More Bus Cancellations, Fewer Bus Lanes, Because Presidents’ Day

Credit: George H. W. Bush Presidential Library & Museum

Just when you thought it was safe to depend on apps that use the regular schedule to tell you when your bus is scheduled to come, a holiday that many don't pay attention to is upon us. Yes, it is " (checks calendar) " Presidents' Day!

Most King County Metro routes will be running on their regular weekday schedule. A bunch will have specified runs cancelled: 102, 111, 114, 121, 122, 123, 125, 143, 157, 167, 168, 169, 177, 179, 186, 187, 192, 197, 212, 214, 218, 219, 232, 243, 244, 249, 252, 255, 257, 269, 271, 277, 303, 311, 312, 342, 907, and 931. Cancelled trips show with an "H" or "D" in the timetables.

A few Metro routes will not be running at all today: 201, 237, 304, 308, 316, 330, 355, 661, and 930.

Sounder and all ST Express routes will operate on their normal weekday schedules, while Link Light Rail will operate every 10 minutes all day until late in the evening, but with 3-car trains, and Tacoma Link operates on its Sunday schedule, running every 24 minutes from 9:48 am to 5:48 pm (which you have to go to the printed schedule to figure out).

More agencies after the jump"

The streetcars will be running on Sunday frequency, which is to say every 15-18 minutes from 10 am to 7 pm (SLU) and 8 pm (First Hill).

The monorail will be running from 9 am to 8 pm.

Community Transit will run local routes on their regular weekday schedules. The only commuter routes operating will be 402, 413, 421, and 855. The rest of the commuter routes are cancelled for the day.

Kitsap Transit will operate on its holiday service schedules, which will mean reduced runs on nearly every route. Routes 15, 19, 22, 23, 33, 34, 35, 81-106, the Annapolis ferry, and the Purdy Connection will not be running. The cross-Sound fast ferries and routes 2, 302, and 307 will be running their full weekday schedules.

Transit agencies running their regular weekday schedules include:

• C-Tran
• Everett Transit
• Grays' Harbor Transit
• Intercity Transit
• Island Transit
• Jefferson Transit
• King County Ferries (with the expanded West Seattle service still in effect)
• Pierce Transit
• Skagit Transit
• TriMet
• Twin Transit
• Whatcom Transit.

Mason Transit will not be running today.

Clallam Transit will not be running today, except for route 123, the Strait Shot, which will be on its Sunday schedule.

King County Metro routes 101, 180, and 216 are listed on Metro's holiday service page as having some trips cancelled, but do not show any cancelled in each of those routes' online schedules, at least for this service period that ends on March 22.

SDOT funding to keep regular service on minor holidays

None of the Metro routes being reduced or cancelled today are Seattle-only routes. Until recently, some Seattle-only routes were running regular service on minor holidays, but being reduced on days the University of Washington is not holding classes. That has changed, thanks to available funding from the Seattle Transportation Benefit District. Now, Seattle-only routes run their full regular weekday schedules on MLK Day, Presidents' Day, and Veterans' Day.

SDOT holiday parking rules that impede regular service

Three years ago, former STB Staff Reporter Zach Shaner pointed out the irony that SDOT is funding keeping full weekday bus service on minor holidays, while using weekend parking rules that allow free and unrestricted parking, blocking several bus lanes with parked cars. Thankfully, the number of lanes allowing off-peak parking has been reduced since Zach's original post, but the underlying policy blind spot remains intact, undercutting SDOT's transit investment on MLK Day, Presidents' Day, and Veterans' Day. The minor holiday rules also allow general-purpose traffic into some bus lanes that aren't blocked by becoming parking lanes.