South Sound travelers may opt for transit after major service change
Mar 26, 2024, 4:12 PM | Updated: Mar 27, 2024, 4:00 pm
A Pierce Transit Stream Bus can be seen in Pierce County. (Photo courtesy of Pierce Transit)
(Photo courtesy of Pierce Transit)
It’s been seven years since Pierce Transit announced a major service change. The change means more access to Tacoma and the region.
“It’s called Stream Community Line and it will run from Spanaway to Tacoma Dome Station in downtown Tacoma and make connections there with Sound Transit express buses that drive up Seattle,” Pierce Transit spokesperson Rebecca Japhet said.
We have the Tacoma Link Light Rail. We have Amtrak. So there’s a whole bunch of services that are accessible there. And it only makes 14 stops,” she continued.
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She explained the community line is “like an express service and it will make it a lot quicker to get from South Sound.”
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The route will only make 14 stops. The new “stream” line will give commuters more options to catch Sound Transit and help MultiCare Health’s Tacoma employees.
Japhet explained how both services work.
“So you might be going to Tacoma Dome Station to catch a bus to the airport, to catch one of the Sound Transit express buses to the airport. So rather than pay for airport parking, you can get on this (Steam line) with your with your luggage. And you might take that line to go back and forth,” she said. “There’s also the route one option which runs in that same corridor but stops at all of the stops. So if you need to make some of those stops in between, then you can take that as well.”
Japhet said the agency is also implementing a Gig Harbor on-demand runner service.
“It’s like it’s on-demand transit. We’re implementing one of those in Gig Harbor. And so we’ve just got a lot going on,” she said.
Runner on-demand service provides first and last-mile connections for commuters in areas that aren’t serviced with mass transit.
“This will be our sixth runner service in Gig Harbor,” Japhet said. “We have other ones along Ruston and in some other locations, but what it looks like is you will have the Pierce Transit Runner app on your phone potentially and you get on there and you order a ride. You can see the vehicle in real-time, and it will come and pick you up. You might share a ride with folks that are going the same direction at the same time. And anywhere within the zone.”
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Japhet said Pierce Transit is “thrilled and excited to offer these enhancements.”
Pierce Transit recently adopted a bus improvement plan which has six phases. They’re timed over the course of many years and implementation will depend on resources and staff availability.
“But this is the first of six phases that we’re implementing. So we’re excited to jump out and offer even better services for our customers,” Japhet said.
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