Riders flock to Swift’s easy connections to light rail

Residents are getting to light rail and traveling around south Snohomish County easier than ever on transit.  Since the launch of Community Transit’s Swift Orange Line on March 30, ridership has increased 31% on the three Swift lines, two of which connect to light rail.

In October, the first full month of service since Community Transit’s major changes to bus service, riders have had more seamless connections to shopping, school, work, and light rail. More connections have encouraged more people to ride Swift, causing a growth in ridership over the past six months and strengthening its place as Community Transit’s most popular service.

In October, there were 374,110 boardings across all Swift lines, which is up 67% from last October. A boarding is a way to count each time a person gets on a bus

Swift ridership growth over the last six months: 

• Swift Blue (Everett – Shoreline) had 198,494 boardings in October, an 18% increase from April.
• Swift Green (Seaway – Canyon Park) had 88,523 boardings in October, a 30% increase from April.
• Swift Orange (McCollum Park – Edmonds College) had 87,093 boardings in October, a 73% increase from its first full month of service in April.

Early ridership highlights on Swift Orange 

In it’s first six months, Orange Line had over 356,000 boardings. 57% of the boardings on Orange Line happened at the first four stops at the west end of the route: Edmonds College, Hwy 99, Lynnwood City Center Station, and the Alderwood Mall.  

Ridership growth since the September changes in bus service 

Community Transit implemented major service updates on Sept. 14—introducing express routes that connect riders to Link light rail, removing Seattle-bound commuter routes, and refining schedules to give riders smoother commutes.  

Here are some early numbers since the changes to service: 

• 744,060 total boardings across all bus service in October, a 20% jump from last year.
• 165,792 average weekly boardings, up 17% from last year.  

The Swift network along with recent updates to Community Transit bus service are making it easier and faster fo­­­­r riders to get where they need to go. Have you ridden on a Swift bus yet?