Sound Transit Express Night Bus service
ST Express Overnight Proposal Map by Sound Transit Overnight proposal map pdfPreviously we talked about the pilot route of Sound Transit's overnight bus service which launched last weekend from SeaTac to downtown Seattle. This article will go over Sound Transit's full overnight bus service proposal extended south through Tacoma to Lakewood, north to Everett, and east through Bellevue to Redmond.
OverviewSound Transit plans to run new overnight bus service when Link is not runningbetween about 1 a.m. to 5 a.m., which is slightly shifted from the pilot service which currently runs from midnight to 4 a.m. There will be 3 lines heading north, south, and east of Seattle. All three routes will run about every 30 minutes.
The exact service name, as well as specific routing, stops and schedules are still under consideration, but we'll go over the existing proposal. For discussion purposes, much of the routing will be assumed based on the high-level map and existing ST Express routes. Sound Transit has been informally calling the routes Night Bus" which we use. (King County Metro calls their overnight service Night Owl").
- South Express Night Bus: Seattle via SeaTac to Tacoma (and Lakewood)
- Will replace the initial pilot service
- North Express Night Bus: Seattle via Lynnwood to Everett
- East Express Night Bus: Seattle via Bellevue to Redmond
Map of Route 570 Night Bus" stops in downtown Seattle (TransitTimes).All three Express Night Buses will serve downtown Seattle. Above are the stops in the initial service proposal. While ST express buses usually travel on the 2nd Ave & 4th Ave couplet, the initial service proposal and probably also the Express Night Buses will travel on 3rd Avenue instead. The bus stops used on 3rd Ave mostly mirror the Route 4 bus.
South Express Night Bus
South Express Night Bus route (Sound Transit).The initial service proposal and full South Express Night Bus will both start in downtown Seattle. They will then head south to the SODO district.
SODO and Rainier Valley
Initial service proposal in SODO (TransitTimes).
Route 570 initial service proposal map (Sound Transit).In SODO, they will both stop next to the Stadium Station and SODO Station using the SODO busway. Afterwards the Express Night Bus will head south on I-5 using the Spokane St ramps.
Both the initial pilot service and the full South Express Night Bus will skip Rainier Valley, though the Route 7, Route 36, and Route 107 have night owl service and partially cover the Rainier Valley stations. The initial pilot service, Route 570, was discussed in a previous STB article.
Seattle Transit Map Night Owl with initial service annotated in cyan and missing connection in pinkOne problem with these existing Rainier Valley night owl connections is that they only connect north to downtown Seattle. None of the routes provide service south to TIBS nor SeaTac.
SeaTac on International Boulevard
Initial Service Proposal bus routing around SeaTac map (Sound Transit).
SeaTac southbound bus stop (Google Maps).The South Express Night Bus will then exit I-5 and enter the TIBS bus loop. Then it will head south on International Boulevard to reach the SeaTac light rail station. The bus will stop at the existing RapidRide A bus stops.
Returning passengers from the airport to Seattle will board at the northbound bus stop at International Boulevard. From the airport, one will enter the SeaTac garage, cross the first pedestrian bridge, enter the SeaTac Station, cross the second pedestrian bridge, and then go down the elevator. (When the full South Express Night Bus, departing passengers from Tacoma/Lynnwood will use the same path just in reverse.)
Departing passengers from Seattle to the airport will disembark at the southbound bus stop in the median of Airport Expressway and International Boulevard. Riders will then use the crosswalk to the east, go up the elevator, and cross the two pedestrian bridges. When the full South Express Night Bus opens, returning passengers to Tacoma/Lynnwood will also use this path just in reverse.
Currently there is a bit of conflicting official advice by Sound Transit and the Port of Seattle whether both pedestrian bridges stay open. It's assumed Sound Transit would now keep the pedestrian bridge open overnight. Alternatively if Sound Transit is unable to keep the pedestrian bridge open, travelers can take a 20+ minute detour at the S 182nd St intersection to reach SeaTac. (This is sarcasm please keep the bridges open).
The initial service proposal ends at SeaTac.
The full South Express Night Bus will continue south first by heading east on S 188th St to reach the I-5 freeway. (Skipping Angle Lake Station).
Lynnwood and Tacoma
Route 574 similar to South Express Night Bus map (Sound Transit).The South Express Night Bus will likely follow the existing Route 574, before the future truncation to Federal Way (the overnight service alignment looks the same as Route 574). The bus will stop at the I-5 freeway flyer stops next to Kent/Des Moines and Star Lake and then stop at Federal Way Station using the HOV direct access ramp.
The bus will continue south on I-5 and then stop at Tacoma Dome. The bus will skip downtown Tacoma and then head to Lakewood. The bus will first stop at the SR 512 P&R before ending at the Lakewood Sounder Station.
