Getting around Lynnwood with Community Transit

An image of stores at the Alderwood Mall in Lynnwood, WA

Community Transit is here to get you where you want to go. We are proud to be a part of the Lynnwood community — we live here, ride here, and drive here. Wherever you need to go in Lynnwood, feel good about how you get there.

 

About Lynnwood

As a regional crossroads, Lynnwood is home to many popular destinations. These include the Alderwood Mall shopping center, Edmonds College (also home to CWU-Lynnwood) and the Lynnwood Transit Center, which provides local and regional transit access to Seattle, the Eastside and Everett and the rest of Snohomish County. In Lynnwood, near Ash Way Park & Ride, you can find also find the RideStore, which provides more information on Community Transit’s services — including bus schedules, Swift bus rapid transit, including the new Swift Orange Line, Zip Alderwood ShuttleDART and Vanpool — as well as purchase or add fare to ORCA cards, good for travel throughout the region.

In 2024, Sound Transit will open a Link light rail station where the current Lynnwood Transit Center exists. Riders will enjoy fast, frequent and reliable service between south Snohomish County and the University of Washington, downtown Seattle, Eastside, Sea-Tac Airport and more. The Lynnwood Link project extends light rail from Northgate into Snohomish County, serving four stations, Shoreline South/148th, Shoreline North/185th, Mountlake Terrace and Lynnwood City Center. 

Explore Lynnwood with Rick Steves

Join us with Rick Steves as we explore the Interurban Trail, Alderwood Mall, and other popular spots in Lynnwood, Snohomish County’s fastest-growing city. Ride Swift Orange and Blue lines, Zip Alderwood Shuttle, connect to popular transit hubs via bus or bike, and learn about Lynnwood‘s future Link light rail station opening later this year. 

Visit the Rick Steves Destinations video series 



Popular Destinations

Community Transit driver Matt Chomjak wins second place at International Bus Roadeo

May 8, 2024, 09:01 by Samantha Menzimer

Two men standing in front of buses and smiling.

Pictured above: Matt Chomjak (left) smiles with Community Transit’s Chief Operations Officer Roland Behee at the 2024 International Bus Rodeo in Portland, OR., where he took second place. 

Community Transit bus driver Matt Chomjak has done it again. On April 28, Matt placed second in the American Public Transportation Association’s International Bus Roadeo in Portland, OR. Matt competed against the world’s best drivers in the 40-foot bus division, but, this certainly isn’t Matt’s first roadeo.

What is a bus roadeo? Well, it doesn’t involve horses but has a lot of horsepower. The International Bus Roadeo is an annual competition for transit employees to compete in bus driving and maintenance competitions. The bus driving category consists of a 7-minute “obstacle course” for drivers. The maintenance category involves teams of mechanics who must locate and fix issues in bus powertrains.

There is a system of qualifying events to get to the International Competition, including regional, state, and district level competitions.

In 2023, Matt placed first in the Washington State bus roadeo which got him to this year’s International Roadeo, where he competed with other drivers from across the U.S. and Canada. 

Matt was confident in his run at the International Roadeo. “I knew before they announced it that I had done well, that’s how confident I was about my drive,” he said. He knew who his top competitors were, too. “It’s all about who has the best drive that day.” 

A man standing in front of a bus that is wrapped with his face on it.

Pictured above: Matt Chomjak stands in front of the bus that was wrapped with his picture after winning the 2006 International Bus Roadeo.

Matt started driving for Community Transit in 2001, won the local roadeo, and  went to internationals his first year. In 2006, Matt took home first place at the International Bus Roadeo in Anaheim, CA, and was given the title “best bus driver in the world.” After his big win, Community Transit wrapped a bus with Matt’s face on it!

Over the years, Matt has switched between driving buses and training drivers for Community Transit. After his big win in 2006, Matt took a break from competing in roadeos. He started competing again at the state level in 2022.

The secret to Matt’s continued success? Practice. On his own time, Matt practices driving in the Community Transit bus lot, or will go to other agencies who have a training course set up. “It’s just practice and knowing each obstacle. If I hit something, I don’t focus on it. I just move to the next thing and do that one clean. Really, it’s just doing it over and over until you get it right,” he said.

Why does Matt keep competing? “I want to win. I enjoy doing these competitions, and, being around the other people who are a part of these competitions is so much fun.”