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Sound Transit Express
A double-decker Sound Transit Express bus on Route 513 at Mountlake Terrace Freeway Station
ParentSound Transit
Founded1996
HeadquartersSeattle, Washington
LocalePuget Sound region
Service areaKing, Pierce, and Snohomish
Service typePublic Transit
Routes23
Hubs8
Fleet312 buses
Daily ridership31,100 (weekdays, Q3 2024)[1]
Annual ridership8,565,100 (2023)[2]
Fuel typeCNG, Diesel, and Diesel-electric hybrid
OperatorCommunity Transit, King County Metro, and Pierce Transit
Websitewww.soundtransit.org

Sound Transit Express (ST Express) is a network of regional express buses, operated by the multi-county transit agency, Sound Transit. The routes connect major regional hubs throughout 53 cities in three counties (King, Pierce, and Snohomish) in the Puget Sound region. Sound Transit Express ranks first in the nation in the number of commuter bus passengers carried and in vehicle miles driven.[3] The first nine routes and 114 buses began carrying passengers on September 19, 1999.[4][5] In 2023, the system had a ridership of 8,565,100, or about 31,100 per weekday as of the third quarter of 2024.

Unlike a typical transit bus, Sound Transit Express routes typically make limited stops as they travel longer distances on the freeways. Most routes operate seven days a week, with runs throughout the day. Where available, buses use transit-only lanes, high-occupancy vehicle lanes, high-occupancy toll lanes, express lanes, bus bypass shoulders,[6] and direct access ramps to speed travel times.

While Sound Transit oversees, plans, and funds the service, operation and maintenance of the buses is contracted out to Community Transit (who subcontracts with Transdev), King County Metro and Pierce Transit.[7]

Fares

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ST Express uses a flat fare system, where each ride costs the same regardless of distance.

The fares are as follows:

Fare type All
Adult $3.25
Senior (65+) / Disabled / Medicare
(Regional Reduced Fare Permit required)		 $1.00
Low-income
(ORCA LIFT card required) 		$1.00
Youth
(6–18 years)		 Free
Children
(0–5 years, with fare paying passenger)		 Free

Paper transfers are not accepted or issued on Sound Transit routes. Passengers who use ORCA may transfer between ST routes or routes operated by most other agencies within two hours of initial payment. If the fare for the second route is higher, the difference will be charged.

Routes

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Sound Transit Express route 545 serving the Montlake Freeway Station

23 Sound Transit Express bus routes are overseen by the agency.[8] Buses are operated under contract by King County Metro, Pierce Transit and Community Transit (who subcontracts with Transdev).[9] When Sound Transit implements a new bus route, changes are frequently made to existing routes that serve the area to avoid overlapping.

The ST Express routes and operators as of September 14, 2024 are:[10]

Route Off-peak service Weekend service Start Via End Operator
510 No
(use route 512) 		No
(use route 512) 		Downtown Seattle I-5, South Everett Freeway Station, Mountlake Terrace Freeway Station Everett Station

Downtown Everett (select trips only)

Community Transit
512 Yes Yes Lynnwood City Center Station Ash Way Park & Ride, South Everett Freeway Station
513 No No Ash Way Park & Ride, Eastmont Park & Ride Seaway Transit Center
515 No No I-5, Mountlake Terrace Freeway Station Downtown Seattle
522 Yes Yes Roosevelt Station Lake City Way, Bothell Way NE, Ballinger Way, Kenmore Park & Ride University of Washington, Bothell/Cascadia College

Woodinville Park & Ride (select trips only)

