METRO BUS – SOUND TRANSIT LINK INTEGRATION STUDY Assessment of Ridership and Customer Satisfaction Prepared by: King County Department of Transportation Metro Service Planning Service Development Section MARCH 2017 METRO BUS – SOUND TRANSIT LINK INTEGRATION STUDY Assessment of Ridership and Customer Satisfaction March 2017 This report was prepared by King County Metro Transit. Customer satisfaction research was conducted by Pacific Market Research, LLC Department of Transportation Metro Transit Division King Street Center, KSC-TR-0415 201 S. Jackson St Seattle, WA 98104 206-553-3000 TTY Relay: 711 www.kingcounty.gov/metro Alternative Formats Available 206-477-3832 TTY Relay: 711 CONTENTS Executive Summary ................................................................................................. 1 Introduction ............................................................................................................ 7 SECTION I: RIDERSHIP ASSESSMENT ................................................ 16 Key Findings .......................................................................................................... 16 Changes in Route-Level Transit Ridership and Productivity ................................. 18 Metro Bus Ridership Changes by Neighborhood/Corridor .................................. 25 Ballard .................................................................................................................. 28 Bryant ................................................................................................................... 30 Capitol Hill ............................................................................................................ 32 Central District ..................................................................................................... 34 Crown Hill ............................................................................................................. 36 Downtown Seattle ............................................................................................... 38 East Capitol Hill .................................................................................................... 40 Eastlake ................................................................................................................ 42 First Hill ................................................................................................................ 44 Fremont ............................................................................................................... 45 Green Lake ........................................................................................................... 47 Greenwood .......................................................................................................... 49 Interbay ................................................................................................................ 51 Jackson Park ........................................................................................................ 53 Lake City ............................................................................................................... 55 Laurelhurst ........................................................................................................... 57 Madison Park ....................................................................................................... 58 Maple Leaf ........................................................................................................... 59 Matthews Beach .................................................................................................. 61 Meadowbrook ...................................................................................................... 63 Montlake .............................................................................................................. 65 North Capitol Hill ................................................................................................. 67 North Park ............................................................................................................ 69 Northgate ............................................................................................................. 71 Northshore ........................................................................................................... 73 Phinney Ridge ...................................................................................................... 75 Pinehurst .............................................................................................................. 77 Rainier Valley ....................................................................................................... 79 Ravenna ............................................................................................................... 81 Ridgecrest ............................................................................................................ 83 Roosevelt ............................................................................................................. 84 Sand Point ............................................................................................................ 86 South Lake Union ................................................................................................. 88 Metro Bus Ridership Changes by Neighborhood/Corridor (cont.) University District ................................................................................................. 90 Uptown ................................................................................................................ 94 View Ridge ........................................................................................................... 95 Wallingford .......................................................................................................... 97 Wedgwood ........................................................................................................... 99 Whittier Heights ................................................................................................. 101 Bus-Rail Transfer Activity .................................................................................... 103 Link Ridership ...................................................................................................... 106 Changes in Reliability .......................................................................................... 108 Changes in Travel Time ....................................................................................... 121 Implementation Success and Lessons Learned .................................................. 130 SECTION II: CUSTOMER SATISFACTION .......................................... 133 Key Findings ........................................................................................................ 133 Background ......................................................................................................... 135 Pre and Post Reconfiguration Surveys ................................................................ 144 Link Station Transfer Survey ............................................................................... 158 Survey with Phase 1 Onboard Respondents ....................................................... 164 Non-Riders Survey............................................................................................... 168 Appendices .......................................................................................................... 177 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The March 2016 Metro Transit service change evaluated in this report was both a major step forward and a learning opportunity for Metro as we move toward our future transit system: an integrated network of fast, frequent, reliable, and easy-to-use services that get people where they want to go, when they want to go. After two decades of planning and construction, Link light rail service was extended to Capitol Hill and the University of Washington in early 2016. Building on direction from the County Executive, King County Metro worked in partnership with Sound Transit to engage the public in shaping a set of bus service changes to better serve the destinations riders want to reach, expand high-frequency bus services, provide more reliable service, and integrate bus and rail services as the two new stations opened. This “Link Connections” project resulted in one of the largest service changes in Metro history, reflecting Link’s connection of the two busiest transit markets in the state—downtown Seattle and the University of Washington. The March 2016 service change affected 48 routes that provided more than 1.1 million hours of service annually before the change and grew by 193,000 annual service hours as part of the change—largely because of investments by the City of Seattle. The service revisions impacted almost one-third of the service hours in the entire Metro system. Link Connections was not the first major restructure of Metro bus service in recent years. However, the size and scope of the changes made it an important benchmark and focal point for Metro at a time when transit ridership is reaching record highs in the Puget Sound Region. The recent adoption of the METRO CONNECTS long-range vision and the passage of Sound Transit 3 in fall 2016 reflect regional priorities that include continued expansion and integration of transit services to provide high-quality public transportation throughout King County. The Link Connections project is