Friday Roundtable: ORCA Tap to Pay Begins on Monday

Seattle Transit Blog 2/19 11:00P Michael Smith

On Thursday, Sound Transit CEO Dow Constantine announced Tap to Pay will launch across the ORCA system on February 23, 2026. Tap to Pay, also known as open payments, will allow passengers to tap a...

Seattle Transit Measure: History as the STBD (2014 to 2020)

Seattle Transit Blog 2/18 11:00P Nick Sattele

A Route 4 trolleybus climbs Taylor Ave N in Queen Anne. ( Ken Robinette ) The Seattle Transit Measure (STM) is a 0.15% sales tax that raises $50 million each year to boost bus service and make transit...

Midweek Roundup: 200,000 riders

Seattle Transit Blog 2/18 12:01A Nathan Dickey

Headlines: Vehicle Barrier Plan for Pike Place Market Comes Into View (The Urbanist) Issaquah Pitches Case for Keeping Its Light Rail Line on Track (The Urbanist) Light rail carried over 200K riders on Seahawks Super Bowl parade day (The Seattle...

Sound Transit 2 Travel Times and Recap

Seattle Transit Blog 2/16 11:00P Wesley Lin

The full build out of Sound Transit 2 coming close after the December 6 opening of Federal Way Link Extension and the upcoming March 2026 full East Link . This article will go over the a map of...

Learn from Mexico City: Multi-modal network

Seattle Transit Blog 2/15 11:00P Martin Pagel

While Mexico City s population keeps growing (currently at 23 million ), it has become the city with the worst traffic and one of the most polluted cities in the world. To address these challenges,...

Sunday Movie: Amtrak’s new trains

Seattle Transit Blog 2/14 11:00P Nathan Dickey

Amtrak recently held an exclusive first look ceremony at their new Airo trainsets coming to certain routes nationwide over the next few years. Today s videos review the new trains, which are coming to our very own Amtrak Cascades route first. The...

2 Line Simulated Service Begins

Seattle Transit Blog 2/14 4:00A Michael Smith

2 Line train (left) and 1 Line train (right) at Pioneer Square station The first scheduled Link 2 Line train departed International District/Chinatown station (CID) this morning, marking the start of...

Friday Roundtable: Community Transit’s History

Seattle Transit Blog 2/12 11:00P Nathan Dickey

Community Transit logos, 1974-2025. (Community Transit via HistoryLink.org) An excellent new essay on HistoryLink explains the history of Community Transit (CT), the public transit authority of...

Ridership Patterns for King County Metro Route 60

Seattle Transit Blog 2/12 12:00A Michael Smith

Route 60 travels inbound from Westwood Village to Capitol Hill via White Center, South Park, Georgetown, Beacon Hill, the International District, and First Hill. Outbound trips travel in the reverse...

Midweek Roundup: Seahawks Victory Parade

Seattle Transit Blog 2/11 12:05A Nathan Dickey

Massive gridlock and transit reroutes today as the Seahawks celebrate their second Super Bowl win; here s how to take transit to the victory parade . If you re local and want to go, strongly consider riding a bike instead . Headlines: King County...

Route 60 Improvements

Seattle Transit Blog 2/9 11:00P Wesley Lin

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...

Signs for two-car Link trains return to Seattle

Seattle Transit Blog 2/9 12:00A Nathan Dickey

This week, sharp-eyed Link riders (including STB s Michael Smith and Seattle City Councilmember Alexis Mercedes Rinck ) noticed new signposts installed on Link stations platforms across Seattle. The...

Sunday Movies: Gasworks Park & Mt Hood

Seattle Transit Blog 2/7 11:00P Mike Orr

The history of Gasworks Park. (Fourth Place) Even if you ve heard some of the history you probably don t know all of it. From downtown Portland to Mt Hood by MAX and bus routes. (Climate and Transit) I made a similar trip to Grouse Mountain in...

Friday Roundtable: RapidRide J Project Update

Seattle Transit Blog 2/5 11:00P Michael Smith

Crews install the new water main in Eastlake. (SDOT ) In January, the Seattle Department of Transportation (SDOT) announced the RapidRide J project reached a significant milestone: completion of the...

Midweek Roundup: A Better Billion

Seattle Transit Blog 2/3 11:00P Nathan Dickey

Two teenagers were shot and killed at bus stop on Rainier Ave near South Shore PreK-8 on Friday (KUOW). Both were students at Rainier Beach High School . Students and community members including Mayor Wilson and new SPS Superintendent Ben...