A Sound Transit express bus in October 2021 at the Northgate light rail station in Seattle. Several express routes operated by Community Transit into Bellevue and Seattle have had daily trips cut because of driver shortages. (Kevin Clark / Herald file)

A Sound Transit express bus in October 2021 at the Northgate light rail station in Seattle. Several express routes operated by Community Transit into Bellevue and Seattle have had daily trips cut because of driver shortages. (Kevin Clark / Herald file)

Driver shortage cuts bus routes between Snohomish, King counties

Sound Transit cut 18 daily trips on express routes through March 19. Meanwhile, Community Transit is hiring.

EVERETT — Driver shortages caused Sound Transit to cut 18 daily weekday bus trips on express routes between King and Snohomish counties.

Similar problems with canceled or delayed trips over the past month have also hit Sound Transit’s other express routes, operated by King County Metro and Pierce Transit.

The Snohomish County-centric service changes took effect Monday and are to last through March 19. Routes 510, 511, 512, 513 and 532 lost trips.

Since 1999, Sound Transit has contracted with Community Transit to operate its 500-series express routes. Community Transit staff estimated Sound Transit would pay out $19.4 million in reimbursements this year.

In turn, Community Transit contracts with First Transit, a private company, for most of its 400-series commuter and express routes into King County. That deal is worth $21.9 million this year in Community Transit’s budget.

The private company’s drivers have been hit by COVID-19, similar to the rest of Snohomish County and the state.

“The extreme rise in Omicron cases is affecting all industries, including transportation,” First Transit spokesperson Jay Brock said in an email.

First Transit does not require employees to get the COVID-19 vaccine, unlike Community Transit and Sound Transit. Brock did not respond to a question about the number of vaccinated employees.

A surge of 69 COVID-19 cases last month among Community Transit employees prompted temporary service cuts for 36 daily trips on other routes.

It came on the heels of the agency’s Dec. 31 deadline for full vaccination that caused 61 employees, including 29 drivers, to leave.

As of Feb. 10, Community Transit reported five coronavirus cases. Over 99% of employees were fully vaccinated against COVID-19.

Since Community Transit CEO Ric Ilgenfritz announced the vaccine requirement in October, the agency has hired 27 employees.

Only two were drivers, who must complete and graduate from 10 weeks of training that is paid and with benefits. Drivers make $23.47 an hour during training and $27.73 an hour after graduation.

Hiring a driver can take 12 to 16 weeks, from application to serving a route.

Community Transit offers overtime to drivers to fulfill service hours, but managers want to avoid burnout in employees, Ilgenfritz said during the board meeting Feb. 3.

The agency aims to expand service in the coming years. That will require more employees.

“We need to hire over 100 new coach operators to meet those growth targets,” Ilgenfritz said. “We’re starting that from a reduced base now.”

Interviews were scheduled with 13 driver applicants this week, spokesperson Martin Munguia said.

First Transit is hiring drivers, as well, with starting pay at $21.19 per hour for employees on Sound Transit routes. The company pays for training time, too, and offers a $2,500 bonus for new hires who already have a commercial driver’s license.

Transit operations continued throughout the pandemic as an essential operation. Drivers can’t work from home.

Some agencies, including Everett Transit, installed plastic barriers around fixed-route drivers. Community Transit has not.

Community Transit invested in new air filtration devices for buses, as well as masks and hand sanitizer.

Suspended Sound Transit express trips

Route 510 southbound from Everett Station at 4:49 and at 5:48 a.m.;

• Route 511 northbound from Northgate at 3:19 p.m.;

• Route 512 southbound from Everett Station at 8:58, 11:27 a.m., 1:37, and 3:31 p.m.; and northbound from Northgate at 9:59 a.m., 12:29, 1:09, 2:19 p.m. and 2:39 p.m.;

• Route 513 southbound from Seaway Transit Center at 6:42 and 7:30 a.m., and northbound from Northgate at 4:39 p.m.

• Route 532 northbound from Bellevue at 3:12, 4:31 and 5:11 p.m.

Ben Watanabe: bwatanabe@heraldnet.com; 425-339-3037; Twitter @benwatanabe.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Local News

People cross Hoyt Avenue next to the Imagine Children’s Museum on Friday, Nov. 15, 2024 in Edmonds, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Everett adds ‘no sit, no lie’ zone around children’s museum

It’s the fourth buffer zone added since last year where it’s illegal to sit or lie down.

Gov. Jay Inslee campaigns against Initiative 2117, which would cut the state’s carbon cap and investment program, at Aslan Brewery in Bellingham on Oct. 5. Environmentalists and one of the world’s biggest oil companies support Washington State’s cap on carbon. But voters are deciding whether to repeal the law amid concerns about energy costs. (Grant Hindsley / The New York Times)
With $10B deficit looming, Inslee calls for WA agencies to make cuts

The outgoing governor says reductions are needed to balance the next budget. Lawmakers may also consider new taxes.

Everett
Everett man who dealt fentanyl to undercover agent gets federal prison

Dane Britton will spend six years behind bars after selling guns and drugs to a federal agent.

The Marysville Municipal Jail is pictured Thursday, Sept. 14, 2023, in Marysville, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Marysville increases mandatory minimum penalties for repeat offenders

The city still doesn’t know the effects of the original ordinance, but still strengthened the penalties this month.

Interim Marysville School District Superintendent David Burgess speaks at a presentation regarding potential school closures Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2024, at Marysville Pilchuck High School. (Will Geschke / The Herald)
Marysville unveils 3 options for upcoming school closures

The new School Closure Planning Committee will recommend one of the options to the school board by December.

One of the parking lots at Stevens Pass Thursday afternoon on December 30, 2021.  (Kevin Clark / The Herald)
Stevens Pass expected to open Dec. 6

But that depends on the weather. Last year, the ski resort had to delay opening due to a lack of snow.

Lynnwood City Council Vice President Julieta Crosby speaks during a Lynnwood City Council meeting on Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Is Lynnwood council VP allowed to also serve on PUD board? Probably.

A city ordinance prohibits council members from holding other elected seats, but a statewide doctrine may overrule it.

Lynnwood
Water damage displaces 10 adults, 11 kids from Lynnwood apartments

A kitchen fire set off sprinklers Tuesday, causing four units to flood, authorities said.

A person walks up 20th Street Southeast to look at the damage that closed the road on Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024 in Lake Stevens, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Snohomish County crews clean up from bomb cyclone as more wind to come

While not expected to be as fierce as Tuesday’s storm, an incoming weather system could hamper cleanup efforts.

The sun sets beyond the the Evergreen Branch of the Everett Public Library as a person returns some books on Friday, Nov. 11, 2022, in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
‘A brutal hit’: Everett library cuts will lead to reduced hours, staffing

The cuts come as the city plans to reduce the library’s budget by 12% in 2025.

Everett
Pedestrian identified in fatal Evergreen Way crash

On the night of Nov. 14, Rose Haube, 34, was crossing Evergreen Way when a car hit her, authorities said.

Scott Peterson works to clear a tree that fell on the roof of a Shawn Hawes' apartment unit on Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024 in Lake Stevens, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
‘It almost killed me’: Bomb cyclone wreaks havoc in Snohomish County

Two people died. Trees crushed homes. And 135,000 locals lost power.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.