Metro’s March 2021 service change makes minor adjustments

The RapidRide A-Line, which is getting an evening frequency boost (photo: Atomic Taco)

In the final twice-a-year planned service change before the Northgate Link restructure transforms north Seattle bus service this fall, King County Metro is keeping it simple and not making many substantial changes to the bus network. Certain routes are gaining or losing a handful of trips, and bus bay assignments at Auburn Station are changing. There are no routes that are fully suspended making the jump to fully or partially restored, as the long road to recovery is just beginning. The changes take effect on Saturday, March 20, 2021.

The following routes are seeing increases in service from last fall (bold indicates all-day service, and italics indicates a peak-only route):

2, 3, 4, 7, 10, 11, 13, 36, 49, 50, 60, 106, 128, 132, 161, 193, RapidRide A, ST 522, ST 550

Nearly all of these changes are minor. Exceptions include route 128, which is going from 30 to 20 minute headways midday on weekdays, and the RapidRide A-Line (a rare example of a route getting increased service because of Covid), which is getting headways upgraded from 15 minutes to 12 minutes between 6 and 10 PM on weekdays. 10-minute service on Saturdays is also extended to 10 PM (which, yes, is more frequent than weekday service after 6 PM) to match Sunday service.

The following routes are seeing a decrease in service, usually by a handful of trips:

21, 21 Express, 55, 56, 57, 102, 111, 212, 218, 301, 311

The following routes that service Auburn Station are getting new bay assignments:

160, 184, 915, ST 566

The following routes remain fully suspended. No fully suspended route is being restored, and no route currently operating is being fully suspended in March 2021:

5 Express, 9, 15, 17, 18, 19, 22, 29, 37, 47, 63, 71, 76, 77, 78, 113, 114, 116, 118 Express, 119 Express, 121, 122, 123, 143, 154, 157, 167, 177, 178, 179, 190, 197, 200, 214, 216, 217, 219, 232, 237, 246, 249, 252, 268, 308, 312, 316, 342, 355, ST 541, ST 544, ST 555, ST 556, 628, 630, 931, Black Diamond - Enumclaw Community Ride

Though no routes are being restored, Sound Transit is adding a stop to route 586 at Federal Way Transit Center to provide an alternative to suspended route 197. It's also worth noting that Sound Transit is also adding a Tacoma Dome Station stop to route 595 to provide an alternative to suspended Pierce Transit express route 102 (not to be confused with King County Metro route 102).