Bus Routes

The below letter from the Queen Anne Community Council expresses
our displeasure at the way Metro Transit is handling the proposed bus

stop closures for routes 3 and 4 on Queen Anne.

QUEEN ANNE COMMUNITY COUNCIL
1818 1ST AVENUE W
SEATTLE, WA 98119
June 5, 2010
Hon. Larry Phillips, King County Council
Hon Tom Rasmussen, Seattle City Council
Hon. Tim Burgess, Seattle City Council
Kevin Desmond, Metro Transit General Manager
Re: Bus Stops on Routes 3-4
Gentlemen:
It came to our attention on June 1st that Metro plans to close several stops along Routes 3 and 4 on Queen Anne and open a few others as consolidations. These changes are to take effect on June 26, and comments are due on June 11, according to a Metro notification, which appeared in the Queen Anne View blog on June 1st.
We believe this notification is unduly brief and insufficient in scope. We ask that the proposed actions be postponed until adequate notice and opportunity for comment are provided.
Adequate notice would include notice at the stops to be impacted, notice to businesses along the routes, and notice to riders on the buses themselves. It appears that none of this has been attempted, at all. Visual inspection of the stops gives no clue of their impending demise. Business owners are ignorant of the proposed closure of stops adjacent to or across the street from their locations. Patrons seem to be utterly unaware of pending changes.
Additionally, some of the stops are also served by Routes 13 and/or 45. Will the stops be closed to those routes as well? This matter is not addressed in the blog posting.
We recognize that sometimes bus stop closures and consolidations may benefit transit operations by improving timeliness, and that some additional parking may be created by these actions in neighborhoods where that is needed. But such decisions are very important to many individuals and businesses that are intimately familiar with the detailed impacts of such proposals. Until then, the proposal is premature.
Thank you.
Ellen Monrad

Chair