Sound Transit plans Express Bus changes to leverage Federal Way light rail

Each time a new segment of regional light rail opens in the Puget Sound, local and express bus service that previously served the same travel markets can be redeployed to provide more efficient, reliable and frequent service. LINK light rail tends to operate in its own right of way, bypassing choked highways that buses run on, providing faster, more frequent connections with longer stop spacing.

Bus redeployment usually takes the form of routes being truncated (where rail supplants the routing the bus took), terminated (bus service no longer provided), or modified to expand geographic coverage. Buses generally then feed the main line, requiring transfers for more trips, but generally resulting in a better passenger experience by providing more opportunities for congestion-free travel. The resulting systems tend to also stretch transit operations dollars further.

Sound Transit is planning on several of these route modifications to their ST Express regional bus network as part of the 2026 Annual Service Plan, factoring the new eight mile Federal Way light rail extension from Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. Several of these changes are proposed to affect routes that serve Pierce County and southern King County.

Sound Transit's proposal includes the following changes for Pierce County:

• Route 574 (Lakewood-Seatac) truncated at Federal Way Transit Center
• Route 586 (Tacoma-University of Washington) eliminated
• Route 580 (South Hill to Downtown Puyallup) eliminated
• Added night owl bus service between Lakewood, Tacoma, Seatac Airport, and Downtown Seattle

Route Commentary

Route 574 - Lakewood - SeaTac

The biggest change in my mind is the proposed truncation of Route 574. Route 574's passenger profile includes both workers and travelers to Seatac Airport from Lakewood, 512 Park and Ride, Federal Way Transit Center and Tacoma Dome Station. Federal Way Transit Center is now very well served with high capacity transit north to Seatac Airport with 1 Line light rail every 8 minutes and RapidRide 'A' bus service generally every 10-15 minutes. It makes little sense to duplicate both of these high capacity transit modes for slower, less reliable long haul express bus service. And while transferring to light rail may be inconvenient for some, Federal Way's light rail station features elevators and escalators to help people transferring to move heavy luggage. Another bonus of this route truncation is the slated increase in service frequency from 30 minutes to 15 minutes all day every day.

The difficulty with the proposed Route 574 truncation is that the route will essentially only have three stops in Pierce County (Lakewood Station, 512 Park & Ride, and Tacoma Dome Station), all of which are park and rides style locations that are not in the thick of major population centers. Lakewood Station features a parking garage, but very limited connecting service, low passenger demand and very little commercial or residential density nearby. My personal experience at Lakewood Station is that it is more populated by pigeons than people. Most riders from this location will start as drivers. The 512 Park & Ride receives a significant amount of bus service from both Pierce Transit and Intercity Transit along with Sound Transit Route 594. Most passengers for this stop will be transferring from other connecting bus service, which means that to reach Seatac Airport, riders will be transferring at-least twice - a slogish three seat ride. Tacoma Dome Station is well served by transit, but suffers from the same lack of developed residential density that the other two stops have as well. The lack of bathrooms or other amenities for passengers as they must wait and transfer poses a real problem for passenger experience.

While this is a good first stab at route restructuring for Route 574 that increases frequency, it leaves other innovative options on the table that could yield better access to light rail from Tacoma and Pierce County. One alternative option would be to hybridize two high performing local routes that serve Downtown Tacoma or Tacoma Mall and connect to Tacoma Dome with an express segment to Federal Way Transit Center.

This could be a long term partnership with Pierce Transit and a stopgap between now and when light rail opens at Tacoma Dome in 2035. If service on Pierce Transit Routes 2 and 3 for instance could include a reroute to Tacoma Dome Station and then express legs to Federal Way, it could create a two-seat ride experience to the airport with more passengers starting as pedestrians from their front doors. This is liable to scale greater over time as Routes 2 (19th Street) and 3 (South Tacoma Way) are candidates for conversion to bus rapid transit. This type of partnership with Pierce and Sound Transit is not unknown, it is somewhat how things work with Sound Transit Route 595, which serves Gig Harbor, TCC, and Downtown Seattle. Pierce Transit in this instance funds the extension to Gig Harbor, which is outside the Sound Transit District.

Route 586 Tacoma - UW

Route 586 between Downtown Tacoma and UW has been considered for elimination since light rail was extended to the University of Washington back in 2016. This long haul route now duplicates not only 1 Line light rail between Federal Way and Lynnwood, but also after the 2 Line extends across Lake Washington to link Bellevue and Seattle, service between Downtown Seattle and UW will come down to a world-class four minute headway. This means that taking a regular Tacoma-Seattle Express on Routes 590 and 594 and transferring to light rail may save time under peak traffic conditions, which is when Route 586 operates. This also uses excess passenger capacity on Route 590 and 594 more effectively, supporting long-desired plans to for frequent service between Tacoma and Seattle.

Route 580 South Hill - Puyallup Station

Route 580's elimination is a matter of low passenger demand, with only 12 average daily boardings. This change leverages the fact that Sound Transit invested in expanded parking facilities for Sounder Commuter rail, leaving commuters with other more cost-effective options. I am not advocating for any new parking garages, just that if the demand for what is essentially a parking shuttle has been served by expanding parking capacity, there is no reason to continue the parking shuttle Route 580 with so few daily riders.

New Sound Transit Night Owl Service

Finally, Sound Transit is planning on a late night bus that connects Lakewood, Tacoma, Seatac and Seattle to provide service to the airport when light rail is not running. Oddly enough, this will mean that off-peak late night service will be the fastest trip to the airport on transit in Pierce County.

Later today January 30th and on February 3rd Sound Transit will be hosting an information session on the 2026 bus restructure.

More information here: https://www.soundtransit.org/get-to-know-us/news-events/calendar/st-express-2026-bus-service-information-session-2026-01-30