The document summarizes Bellevue's transit plan update, which aims to improve transit services to meet the needs of growing populations and employment. Key findings include that current services have limited hours, infrequent buses, and incomplete coverage. The plan recommends increasing frequencies, extending hours, and improving connections between neighborhoods, downtown Bellevue, and major destinations like Overlake to establish an urban-quality transit network. It also discusses coordinating with regional transit agencies and gathering stakeholder input to develop a comprehensive 6-year implementation strategy.

1. Bellevue Transit Plan Update
Washington State ITE 2001 Annual Meeting
June 11, 2001

2. East King County Service Area

3. Downtown Bellevue Growth
Population, 1970 - 2020 Employment, 1970 - 2020
80,000
79,000
20,000
14,291 60,000
15,000 60,000
9,151 35,000
10,000 40,000
22,300
5,000 3,622 20,000
10,600
374 1,010 1,182 5,372
0 0
1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020

4. Coordination with Metro & Sound Transit
Winter Spring Summer Fall Winter Spring Summer
2001 2001 2001 2001 2002 2002 2002
Bellevue Transit Plan
Service Element
Capital Element
Policy Element
* Metro Sept 01 Service Change
Metro 6 Year Plan Update
Sound Transit Annual Plans
* Subject to change pending resolution of fare proposal.

5. Changing Transit Service Structure
“Continuing decentralization of population and employment in King County has
decreased travel to Seattle in general and downtown Seattle in particular and has
resulted in the rapid growth of suburb-to-suburb and intra-community trips.”
King County Metro, Six-Year Transit Plan (1996-2001)
Pre-1995 Future Network

6. Bellevue Transit Plan Service Element
Evaluate service options & outline six-year implementation strategy.
Market Conditions System Concepts Service Strategies
Evaluate Existing Conditions Ideas • Hours of Operation
Network Options • Service Frequency
Define Service Goals &
• Service Area Coverage
Objectives Community-based routes
Eastside routes • Directness of Service
Regional routes • Travel Time
Evaluate Future Conditions
Stakeholder Interaction

7. Current Transit Services
Current market conditions necessitate
transit service improvements ...
Hours of Operation
•Weekday services tend to be limited to
peak hours.
•Mid-day & evening service is poor.
•Weekend service negligible all times.
Service Frequency
•Largely 60+ minute - resulting in
lengthy waits.
Service Area Coverage
•Access limited or absent in many parts
of the City.

8. Findings
Despite past success, transit services need improvement
Hours of Operation
• Weekday services tend to be limited to peak hours; mid-day and
evening service is poor.
• Bus schedules do not match school schedules (Bellevue schools out
by 12:30 on Wednesdays).
• Weekend services are negligible at all times.
• All-day service needed on 116th for access to medical offices.
Service Frequency
• Eastside routes have over-loaded buses; people are turned away.
• More service is needed to ensure that missed transfer connections do
not result in 60+ minute wait times.

9. Findings, continued
Service Area Coverage
• Access is limited or absent in many parts of the City.
• Bus stops in Bellevue are too far of a walk in many areas.
Directness of Service
Poor connections:
• Between neighborhoods
• Neighborhoods and Downtown Bellevue
• Other Eastside destinations
Travel Time
• Transfers require additional time and make transit less attractive.

10. Bellevue - Bellevue 2010 Person Trips
Key Markets (10,000 + Person Trips)
• E Bellevue - Overlake = 18,800
• S Bellevue - dwntn Bellevue = 18,400
• Bridle Trails - Overlake = 16,600
• N Bellevue - dwntn Bellevue = 15,400
• Bel-Red Northrup - dwntn Bellevue = 14,800
• Northeast Bellevue - Overlake = 13,600
• Crossroads - Overlake = 13,500
• Bel-Red Northrup - Overlake = 13,100

11. Bellevue - Eastside 2010 Person Trips
Key Markets (10,000 + Person Trips)
• Redmond non-CBD - Overlake = 65,600
• Kirkland - dwntn Bellevue = 43,200
• Kirkland - Overlake = 39,300
• Redmond non-CBD - dwntn Bellevue = 15,700
• Renton - dwntn Bellevue = 14,800
• Medina,Clyde Hil - dwntn Bellevue = 11,700
• Sammamish - Overlake = 11,000

