Route 60 Improvements

Route 60 improvements

Metro is studying improvements for Route 60. https://kingcountymetro.blog/2026/01/16/metro-studying-transit-improvements-on-route-60/

The goal of the improvements is to reduce bus travel times by 10-15% during peak commute times. Most of the improvements involve bus stop rebalancing along with some short bus lanes at congested intersections.

Take the survey (ends February 20) here: https://kcit.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_6mmKfN7IdybRE7Y

The survey will also about one's opinion on each segments improvements as well as a free form section for any other suggestions.

We'll go into each segment from the survey in more detail below, as well as some extra suggestions.

Segment 1 Capitol Hill

Route 60 starts in Capitol Hill and then heads south through First Hill and Little Saigon.

23rd Avenue southbound view at Rainier Avenue with middle bus lane

The largest improvement is adding a Business Access and Transit (BAT) lane and queue jump for northbound buses on 12th Avenue approaching Boren Avenue. It would probably be a middle bus lane (similar to the 23d Ave southbound bus lane) since the bus needs to execute an immediate left turn.

Some other minor improvements the survey suggested are:

• Minor reroute in Little Saigon. Metro wants to have the bus route from Broadway and Fir Street to instead use Yesler Way and 8th Avenue to avoid loading trucks on Fir Street.
• Building bus bulbs for the stops at Capitol Hill Station and Harborview to reduce time merging in and out of traffic. (Marked as In-lane bus stop")
• Consolidating bus stops on 9th Avenue as they are only 2 blocks apart.

Route staying on Broadway, eliminating detour to 9th Ave and Madison St (not suggested by survey)

While the proposed survey changes are nice, a more impactful solution would be to maintain the route straight on Broadway rather than the jog over to 9th Ave. Staying on Broadway eliminates two left turns and the Route 60 could just use the existing streetcar platforms.

Madison St & Terry Ave median bus station

Alternatively, if the detour to Madison St and 9th Ave is retained to serve Virginia Mason and other destinations, Metro should consider deploying buses with boarding doors on both sides. This would allow Route 60 to utilize the RapidRide G (Madison BRT) center-median stations via left-side boarding. Currently, the Route 60 is restricted to curbside stops, missing out on using the center bus lanes and traveling in the curb lane with traffic.

Segment Beacon Hill part of Route 36Segment skipped in light greenRoute 36 Improvements around Beacon Hill Station

The segment from Little Saigon to Beacon Hill Station was skipped in this Route 60 study as this segment was already being investigated as part of the Route 36 Improvements study (2023). Most likely some combination of transit signal priority and/or some limited bus queue jump lanes. Some of the originally proposed transit lanes on Beacon Avenue are probably impossible to add with the new protected bike lanes from the Beacon Ave S & 15th Ave Safety project. The BAT lane on 12th and/or 14th avenue are still possible to add though.

Segment 2 Beacon Hill

Segment 2 has the Route 60 bus traveling through North Beacon Hill south on 15th Avenue S.

The largest improvement would be at the Columbia Way intersection with the northbound bus lanes. Most likely achieved by reallocating the east-side parking spots or possibly a northbound shared bike-bus lane.

Bus priority lanes would also be added at:

• Westbound at South McClellan Street and Beacon Avenue (near Beacon Hill Link Station)
• Northbound at 15th Avenue and Spokane Street (near Jefferson Park)

Some other minor improvements are:

• Adding a raised bike lane on Swift Avenue to sidewalk level at the northbound 16th Avenue South bus stop (google map). This change would allow the bus to serve the stop more efficiently while reducing potential conflict between bike riders and buses. (Marked as In-lane bus stop" above)
• Removing one of the bus stop pair on 15th Ave S at S Stevens Street or at South Hanford Street to improve travel times.
• Adding a dedicated left turn lane at 15th Ave s and S Lucile Street in the northbound direction. Currently it is just a 2 lane road but there is heavy left turning traffic heading to Georgetown.
• Moving the southbound bus stop of 15th Ave & Orcas further south

Segment 3 GeorgetownSegment 3 map

Segment 3 has the Route 60 bus driving through Georgetown. The bus travels on Albro Place/ Ellis Ave S in the southbound direction while using Corson Ave S in the northbound direction.

Segment 3 southbound reroute for Albro Place

This segment would include a minor route change of southbound buses keeping them on Albro Place. The existing stop at Albro Place and 13th Avenue South would be replaced for the existing 13th Avenue South and Bailey Street stop less than 600 feet away.

Bus lanes would be added to:

• Eastbound on Albro Place approaching I-5,
• Eastbound on Bailey Street approaching Carleton Avenue,
• Southbound Ellis Avenue approaching East Marginal Way,
• Southbound on East Marginal Way approaching 14th Avenue South,
• Northbound on 16th Avenue approaching East Marginal Way.

The most prominent transit improvement is the southbound bus lanes added on East Marginal Way approaching 14th Avenue South. It is a bit unclear how this would work together with the proposed two-way bike lane as part of the E Marginal Way S Paving and Safety Improvements project though.

Segment 4Segment Map

Segment 4 has the Route 60 bus travel west from Georgetown via South Park and White Center to terminate at Westwood Village.

A new bus priority lane on South Cloverdale Street eastbound approaching 14th Avenue South. This lane would help buses bypass long lines of traffic during morning and evening rush hours.

Finally, there would be a suggested closure of the eastbound bus stop at Barton Place and 22nd Avenue Southwest. Given the nearby Westwood Vista and Bode Westwood apartments it might be better to keep the bus stop.

Conclusion

The improvements to Route 60 would help connect West Seattle, Georgetown, Beacon Hill, and Capitol Hill with faster and more reliable service. The added bus lanes will help allow the buses to avoid traffic and some minor route alignments to avoid detours will help ensure their fast travel time. There are a couple bus stop rebalancing suggested in Capitol Hill and Georgetown that will help as well.