Everett Transit is in the midst of a painful service restructuring planning process. Fresh off its long-range planning effort to develop a path to a more expansive, more frequent network, the transit agency is now proposing significant rollback of service, including deletion of routes and trimming service, while drastically increasing fares on riders. Everett Transit faces the unfortunate realities of growing service costs, meager tax revenue growth, stagnant ridership, and expensive capital outlays necessitating a hard internal look at how to keep people moving.
Everett Transit’s “Sustainable Growth Network” Proposal
Everett Transit wants to create a “sustainable growth network” that could eventually grow into a robust and well-used frequent transit network. To get there though, the plan would sap away up to 10% of service hours, cut down on the number of vehicles used, and strip away service on many corridors as a means to reduce costs, be more efficient, and set up service that theoretically could easily be built upon as the city and system grows, but that seems very far off. Last week, Everett Transit’s released its six-year transit development plan that affirms long-term service reductions while its countywide partner Community Transit will grow over the next six years, with a 36% service increase just through 2022.
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The service changes would shake out in various ways to attempt to maintain some semblance of coverage and regular service to communities:
- Route 2: The one-way circulator alignment would be deleted in favor of a bi-directional service. This would eliminate service entirely on 112th Ave SW between Evergreen Way and 4th Ave W.
- Route 3: The alignment on W Casino Rd would be deleted in addition to the service to Gates 68, 72, and 88 at Boeing. Instead, service would be moved to Merrill Creek Pkwy and terminate at Seaway Transit Center. Span of service and frequency would slightly improve on weekdays and Saturdays. The W Casino Rd service would be maintained by Routes 8 and 12.
- Route 4: The southern alignment of the route would be cut back to Everett Station, meaning that the city center and Providence Hospital would no longer be served.
- Route 6: The route would no longer operate on Hewitt Avenue and 33rd Avenue. Instead, service would operate on Wall Street and Pacific Avenue in the city center. Peak-hour trips would wind themselves needlessly around Providence Hospital. Service would also be extended north of the Port of Everett along Marine View Drive and eventually back down to College Station near Everett Community College. Weekday service would be boosted to hourly while weekend service would be extended throughout the year instead of just summertime.
- Route 7: A one-trip route deviation on W Casino Rd would be eliminated.
- Route 8: Portions of the route would be eliminated, including Merrill Creek Pkwy and sections along Madison Street and Evergreen Way. Instead, the route would operate on portions of E/W Casino Rd, 75th St SW, Airport Rd, 100th St SW, and terminate at Wal-Mart just off of Evergreen Way. Overall all frequency would be slightly reduced and span of service adjusted. Route 3 would cover the Merrill Creek Pkwy corridor.
- Route 12: The circulator nature of the route would be eliminated to create a bi-directional route on W Casino Rd and 7th Ave SE. Service would be extended to Seaway Transit Center while the portions along Airport Rd, 100th St SW, and Evergreen Mall are largely eliminated. Service on the route would increase dramatically, particularly on weekdays. Route 8 would primarily cover Airport Rd instead.
- Route 17: This route would be entirely eliminated. Route 8 would cover a portion of the former route on E Casino Rd and Beverly Blvd. Large swaths of Colby Avenue and Wetmore Avenue, however, would lose service completely.
- Route 18: Trips would be significantly cut back to peak hours on weekdays to facilitate commuter travel from the Mukilteo ferry dock.
- Route 29: Three dogleg deviations would be deleted in the South Everett. Service frequency on weekdays would see noticeable improvements while span of service would be adjusted to improve weekend service.
- Route 70: The route would be adjusted to serve Gate 72 at Boeing and Seaway Transit Center while service would be eliminate along Perimeter Rd and Airport Rd.