East Express Night Bus
East Express Night Bus route map (Sound Transit).The East Express Night Bus bus will start in downtown Seattle then head east via Bellevue and then finally stop in Redmond. Starting from Wilburton Station (East of I-405), the bus stops about a quarter mile from many stations in order to maintain decent travel time on Bel-Red Road.
Judkins Park, Mercer Island, and I-90 route
Route 554 map (Sound Transit).After leaving downtown Seattle the East Express Night Bus will likely follow routing similar to the existing Route 554. The bus will likely stop at Rainier Ave & S Charles St (maps) which is the closest bus stop to Judkins Park station before the I-90 on/off ramps. Then the bus will merge onto I-90 to the Mercer Island Park & Ride next to the Mercer Island Station and then continue on I-90.
Bellevue and Redmond first Night serviceThe East Express Night Bus in Bellevue is a bit of an amalgamation of 3 different bus routes. From South Bellevue to downtown Bellevue it will run on Bellevue way similar to existing Route 550 or future Route 554 (realigned to Bellevue instead of Seattle). From downtown Bellevue to Overlake Village it will travel on Bel-Red Road similar to existing Route 226. Finally from Overlake Village to Redmond, it will use SR-520 similar to existing Route 545.
Note, currently no other King County buses run between midnight to 4 am on the Eastside so this would be the Eastside's first night bus service.
Bellevue Way
Route 550 map (Sound Transit).The East Express Night Bus will exit off I-90 to Bellevue way and stop at South Bellevue station. Then the bus will continue north up Bellevue way similar to the existing Route 550. The bus will skip East Main station.
It is unknown if the night bus will make any intermediate stops on Bellevue Way before reaching Bellevue Transit Center. Since night time ridership is relatively low, the bus could probably stop at many of them, though this is still a relatively long route. I recommended that the bus should at least stop at Bellevue Way NE & Main St (maps) and Bellevue Way SE & 108th Ave SE (maps) if forced to restrict the number of stops.
Bel-Red
Route 226 map (Google Maps).Traveling east of downtown Bellevue, the East Express Night Bus will mirror Route 226. Sound Transit likely followed this alignment on Bel Red road because the stops are only around 800 feet away from the East Link stations, rather than a RapidRide B alignment on NE 8th Street around a half mile away from each station. The bus will likely stop at NE 12th St & 120th Ave NE (maps) for Spring District station and Bel-Red Rd & 132nd Ave NE (maps) for Bel-Red station.
Again it is unknown if the bus will make any more intermediate stops on the way east to Overlake Village, but it's suggested that the bus should at least stop at NE Bel-Red Rd & 148th Ave NE (maps) for mile stop spacing.
SR-520 and Redmond
East Express Night Bus in Redmond map (Sound Transit).The last segment in Redmond is harder to interpret. Most likely the bus will turn north onto 156th Ave from Bel-Red Road. The bus will likely stop at 156th Ave NE & NE 28th St (maps) about a quarter mile from the Overlake Village station and then continue north to the Redmond Technology station bus bay.
Guessed bus route from Redmond Technology to Redmond Downtown and Bear Creek Park & Ride (Google Maps).From Redmond Technology (aka Microsoft) the East Express Night Bus will head north on SR-520 to and exit at Sammamish Parkway to reach Redmond. The bus will stop at NE 76th Street next to the Downtown Redmond station. Then the bus will head east on Redmond Way. The bus will stop near Marymoor Village though the closest spot possible would be Redmond Way & NE 76th St (maps) next to the SR 520 on ramp. Lastly the bus will terminate at Bear Creek P&R.
North Express Night Bus
North Express Night Bus route map (Sound Transit).The North Express Night Bus will travel from Seattle via Lynnwood to Everett. The stops are similar to the ST Express 510/512/513 buses before they were truncated to Lynnwood station. Some stops might require bringing back some freeway flyer stops to avoid circuitous routing.
Exiting Seattle and 45th StreetThe bus will take the Olive Way ramp to reach I-5 north. Olive Way & Boren Ave will likely be the last stop before heading onto the freeway. It's unlikely the bus will stop around Capitol Hill especially since the Olive Way bus island was removed.
(Normally the I-5 express lanes close between 11:00 PM and 5:00 AM, so it's assumed the bus cannot use the Stewart St on-ramp onto the express lanes)
I-5 & NE 45th Freeway Flyer stations (Google Maps)
Former southbound I-5 & NE 45th Freeway station (Google Street View)
Once heading north on I-5, the proposal suggests stopping at the NE 45th Freeway Flyer station. Sound Transit will need to reinstall some bus shelters at the flyer stations that were formerly removed, but thankfully the northbound bus island still exists. While the bus stops are about a third of a mile from U District station, having any stop nearby is definitely a lot better than skipping the UW area completely.