12. Bellevue - Regional 2010 Person Trips
Key Markets (10,000 + Person Trips)
• Pierce County - Overlake = 21,300
• Pierce County - dwntn Bellevue = 21,000
• Snohomish County - dwntn Bellevue = 16,900
• Snohomish County - Overlake = 15,200
• South King County - dwntn Bellevue = 14,900
• Medina,Clyde Hil - dwntn Bellevue = 11,700
• North Seattle - dwntn Bellevue = 11,500
• South King County - Overlake = 10,500
• South Seattle - dwntn Bellevue = 10,300

13. Bellevue Transit Network Vision
Serve Bellevue with urban quality transit service and establish a route
network for future improvements.
Bellevue - Bellevue
• Improved downtown circulation vis-à-vis the distributed service network.
• Improved access vis-à-vis frequency and routing between Bellevue neighborhoods
(e.g., East Bellevue, SE Bellevue, Crossroads) and Activity Centers (both P&R lots
and community centers).
Bellevue - Eastside
• New connection between Kirkland & downtown Bellevue (Overlake Hospital).
• Enhanced connections between Kirkland and Redmond to Overlake employment.
• Improved access between Renton & downtown Bellevue.
• Improved access between Issaquah & downtown Bellevue.
Bellevue - Regional
• Enhance off-peak period frequencies to connect with all-day regional services.
• Eliminate duplicative regional service.

14. Improving Connections in Bellevue
All-day service Kirkland Faster connection
& Overlake (Rt 239). between to Overlake via
Bell-Red (Rt 233).
frequent two-way
Improved access to service to Redmond (Rt
Overlake Hospital & 232), & frequent
increased frequency to Crossroads connection
Kirkland (Rt 234). (Rt 249).
More direct service Provide frequent all-day
between Factoria & connection between
downtown (Rt 222). Crossroads & Factoria,
does not exist (Rt 926).
More service - Issaquah
& Bellevue.(Rt 271). Direct E. Bellevue
dwntn service (Rt 272).
Provide SE Bellevue
with access to transit Direct Factoria & E
system (Rt 928). Bell. service (Rt 923).

15. Frequency Improvements in Bellevue
Peak Hour Frequency Off-Peak Hour Frequency
Overlake Overlake
Crossroads Crossroads
Downtown Downtown
Eastgate/BCC Eastgate/BCC
Factoria Factoria
5 - 10 Min 11 - 15 Min

16. Recommendations within Bellevue
Serve Bellevue with urban quality
transit service and establish a route
network for future improvements.
Neighborhood & Eastside Access
• Greater access to activity centers
from route extensions.
• More frequency to facilitate
convenient transfers.
• Improve routing to enhance
neighborhood access.
Regional Coordination
• Enhance frequency during off-
peak periods to connect with all-
day regional services.
• Eliminate duplicative regional
service

17. Lessons Learned
Completed project successfully, on-time & below budget …
• Undertook early examination of data in-house - To expedite the
process, the City had in-place an early understanding of the problems
needing to be addressed by the consultant team.
• Clarified project direction before work began - Held pre-scoping
design/build meetings prior to contract initiation to identify
opportunities and challenges of scope and timeline of project.
• Created a collaborative planning process - Entranco, Perteet, Transpo
Group, and Browne & Associates each assigned to specific work
assignments & encouraged to collaborate in sharing of ideas.
• Developed realistic recommendations - List of solutions are
financially constrained and technically defensible.
• Articulated transit vision - City’s goals & objectives are better
represented in guiding KCM’s service planning process.

18. Bellevue Transit Plan Approach
Service plan
• Evaluate existing & future markets
• Evaluate existing services (span, frequency, coverage)
• Recommend approach for new investment
Capital plan
• Identify infrastructure improvements to improve transit travel
time & reliability (signal priority, ped/bike connections)
Policy plan
• Consider policy directions to unify transit and growth decisions