Cameras are being used aboard some buses to catch drivers who park or travel in lanes designated specifically for King County Metro.
The pilot project launched earlier this month to get a more accurate count of bus lane and bus stop violations. One coach that travels along the Route 7 line and one on the RapidRide E line have been outfitted with the cameras.
The cameras and software made by Hayden AI will help assess how often private vehicles illegally use bus lanes. The cameras take a 10-second video clip after identifying a violation and noting the location.
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“Our drivers, they are coming along and sometimes cars are parked at bus stops.” Jeff Switzer, a spokesperson for King County Metro. “Sometimes they are cutting them off in order to make maneuvers into the bus lane to get around traffic and that creates hazards for our bus riders. It creates hazards for our riders.”
No warnings or tickets will be issued during the 60-day pilot project. The data collected will be evaluated to see if it should become an ongoing program. Ultimately, it would be up to Seattle or King County to decide if tickets would be issued, not Metro.
Places such as Los Angeles, New York City and Washington, D.C., already use bus lane enforcement programs.
“They can take a look at video and can issue warnings and tickets to drivers who violate the bus lanes. We’re not there yet for Metro,” Switzer said. “We want to understand what the baseline data is going to show us but we really want to get ahead of this.”
Metro chose Route 7 and the RapidRide E lines because both face challenges staying on schedule when private vehicles park or commit lane violations in designated bus lanes. There are also instances where collisions have occurred between buses and vehicles.
According to King County Metro, Route 7 operates 256 bus trips each weekday on Rainier Avenue South, with an estimated 11,000 boardings. This high-ridership route is frequently impacted by the number of vehicles illegally using bus lanes. So far this year, about 73% of trips have been able to operate on time, short of Metro’s goal of 80% or better.
As for the RapidRide E Line, Metro said it operates 278 bus trips each weekday on Aurora Avenue North, and weekday boarding can soar as high as 15,000 passengers. This line also has problems with drivers improperly using or parking in the bus lanes. About 75% of trips stay on schedule, short of Metro’s goal of 80% or better.
Beyond the slowdowns, which Metro said wastes riders’ time and taxpayer money, there are also occasional collisions. Initial data shows that 123 collisions occurred between private vehicles and Route 7 buses in 2023 and year-to-date in 2024. The RapidRide E line saw 120 collisions during that time period.
Metro said getting drivers to respect the designated bus lanes will go far to improve the reliability of these two routes.
If a ticketing program is eventually adopted to address bus lane violators, Metro said any revenue collected could only be spent on equipment or city safety projects.
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Joel Moreno
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Traffic ticket? Just say it!
Well, let's see, the bus lanes are on the right-hand side, so anybody who has to turn onto a street has to go into the bus lane. There's not enough parking. We've made stupid bike Lanes taking up valuable road space for cars. Maybe actually look into real issues instead of just making stuff up.