Metro is exploring how to revise its bus routes to better serve the new Lynnwood Light Rail station. In the process it also took a look at a bus serving both the Northgate and University District stations and is proposing to eliminate the service through Wallingford. The map shows a dotted line, which is the #20 bus line that is to be eliminated. You can provide Metro with comments on their website through March 10. The page only talks about Lynnwood but this is where you can comment on the #20.
For many years the #26 Express ran down Latona Ave NE and then across on N/NE 40th over to Aurora Ave and straight into town. It served east Wallingford well. During the last bus route realignment for the opening of the new Link line to Northgate, a new route #20 was created out of the part of the route #16 that went north of Ravenna Blvd to North Seattle Community College and Northgate and was combined with the part of the #26 route north of NE 45th, but now it turns east to the University District station on NE 45th to the U District station. So east Wallingford south of NE 45th lost their bus service. Now Metro proposes to discontinue all the rest of the service through east Wallingford (north of NE 45th). If you will miss riding the bus, you will need to tell Metro you are not happy.
Once you click on the survey tab and tell Metro the zip code where you live, on the next page you need to check the box for route #20, but on the following page you need to check the box for route #61, which Metro says is replacing #20. Unfortunately, the replacement only applies to that new part of the #20 route out in Lake City. Nothing is being replaced in Wallingford. On the next page, below the map, click that you oppose the change. Then scroll down to where it asks if you Dislike the change and tell Metro in one of the open, fill in boxes why you are not happy.
This is yet one more example of how the realignment to serve the Link Light Rail has resulted in worse bus service. In the last realignment the bus routes #31 and #32 were moved off NE Campus Parkway and Stevens Circle in the University. That was where they picked up/let off most of their riders. Now they go north on 7th Ave NE and south on Roosevelt NE. Yes, staying on Stevens Circle would be difficult with their new alignments to Children’s Hospital and north but they could stay on NE Campus Parkway and run up and down 15th Ave NE, which would serve the dorms, would be much closer to the University and would be almost as close to the U District Station at NE 44th . It’s not clear there is any way to tell Metro that would be a more useful routing.