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Passengers already feeling impact of Metro bus route changes

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KING COUNTY, Wash. — Metro bus passengers are quickly feeling the effects of route changes that just went into effect.

King County Metro has put the ax to 200 bus trips, but they insist that still leaves more than 11,000 trips each weekday.

Some riders say the changes mean longer waits and more frustration.

There is a shortage of bus drivers, too. Metro says it wants to hire 62 additional bus drivers. But they are struggling, like a lot of other entities, to find new hires.

Some passengers say the conditions on the buses might be a big reason why.

King County Metro insists that they make changes twice a year to the bus schedules thousands of people rely on every day. But it is personal when your route is on the chopping block or its schedule is changing.

“I mean, there’s less buses,” said Trisha Kenney, West Seattle. “So they run a little off schedule or are delayed by 20 minutes. I find that often. Most of my buses are delayed by 20 minutes.”

“There’s a little bit longer wait in between the buses, and the buses are fuller,” said regular rider Jolyn Nightingale. “Getting a seat is going to be affected.”

Nightingale says fewer buses will mean those that do come will be more crowded.

One reason cited by Metro is the lack of drivers.

“I wouldn’t want to be a driver,” said Nightingale. “They’re abused. They have to put up with the people smoking their drugs on the bus.”

Indeed, last winter, KIRO 7 investigated driver complaints about passengers openly smoking fentanyl, considered the nation’s most dangerous drug on Metro buses full of passengers, without any apparent consequence.

“What it does is it affects everybody else on the bus,” Nightingale said.

King County Metro says of its more than 11,000 weekday trips, 200 trips are being canceled, affecting about 60 routes.

Most routes will continue to operate 90-100% of their trips, they say.

Still, daily rider Mance Berry says the changes won’t go unnoticed.

“It affects everybody,” he said.

But others say they can adjust.

“As long as the bus schedules are accurate,” said Martha Ann, Seattle. “Yeah, don’t mess with the bus schedules.”

Nine routes will return to the newly reopened West Seattle Bridge.

King County Metro would not provide anyone to talk to us on camera. But in an email, they say the King County executive has a plan to double Metro’s security officers to combat illegal drug use on buses.

They want passengers to report any illegal drug use they see, too.

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