Traffic and Public Transit (Seattle, Bellevue: living in, buses, moving to)

[215GUY]

Me and my wife will be Moving to the Seattle area at the end of March, i am orginally from Philly lived in Chicago for a few years I am currently living in Dayton Ohio.How is the traffic comming from Belleuve to dowtown,and is there a bus i can catch between the two cities. Thanks i really look foward to the move.

[Ira500]

There are a whole lot of buses one can catch between Seattle and Bellevue. Buses use the carpool/transit lane. Otherwise the traffic can be horrible, especially on SR 520.

[burlshoe114]

Just keep in mind that if you are using public transportation, you will probably be standing in the rain, wind, and mist 9 months out of the year before and after work.
Look into Vanpools instead.

[MaikeerinWA]

It's not that bad, especially if you're originating from a P&R with shelter, or the Bellevue Transit Center. If you're taking a route like 550 from downtown Seattle to Bellevue, you'll wait in the tunnel for your outbound bus - no rain, no wind, no problem.

Originally Posted by burlshoe114

Just keep in mind that if you are using public transportation, you will probably be standing in the rain, wind, and mist 9 months out of the year before and after work.
Look into Vanpools instead.

[iskray917]

Originally Posted by burlshoe114

Just keep in mind that if you are using public transportation, you will probably be standing in the rain, wind, and mist 9 months out of the year before and after work.
Look into Vanpools instead.

Every bus stop i've been to is sheltered.

[VeronikaW]

It's true that most of the bus stops are sheltered, but you're likely going to have to walk to get to those bus stops. My husband works downtown, and to come home, he has to walk like 3 or 4 blocks to get a bus home. So, while the stop is sheltered when he gets there, there's still a few blocks of walking in the wet and cold.

[BB_206]

MichaelinWA said it best! Plus that 550 runs every 10 minutes or so during business hours...pretty good system.

Originally Posted by MichaelinWA

It's not that bad, especially if you're originating from a P&R with shelter, or the Bellevue Transit Center. If you're taking a route like 550 from downtown Seattle to Bellevue, you'll wait in the tunnel for your outbound bus - no rain, no wind, no problem.

[h8n]

Although it doesn't compare to Portland's mass transit, Seattle's bus system is excellent. I live in Bellevue & work in downtown Seattle. I bike or drive to a park & ride then take a 30 min bus ride to downtown Seattle then bike or walk from the park & ride to work. Up here, you wear rain gear when biking. Everyone talks about rain, but it doesn't rain here..... it mists. Even though it "rains" 3/4 of the year here, Seattle actually gets < rain / yr than Houston, Chicago, & New York. The NW doesn't understand down-poors you experience elseware.

[caravan]

Originally Posted by VeronikaW

It's true that most of the bus stops are sheltered, but you're likely going to have to walk to get to those bus stops. My husband works downtown, and to come home, he has to walk like 3 or 4 blocks to get a bus home. So, while the stop is sheltered when he gets there, there's still a few blocks of walking in the wet and cold.

Sorry, but isn't that what most people have to do in big cities?... as far as I know, standing around in an East Coast city waiting for a bus is not pleasant in the winter, either!

[HeyHolliday!]

The bus system is alright. Compared to most cities its size and around the world, Seattle has a very poor public transit system. If you want to travel inside Seattle via transit you can get to pretty much every place in the city 30 minutes tops. The second you try to leave the city however that's when problems arise. Unless you live near a transit station that goes directly to downtown, moving between cities is a pain. I used the bus for a long time and then recently bought a car cause there was just to much hassle involved.