King County Metro Drops All Fares During Coronavirus Outbreak

SEATTLE, WA — King County Metro will halt fare collection on all its transit services Saturday, amid a growing outbreak of the new coronavirus, and rides will remain free until further notice, officials said Friday. As part of the latest changes, Metro is asking all riders to board and exit buses using the rear doors, to ensure access at the front for people with mobility needs.

"As the crisis evolves, we are constantly reviewing all of our practices and policies to provide the best service while keeping people safe," said Dow Constantine, the King County Executive. "It is essential to keep this community on the move, and I thank all operators, mechanics, support staff, and riders who are helping us get through this together."

Aside from buses, all trips on the water taxi, First Hill Streetcar and Access paratransit program will be provided free of charge.

King County officials said all riders should continue to follow public health mandates to avoid traveling when sick and ensure social distancing between passengers as much as possible. All buses will continue to undergo full cleanings every day.

Saturday's changes will arrive two days before planned service reductions go into effect across most bus routes, following a steep drop-off in ridership in the days since public health officials directed Washingtonians to limit trips outside their houses as much as possible.

Metro said ridership on Wednesday was down 60 percent compared to the same timeframe last year, with approximately 250,000 fewer passengers.

Full details on route changes, beginning Monday, March 23, from King County Metro:

Routes without changes: 22, 105, 118, 119, 154

Routes with fewer trips and/or reduced hours of operation: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 17, 18, 19, 21, 24, 26, 27, 28, 31, 32, 33, 36, 37, 40, 41, 43, 44, 45, 48, 49, 50, 55, 56, 57, 60, 62, 63, 64, 65, 67, 70, 71, 73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 101, 102, 106, 107, 111, 113, 114, 116, 120, 121, 122, 123, 124, 128, 131, 132, 143, 148, 150, 153, 156, 157, 158, 159, 164, 166, 167, 168, 169, 177, 178, 179, 180, 181, 182, 183, 186, 187, 190, 192, 193, 197, 212, 214, 216, 217, 218, 219, 221, 225, 226, 230, 231, 232, 239, 240, 241, 245, 246, 249, 252, 250, 255, 257, 268, 269, 271, 301, 303, 304, 309, 311, 312, 316, 331, 342, 345, 346, 347, 348, 355, 372, 373, A Line, B Line, C Line, D Line, E Line, F Line, ST 522, ST 542, ST 545, ST 550, ST 554, ST 555, ST 556, 907, 913, 931, 952, Des Moines Community Shuttle (635)

Routes fully cut: 9, 29, 47, 78, 125, 200, 208, 237, 308, 330, ST 541, Black Diamond/Enumclaw Community Ride, Shoreline/Lake Forest Park Community Ride, Normandy Park Community Ride, Sammamish Community Ride, Juanita Community Ride, Bothell/Woodinville Community Ride, Mercer Island Community Shuttle (630).

Additionally, the following services and programs will not operate during Reduced Schedule (which goes into effect on Monday, March 23):

• Community Ride
• Via to Transit

At this time, the Access paratransit program will continue normal operations and will continue to follow its enhanced daily sanitization procedures.

Water Taxi and its two shuttles, routes 773 and 775, will continue to operate on their winter schedule through at least April 20, 2020.

Seattle Streetcar will operate on a reduced schedule starting on Monday, March 23.

• First Hill Streetcar will operate with 15-minute headways Monday to Saturday during reduced service hours, 5:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. There are no changes to service hours on Sundays and holidays: 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.
• South Lake Union Streetcar will not operate beginning March 23 and until further notice.

Community Van trips for essential needs such as foodbank runs will continue as long as it is feasible and there are volunteer drivers available and willing to drive in the following communities:

• Bothell / Woodinville / UW Bothell
• Duvall
• Sammamish
• Kenmore / Kirkland
• Lake Forest Park / Shoreline
• Vashon

Service levels for all of Metro’s mobility options are continually reevaluated and subject to change as Metro hears from public health officials and identifies community needs.