As part of our ongoing engagement and outreach to rebuild ridership and strengthen customer confidence, King County Metro is excited to unveil “It’s a great day to ride Metro.” This creative and optimistic campaign uses stunning photography from across King County to demonstrate transit’s unique ability to connect us to the people we love and the places that matter.

Each step of the way, Metro’s approach was informed by research and multilingual conversations with advocates, community members, employers, our Equity Cabinet, jurisdictional partners, and transit colleagues. We knew this campaign needed to represent the diversity of our customers, their varied experiences, and our region.

Beginning this month, you’ll see “It’s a great day to ride Metro” on billboards, materials, social media, transit advertising, and websites in numerous languages. There’s also a video introducing local photographer and transit aficionado Asher Shafer, whose images so powerfully capture transit “in the wild” against a backdrop of beloved neighborhoods, lakes, mountains, sunrises, and sunsets. Asher’s thoughtful work fits within a larger group of talented photographers using Instagram to showcase transit for its beauty as well as its function. The campaign was inspired by this perspective and was created for our riders throughout the Puget Sound region.

Restoring ridership won’t happen overnight, but we want all of our customers to know that our all-day regional network is here to get you where you need to go, that our commitment to your safety guides everything we do, and that Metro strives to represent and strengthen our shared community on and off of transit.

An all-day regional network of frequent transit service

Across bus, light rail, paratransit, streetcar, water taxi, and on-demand services, our regional transit network is open for business. Metro is already operating more than 85% of pre-pandemic service levels. On Oct. 2, Metro will add another 200,000 service hours. This includes restoring service on 38 routes, including 21 that were previously suspended. Metro also will be providing updated connections to the three new Sound Transit Link light rail stations at U District, Roosevelt, and Northgate, with many more to open in the years ahead.

Safety will always be our first priority

Our increased commitment to cleanliness and health will remain even after the pandemic. We disinfect every bus, streetcar, van, vehicle, and vessel every day. We upgraded air filters on every bus in our fleet. And we encourage contact-free payment, including by ORCA card and Transit GO Ticket. Masks continue to be required and we have free mask dispensers onboard. We’re also working with communities and jurisdictions to ensure your safety not only on transit, but throughout your entire journey.

Reconnecting you to people and places that matter

Metro is your convenient, healthy, and sustainable option to get to appointments, classes, entertainment, shopping, work, and more. Right now, we’re coordinating with employers to meet your evolving travel needs. And we’re collaborating with partners to revitalize our cities and towns.

We’re rebuilding a mobility agency that’s even better and bigger than before because we know the stakes. Transit is essential to ensuring everyone has access to opportunity; protecting our local and global environment; encouraging economic growth; reducing congestion; and supporting healthier, more livable neighborhoods. As we move forward together, our goal is for transit to always be your first choice for mobility.

 

Examples of “It’s a great day to ride Metro” campaign ads:

Route 156 bus with Mount Rainier in background (Spanish version)

Water Taxi with rainbow in background

Route 182 bus at sunrise

RapidRide bus with Space Needle and rainbow in background

Route 50 bus headed toward downtown Seattle

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