King County Metro
532 No
(use routes 535 & 512) 		No Downtown Bellevue Bellevue Transit Center, Totem Lake Freeway Station, Brickyard Freeway Station (reverse peak only), I-405 & NE 195th (reverse peak only), Canyon Park Park & Ride , Ash Way Park & Ride, South Everett Freeway Station Everett Station Community Transit
535 Yes Saturday only Bellevue Transit Center, Totem Lake Freeway Station, Brickyard Freeway Station, Bothell Park & Ride, University of Washington, Bothell/Cascadia College, Canyon Park Park & Ride, Alderwood Mall Lynnwood Transit Center
542 Yes Yes U District Station University of Washington, University of Washington Station, Evergreen Point Freeway Station, Yarrow Point Freeway Station, Overlake Transit Center, SR 520 & NE 51st Freeway Station, Downtown Redmond Redmond Transit Center King County Metro
545 Yes Yes Downtown Seattle Capitol Hill (select trips), Montlake Freeway Station (closed since 2019),[11] Evergreen Point Freeway Station, Yarrow Point Freeway Station, Overlake Transit Center, SR 520 & NE 51st Freeway Station, Downtown Redmond, Redmond Transit Center Bear Creek Park & Ride
550 Yes Yes Mercer Island Park & Ride, South Bellevue Park & Ride, Bellevue, Bellevue Transit Center Bellevue (Library)
554 Yes Yes Mercer Island Park & Ride, Eastgate Freeway Station, Issaquah Transit Center, Issaquah Highlands Park & Ride Issaquah Highlands Park & Ride

Redmond (185th Avenue NE & Redmond/Fall City Road, select weekday trips only)

556 No No U District Station University District (Seattle), University of Washington, University of Washington Station, Evergreen Point Freeway Station, Yarrow Point Freeway Station, Bellevue Transit Center, South Bellevue Park & Ride, Eastgate Freeway Station, Issaquah Transit Center Issaquah Highlands Park & Ride
560 Yes Yes Bellevue Transit Center Newport Hills Park & Ride, Kennydale Freeway Station, Renton, Renton Transit Center, Sea-Tac Airport, SeaTac/Airport Station, Burien Transit Center Westwood Village Pierce Transit
566 Yes No Remond Technology Station (select trips)

State Route 520 & NE 40th St (select trips)

Bellevue Transit Center, Newport Hills Park & Ride (off peak only), Kennydale Freeway Station (off peak only), Renton, Renton Transit Center, Kent Station (select trips), Auburn Park & Ride (select trips) Kent Station (select trips) Auburn Transit Center King County Metro
574 Yes Yes Sea-Tac Airport SeaTac/Airport Station, Kent/Des Moines Freeway Station, Star Lake Freeway Station, Federal Way Transit Center, Tacoma Dome Station, SR 512 Park & Ride Lakewood Transit Center Pierce Transit
577 Yes Yes Downtown Seattle I-5 Federal Way Transit Center
578 Yes Yes Federal Way Transit Center, Auburn Station, Sumner Station Puyallup Station
586 No No University District (Seattle) University of Washington Medical Center, SR 520, I-5, Federal Way Transit Center Tacoma Dome Station
590 No
(use route 594) 		No
(use route 594) 		Downtown Seattle SODO Busway, Tacoma Dome Station Tacoma Dome Station

Downtown Tacoma (one early morning trip only)

592 No No SR 512 Park & Ride, Lakewood Station DuPont Station
594 Yes Yes SODO Busway, Tacoma Dome Station, University of Washington Tacoma, Downtown Tacoma, SR 512 Park & Ride Lakewood Station

DuPont Station (select trips only)

595 No No SODO Busway, Tacoma Community College Transit Center, Narrows Park & Ride, Kimball Drive Park & Ride Gig Harbor (Purdy Park & Ride)
596 No No Sumner Station SR 410 Bonney Lake Park & Ride

Fleet

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Sound Transit owns a fleet of 360 buses[12] operated by three different local transit agencies. Sound Transit buses are painted white with aqua, turquoise, and blue waves along the sides, representing the Puget Sound region ST Express serves, and most feature a freely-adapted representation of the Sound Transit bus and train system map on the seating fabric.

Occasionally, vehicles that are not in Sound Transit livery are used on Sound Transit routes by the operating agencies. Also, Sound Transit vehicles may also be used by the local agencies for other commuter routes. This is due to vehicles having mechanical problems, vehicle allocation issues, and assignment errors.

