Golden Gardens Direct shuttle starts Saturday

Golden Gardens Direct route map (Metro)

Leaders from King County and Seattle met at Golden Gardens Park Monday morning to inaugurate a new shuttle service direct to Golden Gardens Park. Golden Gardens Direct" will provide a direct connection between Market Street in central Ballard to the park on Seaview Ave NW. Buses will run every 30 minutes every day from 11 AM to 9 PM, with service starting this Saturday, June 27, and ending on August 30. Passengers can transfer to the Golden Gardens Direct from routes 17, 40, 44, and the D Line. The shuttle will have stops at 34th Ave NW and every few blocks along Seaview Ave NW.

Rides will cost the same as a King County Metro bus: $3, free for riders aged 18 and under, discounted for those eligible for reduced fares, and transfers will be accepted. Tap to pay is not available on the route. When reached for comment, Elaine Porterfield of King Count Metro provided the following statement:

Metro is in the process of installing equipment on the Hopelink and DART fleet to enable tap-to-pay, which could allow Metro to collect tap-to-pay fares on the Golden Gardens Direct shuttles later this summer. We don't have an exact date yet when that will take place. We recognize that after just a few months of launching, tap to pay features have made it quick and easy to pay fares and ride transit. We're eager to offer this feature on the balance of our services as soon as possible."

The Golden Gardens Direct shuttle is funded by the Seattle Transit Measure for this year only. Service in future summers would require additional funding which could come from the STM renewal Mayor Wilson proposed earlier this month. With this service, SDOT and Metro aim to improve park access and reduce traffic congestion during peak summer season.

Temporary additions to bus stop signs in Ballard show where riders can board Golden Gardens Direct (Han Zheng,CC BY-NC-ND 4.0).

Metro bus service to Golden Gardens is not a new idea. Between the 1980s and 2012, Route 46 ran between the UW campus and Golden Gardens via Wallingford and Ballard. The route was often run with less-than-hourly service and for some years only limited runs would continue from Market Street to the Park. Route 46 was deleted in September 2012 due to low ridership, likely resulting from very infrequent service and poor density along the route. Since then, advocates and the city have mulled over various ways to bring buses back to Seaview Avenue, and even considered a shuttle in 2019.

Route 46 map (Kenny's Bus Drawings via CPTDB)

Golden Gardens Direct's 30-minute pace will be a significant improvement over Route 46's former infrequency (and infinitely improved over the total lack of service today), even if a transfer is required for most riders. Potential Golden Gardens goers will likely find the wait more pleasant than circling the park's limited parking lots or walking down from Sunset Hill.

Edit: Clarified the shuttle will have stops along Market and Seaview between the Locks and Golden Gardens and added comments provided by Metro.