The city-to-trails service Trailhead Direct is returning this month. Starting on Saturday, May 13th, King County Metro will offer weekend and holiday service to Mount Si, Mount Teneriffe, and Little Si. The Trailhead Direct season will extend through Monday September 4th (Labor Day).
In an announcement on Thursday, King County Dow Constantine praised the service and its sponsors and partners.”Trailhead Direct is a convenient alternative to driving and parking when you want to explore some of the best hiking King County has to offer,” Constantine said. “I am looking forward to the start of this season’s transit-to-trails service, and thank the Seattle Department of Transportation and Amazon for their partnership in this low-impact way to connect people to the great outdoors.”
The service will operate on a circuit to the trails starting from Capitol Hill’s light rail station and offering stops in First Hill and Downtown Seattle, Eastgate, and North Bend. Service will be about every 30 minutes with the first trip from Capitol Hill at 7:39am and last at 1:30pm. Trips from the trailheads back to Bellevue and Seattle will continue through the 6pm hour. The last trip from Mount Teneriffe will be at 6:35pm.
Metro will use minibuses again this year. Each vehicle will have 14 or 32 seats with bikes racks capable of carrying two or three bikes. Vehicles will also be fully wheelchair accessible, though the degree of accessibility of trails varies. The fare structure will also be the same as Metro services with a regular one-way adult fare costing $2.75. Riders can pay with cash, ORCA, or a digital Transit GO ticket.
In addition to weekends, Trailhead Direct will run on Monday, May 29th (Memorial Day), Tuesday, July 4th (Independence Day), and Monday, September 4th (Labor Day).