Manufacturer and model Image Motor Length Passengers Purchased Qty Fleet Numbers Operator
Gillig Phantom Cummins ISL 40' 42 (seated) 2007 22 9092-9113 Pierce Transit
New Flyer DE60LF Cummins ISL / GM-Allison EP50 60' 56 (seated) 2007-2008 2[13] 9622-9623 King County Metro
2009 13[13] 9624-9636
Orion V Cummins ISL / Allison B400R 40' 35 (seated)[14] 2008 22[14] 6901-6930 Pierce Transit
Motor Coach Industries D4500CL Cummins ISM 45'[15] 57 (seated) 2008 7[12] 9713-9719
2009 3[12] 9720-9722
2010 17[12] 9723-9739
New Flyer D60LFR Cummins ISL9 60' 56 (seated)[16] 2010 13[17] 9553-9565 Community Transit
2011 1 9566 Community Transit
17 9567-9583 King County Metro
Cummins ISL9 60' 56 (seated) 2011 3 9584-9586 King County Metro
10 9587-9596
2012 14 9800-9813
5 9818-9822
New Flyer DE60LFR Cummins ISL9 / Allison H 50 EP 60' 56 (seated) 2010 11[17] 9637-9647 King County Metro
2011 4[12] 9648-9651
Gillig Low Floor BRT Hybrid Cummins ISL9 / Allison H 40 EP 40' 35 (seated)[14] 2012 22[14] 9201-9222 Pierce Transit
Gillig Low Floor BRT Cummins ISL9 40' 35 (seated) 2012 2[12] 9122-9123
2015 3[12] 9124-9126
New Flyer Xcelsior XDE60 Cummins ISL9 / Allison H 50 EP 60' 57 (seated) 2014 8[12] 9652-9659 King County Metro
2014 7[12] 61401-61407 Pierce Transit
Cummins L9 / BAE Systems HybriDrive Series-E 60' 52 (Seated) 2020 31 9660-9690 King County Metro
New Flyer Xcelsior XD60 Cummins ISL9 60' 57 (seated) 2014 4[12] 9814-9817 King County Metro
2014 3[12] 51401-51403 Pierce Transit
Alexander Dennis Enviro500 MMC Cummins ISL9 42' 82 (seated) 2015 5[12] 91501-91505 Community Transit
2017 32 91701-91732
Cummins L9 42' 82 (seated) 2020 13 91901-91913
Gillig Low Floor BRTPlus CNG Cummins Westport ISL G 40' 35 (seated) 2015 17[18] 41501-41517 Pierce Transit
2016 5 41601-41605
Motor Coach Industries D4500CT CNG Cummins Westport ISX12 G 45' 57 (seated) 2016 12 9301-9312 Pierce Transit

Retired fleet

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Manufacturer and model Image Motor Length Passengers Purchased Retired Qty Fleet Numbers Operator Notes
OBI Orion V CNG (05.501) Cummins L10G / ZF HP500 40' 42 1994 2008 27 801-827 Pierce Transit Ex-Pierce Transit; bought in 1998. Retired in 2008.
Breda DuoBus 350
(ADPB 350) Dual-mode 		Detroit Diesel 6V92TA / ZF 4HP590C 60' 63 1990 2005 20 5019-5021, 5194-5210 King County Metro Leased from King County Metro Transit in 1999. Retired in 2005. Replaced by DE60LFs.
Gillig Phantom 40' Cummins ISM / Allison B400R 40' 42 1999 2014 70 9000-9069 King County Metro / Pierce Transit / Community Transit All retired from Sound Transit Fleet. 
*As of June 2014, some of the coaches sold to Pierce Transit are temporarily wrapped in ST for PT operated routes due to a bus shortage. 
*Ben Franklin Transit purchased a handful. 
*Transit Sales International purchased some as well.
2001 2014 20 9070-9089 King County Metro Retired in 2014.
Cummins ISL / Voith D864.5 2005 2020 2 9090-9091 King County Metro Retired in 2020. Replaced by XDE60s.
Cummins ISL 2008 2020 8 9114-9121 Community Transit Retired in 2020. Replaced by ADL Enviro500 MMC.
New Flyer DE40LF Cummins ISB / Allison EP40 40' 34 2003 2020 1 9200 King County Metro Retired in 2020. Replaced by XDE60s.
New Flyer C40LF Cummins Westport C Gas Plus / Allison B400R 40' 39 2001 2014 20 9400-9419 Pierce Transit Retired in 2014. Replaced by Gillig CNG Low Floor BRT.
New Flyer D60LF Detroit Diesel Series 50 / Allison B500R 60' 56 1999 2016 25 9500-9524 Pierce Transit / King County Metro / Community Transit Retired in 2016. Some units were bought by Transit Sales International.
Detroit Diesel Series 50 EGR / Allison B500R 2000 2019 12 9525-9536 Community Transit / King County Metro Retired in 2019. Some units were bought by Transit Sales International.
Caterpillar C9 / Allison B500R 2004 2020 16 9537-9552 Community Transit / King County Metro / Pierce Transit Retired in 2020.
New Flyer DE60LF Caterpillar C9 / Allison EP50 Hybrid System 60' 56 2005 2020 22 9600-9621 King County Metro Retired on Thursday, August 27, 2020; 9609K - final active unit. Replaced by XDE60s.
Motor Coach Industries D4500 Detroit Diesel Series 60 EGR[15] 45'[15] 57 (seated) 2005 2022 13[19] 9700-9712 Pierce Transit Retired on Friday, July 29, 2022; 9712P - final active unit service was on rt. 578 to Puyallup via Federal Way and I-5.

