Renton-Kent-Auburn Area Mobility Plan Phase 3
Renton-Kent-Auburn Area Mobility Plan Phase 3
Summary of Metro’s Proposal for Renton, Kent, and Auburn Area
King County Metro is working to connect Renton, Kent, Auburn and the surrounding areas with high-quality, frequent, and reliable bus service. As part of this effort, Metro is developing the Renton-Kent-Auburn Area Mobility Plan (AMP) in south King County. The project takes a holistic approach, integrating RapidRide, fixed-route transit, dial-a-ride transit (DART), and other flexible services. Changes to fixed-route service would begin in September 2020, and the RapidRide I Line would begin service in 2023.
Project Goals
- Deliver an upgraded, integrated mobility network with fixed-route and flexible services.
- Increase performance, reliability, and accessibility of the Metro transit system in south King County.
- Improve transit access for people of color, low-income, and limited-English proficiency populations.
- Deliver a new, frequent route between Renton, Kent, and Auburn that would be upgraded to the RapidRide I Line in 2023.
How does Metro make decisions on service changes?
Metro develops service changes by using service design best practices, considering equity, and seeking public input on what communities need from Metro. Final changes to service are subject to approval by the King County Council.
- Service design best practices include standards such as: routes should serve multiple purposes and destinations, be easy to understand, and match service types to demand;
- Equity includes using our data on family-wage jobs, community assets, and census tract demographics. Metro completed a network analysis to compare the number of jobs and community assets that priority areas can access within 60 minutes in the AM peak, midday, and night. Priority areas are census tracts having higher concentrations of people of color, low-income people, and people with limited English proficiency;
- Public input included 40+ hours of onboard surveying, 697 completed online surveys, which were translated into Spanish, Vietnamese, Simplified Chinese, Russian, and Somali, and engagement with local community-based organizations.
Types of Service
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All Day: Routes that operate through most of the day, both weekdays and weekends.
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Peak Only: Routes that only operate during peak commute periods, between 5 - 9 am and 3 - 7 pm on weekdays.
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Off Peak: The period between 9 am - 3 pm on weekdays and 5 am - 7 pm on weekends.
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On Demand: Routes that offer service based on passenger request or pre-scheduled trips.
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Peak Direction: The highest-demand direction during the morning and afternoon peak travel periods.
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Fixed-Route Service: Scheduled bus routes in which trips are required to follow the same fixed routing on every trip and pick up passengers at bus stops. Metro fixed-routes operate in 35-, 40-, and 60-foot buses. Fixed routes can have variant pathways at different times of day.
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Frequency: Frequency refers to how often the bus comes. If a route is “frequent” then it comes every 15 minutes or less, all day.
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Dial-a-ride (DART) Service: Scheduled transit routes in which individual trips may deviate from the fixed route to pick up or drop off a passenger closer to their origin or destination.
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Flexible Service: Flexible alternatives could serve areas where traditional bus service doesn’t work well, offer transportation options for people with disabilities, or help our congested roadways work better by managing demand. We would be working with selected communities to evaluate service solutions ranging from expanded fixed-route transit to more flexible approaches such as innovative ridesharing options, on-demand van service, and partnerships with other transportation providers for specific travel needs.
Changes Being Proposed Include:
Frequency Improvements
Routes 105, 148, 164, 166, 168, 183, 906, and 180 (from Auburn Station to Kent Station) would have increased frequency.
Nights & Weekends Service Improvements
- Route 164 would receive Sunday service and additional evening and night service.
- Route 166 would receive additional evening and night service and extended weekend service.
- Route 168 would receive additional evening and night service and extended weekend service.
- Route 183 would receive additional Saturday service.
- Route 906 would receive 30-minute service during the midday and at nights on weekdays.
New Connections
- One-seat ride connection (no transfers) between Covington, Kent, SeaTac, and Burien (via routes 180 and 168)
- Frequent, all-day, one-seat ride connection between Renton, Kent, and Auburn (future I Line)
- One-seat ride connection between Des Moines, Highline College, Kent, and Green River College (via routes 166 and 164)
- Bus service from the Kent East Hill with timed connections to Sounder (Route 164)
- Bus service from Fairwood with timed connections to Sounder (Route 906)