Stride 3 BRT Part 2: Kenmore, Bothell, and I-405

Stride 3 BRT Map

Stride 3 BRT will be the new avenue-running BRT on SR 522 (Bothell Way) from Seattle/Shoreline via Lake Forest Park and Kenmore to Bothell. The bus will run every 10 to 15 minutes and stop at 14 stations.

This article will continue the Stride 3 BRT discussion with the eastern half of the route with Kenmore and Bothell.

The previous article (Stride 3 BRT Part 1: Seattle, Lake Forest Park and Kenmore) discussed the western half of the route with Seattle, Shoreline and Lake Forest Park.

Kenmore61st Ave and 68th Ave stops

Leaving Lake Forest Park from the Ballinger Way stop, the Stride 3 bus will continue east through Kenmore. The Stride 3 bus will first stop at 61st Ave NE and 68th Ave NE. Both stations pairs will be on the far side of the intersection.

68th Ave NE stop in near downtown Kenmore

The 68th Ave NE stop will be the main stop for Kenmore's resdients as it connects to the cluster of retail and apartments to the north.

Downtown Kenmore plans

Building on the success of the 2003 downtown plan along NE 181st St, Kenmore hopes to continue development and growth with the 2024 Downtown Kenmore plan.

Kenmore Park & Ride

Half a mile to the east, Stride 3 will stop at the Kenmore Park & Ride. The Park & Ride was estimated to have the highest ridership at 1,000 daily boardings.

Kenmore Park and Ride future garage

The two-level parking garage at the Park & Ride was deferred. Hopefully this plan could be replaced with a bit more apartments or retail rather than solely more parking.

In between Kenmore and BothellStride 3 BRT BAT lane Diagram

After the Kenmore Park & Ride station, the Stride 3 bus will run non-stop for ~2 miles until the 98th Ave NE stop in Bothell.

Stage 3 improvements Project

Many of the BAT lanes along Bothell Way between Kenmore and Bothell were already finished as part of the SR 522 Stage 1 and Stage 2 back in 2014. More recently in 2022, Sound Transit implemented the SR 522 Stage 3 improvements project filling in the missing segment of BAT lanes between Kenmore and Bothell (shown above).

A future infill bus station near NE Bothell Way & 91st Ave NE and the townhouses and Ivorywood Apartments would help shorten the two-mile gap. However, Bothell will also need to add in a traffic light at the intersection. Currently no signalized crosswalk exists within half a mile in either direction for pedestrians to cross Bothell Way.

Stride 3 Bus Lane Digram near Bothell with center bus lane

Nearing Bothell, the Stride 3 bus will merge from the right to the left and use a special eastbound center bus-only lane. The bus will then turn left onto 98th Ave NE using a bus-only left turn lane to enter downtown Bothell.

Downtown BothellBothell map with 4 bus stops

Bothell will have 4 stops at 98th Ave NE, 104th Ave NE, UW Bothell/Cascadia College and Beardslee Boulevard.

98th Ave NE stop104th Ave NE stop

The first two stops will serve the core downtown Bothell. 98th Ave NE stop is next to the Bothell library, apartment complexes (Alexan Main Street, and Boulevard Place Senior Living), and also the future parking garage if built. The 104th Ave NE stops are next to apartments complexes (Edition, Morado Bothell, and 104) and also closer to the existing Bothell Park & Ride.

2009 downtown bothell plan

The previous 2009 Downtown Bothell has generally been pretty successful with realigning SR-522 and with many infill apartments built in the past decades. Bothell hopes to continue the development of their downtown with their 2026 Downtown Subarea update.

Bothell CampusUW Bothell/Cascadia College stop
just north of UW BothellBeardslee Boulevard next to I-405 on ramps

The UW Bothell/Cascadia College stop is just north of both campuses and will be connection for UW Bothell and Cascadia College students.

The Beardslee Boulevard stop is localed west of the I-405 on-ramp and near apartments (The Villas at Beardslee). Across I-405 is also the North Creek office parks and hotels.

Bothell/Woodinville Transit CenterSR 522/I-405 transit hub diagram by wsdot.

Last, the Stride 3 BRT will end at Bothell/Woodinville Transit Center located in the northwest corner intersection of SR 522 and I-405. The buses will recharge at this bus station and also provide a (slightly far) connection to UW's campus on the south side. This station will also connect with the freeway-running Stride 2 BRT from Lynnwood via Kirkland to Bellevue.

Previous articles discussed the Bothell /Woodinville transit hub connecting SR 522 & I-405 BRT (STB 2020) in more detail.

Woodinville Express BusWoodinville ST express consideration

On weekday peaks, Sound Transit will run an express bus from Woodinville Park & Ride to Bothell/Woodinville Transit Center (labeled as SR 522/I-405 transfer hub above) and then continue south via I-405 to Bellevue Transit Center. During weekends and weekday off-peak, Sound Transit will run a local collector bus only between the Park & Ride and the Bothell/Woodinville Transit Center. Woodinville residents will need to transfer to either Stride 3 BRT (to Shoreline South station) or use Stride 2 BRT (to Bellevue).

Connecting Stride 2 versus Woodinville

Woodinville service as part of a SR 522 BRT plans has shifted many times. While the original 2016 ST3 plans excluded Woodinville entirely, Sound Transit briefly considired half frequency (20 minute) in 2018. However, in 2020 the agency opted to drop the segment in favor of the two separate types of Woodinville ST Express bus mentioned above.

Stride 3 Bothell to Woodinville 2019 plans

Serving both downtowns has always been a challenge for transit. Bothell sits in the northwest corner of the i-405/sr-522 interchange while Woodinville lies to the southeast. Sound Transit originally proposed having buses from Beardslee Blvd use the I-405 ramps to head east on SR 522, exiting at 131st Ave or NE 195th St to reach Woodinville P&R. Originally Stride 2 BRT with its shoulder-running configuration on I-405 allowed for an easy freeway flyer' stop at Beardslee Blvd to connect with Stride 3.

However, when Sound Transit and WSDOT switched Stride 2 BRT into a center-running configuration, reliability improved but also complicated the Stride 3 BRT (2019) route alignment. Stride 2 BRT would now be forced to skip Bothell, breaking the connection between the two lines. To resolve this, WSDOT and Sound Transit envisioned a new transit center in the northwest corner of the freeway interchange, shifting the Stride 3 terminus to this location.

Travel Times

Start	Travel Time
Bothell/Woodinville Transit Center	0.0 min
UW Bothell / Cascadia College	5.7 min
(Downtown Bothell) 98th Ave NE	12.0 min
(Downtown Kenmore) 68th Ave NE	19.1 min
(Lake Forest Park) Ballinger Way	24.0 min
(Lake City) 30th Ave NE	31.2 min
Shoreline South	38.8 min

References

• Sound Transit 60% Design Bothell
• Sound Transit 60% Design Kenmore
• Cut from 522 BRT Plans, Woodinville Will Get a New Express Bus Instead (2020 Urbanist)
• Bothell Downtown plan 2009
• Stride S3 Line Folio
• sr-522-northeast-145th (2019) plans