
• Similar to Route 7, Route 36 has significant ridership along Jackson St. As service along Jackson St and 3rd Ave is mirrored by routes 7 and 14, most riders along these segments may be just taking the first bus to arrive, rather than specifically waiting for Route 36.

Daily Totals per Stop

The average daily total boarding and alighting counts show a similar pattern to the per trip data. The unparalleled spike in outbound trip departures at S Myrtle St & 39th Ave S is because the corresponding inbound trip boardings are split between the stops at Martin L King Jr Way S & S Myrtle St and S Othello St & Martin L King Jr Way S.

Average Route 36 Weekday Boarding and Alighting Counts: March 2023 to March 2024. Inbound" is toward downtown Seattle; Outbound" is toward Othello Station. Click the plot to view at full-resolution in a new tab.Looking Ahead

The Seattle Department of Transportation is in the construction stage of the Beacon Ave S & 15th Ave S Safety Project's North Segment. This project will add protected bike lanes on 15th Ave and Beacon Ave between the Dr. Jose Rizal Bridge and S Spokane St (just north of Jefferson Park). This project also includes sidewalk improvements, 62 new or rebuilt curb ramps, and new bus stop islands on Beacon Ave at Hanford St and Lander St (outside the Beacon Hill Link Station). While Route 36 is not directly improved by this project, the safer pedestrian environment may encourage more ridership and fewer cars on the road may improve Route 36's speed and reliability.

In June 2024, King County Metro released the RapidRide Prioritization Plan. This document identifies Corridor 1064B (Route 36) as a Tier 1 priority corridor, along with corridor 1049 (Route 150). The Tier 1 corridors will receive RapidRide upgrades following the completion of the RapidRide lines currently in development (I, J, K, R). As the last of these four routes (RapidRide R) is expected to be completed in 2031, Route 36 will likely see RapidRide upgrades in the early to mid 2030s.