King County Metro adds safety features, route changes to be ‘Ready When You Are’

King County Executive Dow Constantine announced new, innovative safety measures and route changes coming soon for King County Metro as part of the “Ready When You Are” campaign to make transit as safe as possible.

Traffic congestion has returned to near-normal levels across Washington

The changes include more than 1,400 automated safety partitions between passengers and the driver to be installed on Metro buses and Sound Transit Express buses, and on-board mask dispensers on buses with the busiest routes.

Metro stopped front-door boarding and collecting fares on March 12 to help increase safety during the COVID-19 pandemic for both operators and passengers. Safety partitions will now be installed to allow front-door boarding in preparation for the return of fares, which is currently targeted for Oct. 1.

These safety partitions will be made of plexiglass, and will swing into position when a driver opens the front door, minimizing interaction between those boarding and the driver. The partition can also be opened manually if the driver needs to leave their seat to assist passengers.

“We were the first community in the U.S. to experience COVID-19, and King County Metro led the way across the nation to make transit as safe as possible,” Constantine said.

“With the addition of safety partitions – designed, engineered, and fabricated by Metro’s in-house vehicle maintenance staff – we have a new, first-of-its-kind innovation in the fight against this pandemic,” he added. “Along with new mask dispensers and all the other safety measures Metro takes every day, we are proving Metro is ‘Ready when you are,’ whether you’re currently using transit or planning to resume your commute in the future.”

Metro is using CARES Act funds to help pay for the equipment. More than 1,000 of the 1,444 partitions are produced already, and are expected to be installed by October.

Before fare collection resumes, Metro reopened the ORCA Pass Sales Office, and has been reminding riders to obtain and use an ORCA or ORCA LIFT card as a no-contact way to pay.

“I applaud Metro workers for making transit safe, continuing to serve their communities, and for demonstrating national leadership over the past year,” said ATU 587 President Ken Price. “As we move forward, we all realize that cars and congestion aren’t the future we want. What we want is safe and reliable transit.”

Metro continues to require that everyone wear a mask when on transit. To help, mask dispensers will also be installed on 102 buses this month, starting with RapidRide buses on the A and F lines and the 60-foot trolley buses on routes 7, 36, 43, 44, and 49 in Seattle, with the potential for more dispensers to be added on other high-ridership routes.

The King County Council designated the funds to purchase and make masks available on public transportation.

“Beyond staying at home and social distancing, our wearing masks or other facial coverings has proven to be one of the most useful tools in staying healthy and protecting people around us,” said Councilmember Jeanne Kohl-Welles who co-sponsored budget legislation supporting this mask distribution effort. “It is up to all of us to wear a mask when we go out in public and travel on Metro.”

Additionally, starting Sept. 19, residents in south King County communities will receive a new route, 160, which connects Renton, Kent, and Auburn. Metro is also adding more evening and weekend service for shift workers, better east-west connections and integration with Sounder Commuter Rail, and is working on faster travel times and direct service to key destinations where possible.

To help mitigate the effects of the extended closure of the West Seattle High-Rise Bridge, Metro is restoring nearly all bus service on routes 55, 56, and 57 to and from West Seattle. An overview of the Sept. 19 changes are on Metro’s service change webpage here.

As Metro continues to monitor ridership trends, some weekday commuter routes will be restored, and service maintained on heavy ridership routes in south King County, while other peak routes across the county will remain suspended in response to lower ridership as many employees continue to telework.

Overall, Metro will operate 55 routes at pre-COVID service levels, have reduced service on 70 routes, and continue to fully suspend service on 55 routes. Metro will operate more than 10,800 trips each weekday, nearly 7,100 trips on Saturdays and more than 6,400 trips on Sundays.