Severe Weather and Possible Snow?

There is snow in the forecast for later in the day on Tuesday, and it could begin falling
during the afternoon commute.

That situation could create very different morning and afternoon travel conditions for bus riders. 

Transit users are advised to plan ahead for afternoon and evening trips that could be disrupted,
delayed, reduced, or on snow routing.

Even though weather in the morning may be clear, leave from a bus stop or park-and-ride that also
has service when buses are on snow routes in case travel conditions deteriorate by the afternoon commute. 

Give yourself extra time to reach your evening destination. Busescould be crowded in the early part 
of the afternoon commute if everyone tries to get home before snowfall is the heaviest. 

Metro is urging bus riders to prepare by visiting Metro Online and knowing the snow routing for the
buses they will ride tomorrow. 

Then, before traveling, riders should check for the most current status of Metro service. Updates to
online information begin as early as 4 a.m. and continue as needed until the storm is over. 

A Tuesday snowfall could create challenges for all vehicles, especially if the snow begins to fall during
the afternoon commute. Bus operations could change rapidly. 

Here are some tips for bus travel if it does snow: 
 
• Know the snow routing for your bus route. Check timetables for snow route maps for each route. Not
  every bus route has snow routing, but most do; 
 
• When buses are on snow routing, some streets and bus stops may be missed and there are often
  delays due to travel conditions. There is new snow routing in many areas that is different from past
  years, so be sure to check the snow routes for the routes you use most often or are likely to use
  during snow; 
  
• Metro uses an online color-coded map to keep riders advised of the status of its bus service.  All bus 
  routes are assigned into one or more of seven King County geographic areas. When there is snow or
  ice on the roads, the color-coded service status of each area is displayed map. Green indicates buses
  are operating on normal routes; yellow that some – but not all – routes in the area are on snow routes, and
  red tells you that all bus routes in the entire geographic area are on snow routing; 
 
• People without online access can call the Customer Information Office at (206) 553-3000. General
  information about service is also sent via the kcmetrobus Twitter account; 
 
• Be patient. Buses are not always on schedule in snowy or icy conditions. And, increased ridership
  during bad weather can result in crowded buses and a longer-than-usual wait on the phone for the
  Customer Information Office;  
 
• Dress warmly, wear appropriate footwear for the weather…and expect delays;  
 
• Use bus stops on flat portions of main arterials or at major transfer points such as park-and-ride lots,
  transit centers, or shopping centers.

Thanks for riding and for using Metro’s services.

Travel safely.

 

Weather Alerts Greater Puget Sound!

Special Weather Statement for Greater Puget Sound Region

Issued by The National Weather Service
Seattle/Tacoma, WA
3:30 pm PST, Sat., Dec. 25, 2010

… WINTER WEATHER IS HEADING TO WESTERN WASHINGTON BETWEEN CHRISTMAS AND NEW YEARS DAY…

SEVERAL WINTER WEATHER EVENTS ARE COMING NEXT WEEK… INCLUDING THE POSSIBILITY OF LOWLAND SNOW BEGINNING ABOUT WEDNESDAY.

FIRST UP IS SNOW IN THE MOUNTAINS SUNDAY NIGHT AND MONDAY MORNING. THE SNOW LEVEL WILL FALL TO AS LOW AS 1000 FEET… SO ALL MOUNTAIN PASSES WILL SEE SNOW. THE AMOUNTS LOOK LIKE THEY WILL BE IN THE ADVISORY RANGE… PERHAPS 6 TO 10 INCHES OVERNIGHT.

THE SECOND WINTER WEATHER EVENT IS A MUCH HEAVIER MOUNTAIN SNOWFALL PREDICTED FOR MONDAY NIGHT AND TUESDAY. STRONG WESTERLY FLOW ALOFT AND A MOIST AIR MASS WILL CREATE A CLASSIC HEAVY SNOW PRODUCING PATTERN FOR THE MOUNTAINS. ONE TO THREE FEET OF NEW SNOW IS POSSIBLE MONDAY NIGHT AND TUESDAY.

FINALLY… AND POSSIBLY OF MOST INTEREST… THERE IS A CHANCE OF LOWLAND SNOW BEGINNING ABOUT WEDNESDAY AND LASTING INTO THURSDAY NIGHT. A DEEP UPPER TROUGH WILL SETTLE OVER WESTERN WASHINGTON. PRECIPITATION WILL BE SHOWERY AND WILL DIMINISH BY THURSDAY. HOWEVER IT IS LIKELY THAT AT LEAST SOME OF THE PRECIPITATION WILL BE IN THE FORM OF SNOW. WITH HIGH TEMPERATURES IN THE 30S AND LOWS IN THE 20S… SOME OF THE SNOW WILL STICK.

THIS SNOWFALL IS STILL FOUR DAYS AWAY AND THE FORECAST COULD CHANGE. THE PRECIPITATION CURRENTLY LOOKS MORE SHOWERY IN THE MODELS RATHER THAN A WIDESPREAD SYNOPTIC SNOW EVENT. SHOWERS WOULD IMPLY A MORE HIT OR MISS SNOW EVENT. STILL… LOWLAND SNOW IS USUALLY A BIG EVENT AROUND WESTERN WASHINGTON… SO STAY INFORMED.