Northgate and Shoreline South
Northgate stop location (Google Maps).
Shoreline South stops (Google Maps).The bus will skip Roosevelt station and then stop at Northgate. For Northgate it's assumed the bus will enter Northgate Transit Center.
For Shoreline South, there used to be northbound and southbound freeway flyer stops. However, it's unknown if Sound Transit will reuse those former freeway flyer stops. Most likely the agency will reuse the southbound one, but just place the northbound bus stop on 5th Ave NE.
Mountlake Terrace and LynnwoodContinuing north on I-5 the North Express Night Bus will skip Shoreline North. The bus would then stop at the Mountlake Terrace median freeway station and then Lynnwood transit center via the center HOV direct access ramps.
South Everett and North Everett
ST 512 route map (Sound Transit).Continuing north the North Express Night Bus will stop at Ash Way (P&R) with the HOV center direct access ramps. This is virtually the same as the ST Express 512.
Changes from 2025 proposal to 2026 Jan proposal 2025 overnight proposal(Sound Transit) |  2026 Feb overnight proposal (Sound Transit) |
From 2025 Oct to the 2026 Feb, there have been a couple changes in the proposed night bus service. Above is the map of the 2025 proposal. Notably originally TIBS and Marymoor Village stations were skipped. On the opposite end, downtown Tacoma (10th & Commerce St) is now skipped.
Night Bus diagram in 2026 Service Plan In the just recently released 2026 Service Plan, Sound Transit has suggested prioritized staying on the freeway and skipping Pioneer Square, Stadium, SODO, Judkins Park, and Marymoor Village stations as well. The agency likely considers these stations overnight service already covered by existing routes with Stadium and SODO stations covered by Route 124 and Judkins Park covered by Route 7.
| 2025 Oct proposal | 2026 Feb proposal | 2026 (March?) service plan |
| serves Stadium, SODO skip Judkins Park skip TIBS skip Marymoor Village serves downtown Tacoma | serves Stadium, SODO serves Judkins Park serves TIBS serves Marymoor Village skip downtown Tacoma | skip Stadium, SODO skip Judkins Park serves TIBS skip Marymoor Village skip downtown Tacoma |
Note as previously mentioned, Sound Transit has not yet finalized the alignment.
Timetable
[source?]The initial service proposal from Seattle (Pine Street) to SeaTac states it will take 33 minutes according to most recent GTFS data. Link light rail takes 37 min, car traffic on i-5 takes 20~45 min. Hopefully the lack of traffic at midnight helps maintain such nice travel times.
| South Express Night Bus | East Express Night Bus | North Express Night Bus | |
| Start downtown | Westlake 0 min | Westlake 0 min | Chinatown 0 min |
| Leave downtown | Chinatown 6 min | Chinatown 6 min | Westlake 6 min |
| SODO 13 min | Mercer Island 16 min | Northgate 18~24 min | |
| Mid point (initial service proposal stops at SeaTac) | SeaTac 33 min | Bellevue 31* min | Lynnwood 35~41* min |
| Federal Way 58* min | Overlake Village 45* min | South Everett 48~54* min | |
| End | Tacoma Dome 69~75* min | Redmond 60* min | Everett 60~66* min |
| Routes used to estimate | initial service proposal, ST 574 | Route 550, Route 226, Route 545 | Route 41, CT 510, ST 512 |
The other numbers above are my best educated guess from combining related existing bus routes (Route 550 for I-90, Route 150 on SODO Busway). Note the travel times might be much faster than typical off-peak hours because it's in the middle of the night.
Speed vs AccessFor the North Express Night Bus, Sound Transit should definitely use the freeway flyer stops. While adding too many stops will slow down the express bus too much, it is still important to add important stops such as the NE 45th one near U District near lots of students and density. Fixing and reintroducing some previously used freeway flyer stops can help ensure the overnight buses are both fast and easy to access.
For the East Express Night Bus, it has many local segments (Bellevue Way, Bel-Red). The agency should neither add too many stops hampering frequency nor have too wide stop spacing. Implementing a half-mile to one-mile stop spacing would provide a solid middle ground, allowing overnight buses to stay fast without requiring excessive walking
For the South Express Night Bus, some coordination between King County for the missing Rainier Valley segment would help connect the region. An extension of the overnight Route 7 to TIBS or SeaTac would help bridge the gap.
ConclusionSound Transit Overnight express buses are quite exciting for the region. These will allow people throughout the Seattle metro area to continue to use transit even after midnight. Whether that would be heading back home after a late night flight or work, these Express Night Buses will be invaluable for transit riders.
References