Pierce Transit


Pierce Transit, officially the Pierce County Public Transportation Benefit Area Corporation, is an operator of public transit in Pierce County, Washington. It operates a variety of services, including fixed-route buses, dial-a-ride transportation, vanpool and ride-matching for carpools. The agency's service area covers the urbanized portions of Pierce County, part of the Seattle metropolitan area, and includes the city of Tacoma.

History

Public transportation in Pierce County historically focused on the city of Tacoma, which laid its first streetcar lines in 1888. The streetcars were phased out in the 1930s and replaced with citywide bus service, with the last line closing in 1938. The operators of the streetcar and bus systems, Tacoma Transit Company, was acquired by the city government in 1961 for $750,000. Under city ownership, the system was funded by a $0.75 monthly household tax first levied in 1965.
A public transportation benefit area was created in 1979 with the goal of establishing a countywide bus system. On November 6, 1979, voters in Tacoma approved a 0.3 percent sales tax to fund a new transit system, the Pierce County Transportation Benefit Area or "Pierce Transit". Pierce Transit took over Tacoma Transit's routes on January 1, 1980, and over the following year annexed other systems throughout the county.
Pierce Transit began operating express bus service from Lakewood and Tacoma to Downtown Seattle on September 17, 1990. The routes were later converted into Sound Transit Express routes, funded by the regional transit authority and operated by Pierce Transit, in 1999. The agency opened its central bus hub at Tacoma Dome Station in 1997, where Sounder commuter rail and Tacoma Link light rail service began operating in 2000 and 2003, respectively.
The passage of Initiative 695 in 1999 eliminated the use of motor vehicle excise tax, a funding source for local transit throughout the state, leading to service cuts at Pierce Transit despite it later being ruled unconstitutional by the Washington Supreme Court. In 2000, 14 percent of service was reduced and a fare increase was set to temporarily make up for revenue from the tax, which made up 38 percent of the agency's operating budget. Voters approved a 0.3 percent sales tax increase to fund transit service during a special election in February 2002, preventing a planned cut in bus service of up to 45 percent, and up to 25 percent for paratransit.

Funding crisis

In 2012, Pierce Transit argued that it was in an unsustainable state due to its reserves running out, and as a result, must cut service by 53% in order to become sustainable again. Pierce Transit argued that if taxes within its service area were increased by 0.3%, Pierce Transit would not have had to cut service, and instead could have improved service by 23%. Opponents of the 0.3% tax increase in Pierce County advertised a sales tax increase to 10.1%, but in reality that rate would have only applied to motor vehicles due to the state motor vehicle sales and use tax. Most taxable goods and services would have been taxed at the rate of 9.8%.
Pierce Transit proposed a similar increase in sales tax in 2011, which was eventually rejected by the public. Proposition 1, proposed in the 2012 general election, has also been rejected by the public.
In May 2012, the cities of Bonney Lake, Buckley, DuPont, Orting, and Sumner withdrew from the boundaries of Pierce Transit's service area, which shrunk to.

Bus rapid transit service

Pierce Transit plans to build a bus rapid transit system on Pacific Avenue between Tacoma and Spanaway, replacing a section of Route 1. The $150 million project, partially funded by Sound Transit 3 and the federal government, is scheduled to begin construction in 2020 and open in 2022. The bus rapid transit line is planned to use curb-side and median stations, with of dedicated bus lanes and 32 total stations.

Administration

Pierce Transit is operated by nine-member Board of Commissioners composed of elected officials throughout the county. The Board of Commissioners operates under a Chief Executive Officer, Sue Drier. A staff of approximately 1,000 man the five departments, with over 50% working in Transit Operations.

Police

Pierce Transit contracts with the Pierce County Sheriff's Department for police services. There are currently 16 patrol deputies assigned full-time to Pierce Transit. The command staff of Pierce Transit Police include two Supervising Sergeants and the Transit Police Chief. The Pierce Transit system is also patrolled by 17 specially commissioned Peace Officers.

Services

As of 2012, Pierce Transit served a area with a population of approximately 557,000. Areas served include Auburn, Edgewood, Federal Way, Fife, Fircrest, Gig Harbor, Joint Base Lewis–McChord, Lakewood, Milton, Pacific, Purdy, Puyallup, Ruston, South Hill, Steilacoom, Tacoma and University Place.
In 2008, 19 million people utilized its services. 272 wheelchair-accessible buses circulate between 3,300 bus stops, 626 bus shelters and 28 park-and-ride lots. Additionally, Pierce Transit runs 11 transit centers and stations. Pierce Transit also provides vanpool, ridematching and express transportation between counties. Disabled passengers who are not able to use Pierce Transit's buses have access to a special transportation system called SHUTTLE.

Bus routes

Fares

Fares last updated on: 3/1/2016

Facilities

Transit Centers

In 1986, Pierce Transit began experimenting with compressed natural gas as a fuel source for its bus fleet by modifying two existing buses, becoming the first agency in the nation to do so. As of 2018, 118 of the 153 buses in the agency's fleet run on compressed natural gas. Other models are diesel–electric hybrids or use electric batteries.

Bus

ManufacturerModelYearFleet
Numbers		LengthFuel TypeNotesImage-
GilligPhantom 40'199923Diesel
  • Reserve fleet
  • Acquired from Sound Transit
  • 8022, 8026–8027, 8030, 8036–8042, 8046–8054, 8058, 8060–8062, 8064–8065, 8067 retired
  • Some buses used on Sound Transit Express
-
GilligLow Floor CNG 201510CNG-
GilligLow Floor CNG 201610CNG-
GilligLow Floor CNG 20177CNG
GilligLow Floor HEV 40' 20109Hybrid Electric-
GilligLow Floor HEV 40' 20136Hybrid Electric-
GilligLow Floor HEV 40' 20146Hybrid Electric-
GilligLow Floor CNG 201823CNG-
GilligLow Floor CNG 201920CNG
ChanceAH-28 Streetcar20003Diesel
  • Replica trolleys
  • Acquired from Link Transit
    		• -
    New FlyerC40LF200218CNG-
    New FlyerC40LF200420CNG-
    New FlyerC40LF200525CNG-
    New FlyerC40LFR200710CNG-
    New FlyerC40LFR200811CNG-
    New FlyerC30LF20048CNG
  • Reserve fleet
  • 311–317 retired
    		• -
    New FlyerC30LF20047CNG-
    ProterraCatalyst E220183Battery Electric-

    Shuttle/Bus Plus

    Vanpool

    Ferry