References

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  1. ^ "Transit Ridership Report Third Quarter 2024" (PDF). American Public Transportation Association. November 20, 2024. Retrieved November 23, 2024.
  2. ^ "Transit Ridership Report Fourth Quarter 2023" (PDF). American Public Transportation Association. March 4, 2024. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  3. ^ Rogoff, Peter (January 29, 2016). "CEO Report for January 29, 2016". Sound Transit. Retrieved February 1, 2016.
  4. ^ Collins, Eric (September 20, 1999). "Sound Transit's airport bus hits road". The News Tribune. pp. A1, A10. Retrieved November 24, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ "Regional transit history 1997 - 2003". Sound Transit. Retrieved March 11, 2017.
  6. ^ Gutman, David (November 9, 2018). "Buses can avoid morning congestion by using I-5 shoulder lane in Snohomish County". The Seattle Times. Retrieved June 24, 2023.
  7. ^ Johnson, Matthew (December 10, 2015). "Q. Who's driving those Sound Transit buses and trains?". The Platform. Sound Transit. Retrieved June 1, 2021.
  8. ^ "Sound Transit: ST Express Regional Bus Service". Sound Transit. Retrieved November 10, 2009.
  9. ^ "Lost and found". Sound Transit. Retrieved October 3, 2021.
  10. ^ "Sound Transit announces March 2024 Service Change" (Press release). Sound Transit. March 22, 2024. Retrieved March 30, 2024.
  11. ^ "Montlake Freeway Station closure begins June 22, 2019" (PDF). Washington State Department of Transportation. May 2019. Retrieved November 24, 2022.
  12. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l "Draft 2015 Service Implementation Plan - Appendix B: Fleet Plans" (PDF). Sound Transit. p. 111. Archived from the original (PDF) on November 8, 2014. Retrieved November 8, 2014.
  13. ^ a b "MOTION NO. M2009-15: Contract with New Flyer Corporation" (PDF). Sound Transit. 2009. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 20, 2010. Retrieved July 23, 2009.
  14. ^ a b c d "MOTION NO. M2011-04 Purchase 24 Forty-Foot Replacement Buses" (PDF). Sound Transit. February 24, 2011. Retrieved February 25, 2011.
  15. ^ a b c "ST Express 45-foot Long-Haul Bus Specifications (MCI)". Sound Transit. Archived from the original on September 19, 2007. Retrieved May 19, 2007.
  16. ^ "Sound Transit: Sound Transit board approves purchase of clean diesel and hybrid buses". Sound Transit. February 24, 2011. Retrieved February 24, 2011.
  17. ^ a b "MOTION NO. M2010-01: ST Express Bus Procurement – ST2 Expansion Service" (PDF). Sound Transit. January 14, 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 20, 2010. Retrieved January 18, 2010.
  18. ^ "MOTION NO. M2014-06" (PDF). March 27, 2014. Retrieved December 31, 2015.
  19. ^ "MOTION NO. M2009-09: Contract with Motor Coach Industries" (PDF). Sound Transit. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 20, 2010. Retrieved July 23, 2009.
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