Seattle Public Transportation
Planning your dream vacation in Seattle? With its scenic views, culinary excellence, and abundance of exciting attractions, you’ll have no trouble keeping entertained while exploring the Emerald City.
Vacations in Seattle are undoubtedly memorable, but they’re not always easy. Getting around can be a huge stressor, especially for unprepared travelers. The city is huge, with rapid expansion over more than a decade creating considerable travel disruption for both locals and tourists. As a result, Seattle regularly ranks among the worst cities in the country, with near-constant traffic jams that make even the shortest commute unbearable.
The good news? You won’t have to worry about local traffic. Seattle’s public transportation is exceptional. You might find that traveling by bus or light rail saves you time. A little planning will make it easier to get around the area, get your homework done, and be able to relax and unwind when you arrive.
To help, we’ve highlighted your best options for seeing the best of the Emerald City without the cost and stress of getting around Seattle via public transportation.
How Seattle’s Transit System Works
Now that you know how to get to PacSci, let’s take a look at what engineering systems are used to keep Seattle’s public transit running smoothly.
Eric from INIT, which works with King County Metro, explained the ORCA card system how their technology helps keep buses tracked and on time. “We use technology to track bus locations, efficiently manage inventory, and predict delays,” Eric said. This helps ensure your bus gets you to PacSci on time, even during Seattle’s busiest times.
The ORCA system has a special lab where new technology is tested before it is made available to the public. “There’s a lot going on in the background to make sure your journey is smooth every time you tap your ORCA card.”
Plus King County Metro operates a 24/7 control center where staff monitor routes, troubleshoot problems, and maintain transportation operations. This teamwork ensures that bus trains are reliable, no matter what challenges they face, such as traffic weather.
What Transit Agencies Provide Service In The Seattle Area?
Served by a network of seven major transportation agencies that work together to provide public transportation throughout King (including the cities of Seattle and Bellevue), Snohomish (including Everett), Kitsap (including Bremerton), and Pierce (including Tacoma) counties.
Below is a list of public transit agencies you can use to travel in the Puget Sound region. You can easily transfer money to seven agencies with the ORCA card, a regional transit card where you can load money onto a daily or monthly pass.
- Everett Transit provides service to parts of the city of Everett in Snohomish County.
- Pierce Transit primarily provides service in Pierce County, which includes the city of Tacoma.
- Washington State Ferries, a division of the Washington Department of Transportation, provides ferry service across Puget Sound.
- Kitsap Transit primarily serves Kitsap County.
- Sound Transit, a regional rail and bus service provider connecting King Pierce and Snohomish counties
- Community Transit primarily serves Snohomish County.
- King County Metro primarily serves King County.
Finding Your Way
If you’re trying to plan a very specific trip at a specific time, you can try using Metro’s Trip Planner, which is available on the web as a mobile app. It doesn’t always come with the best itinerary, but it will get you there. It’s also quite sensitive to what you write on the form, such as how far you’re willing to walk, so use it with caution.
Google Maps will give better directions through a much more graphical interface. Incidentally, I have had much more success getting good directions for transit directions using Google Maps than using a trip planner.
Transit is a popular app with our readers, now integrated with services like Uber.
