King County Metro at a glance.
- Geography: Urban, Suburban
- Fixed-route fleet: 1100
- On-demand fleet: 22 (+ WAVs)
How the agency is using Via and Remix.
- Use cases: First-and-last mile, Strategic planning, Stakeholder engagement
King County Metro's challenges were twofold: Firstly, six lower-income communities throughout the Seattle area did not have access to local light rail stations, which offer efficient and affordable trips to further areas of the city. At the same time, Metro needed 39 municipalities to approve its 2040 long range plan and no longer wished to rely on paper maps for such a massive project.
The solution? TransitTech. Via and Metro launched a first-and-last mile service connecting riders in those difficult-to-serve areas to light rail. The service integrates with both Metro buses and ORCA regional transit cards. And on the planning side, Metro staff used Remix in real-time to gain buy-in at stakeholder meetings. With this critical tool at their disposal, the agency built consensus in 9 months instead of 2 years and saved 2 extra staff time.
Quantifying the results.
- 14 passengers per Via vehicle hour at peaks
- 7k Via rides / week (pre- COVID)
- 100% of Via trips connect to or from fixed- route transit
- 39 municipalities successfully approved 2040 plan
- 2.5x faster stakeholder engagement process
What transit leaders are saying.
“We are re-deploying Via to Transit for a second year to maximize our transportation network in areas where those needs are greatest.” - Dow Constantine, County Executive “When we talk with communities, Remix allows us to show where buses will go; how long it will take to connect; and where they will have the freedom to move.” - Chris O’Claire, Mobility Division Director