📓

Getting Around: Seattle, WA

✔️

Seattle Essentials

Buy and load an ORCA card when you arrive.
Bring cash, sometimes the machines don’t accept cards.
Tap when entering.
Transit app seems accurate.
$3 for the card, plus $3 per ride. Includes transfers for a couple hours.

October 2024

Airport to Downtown

Signage at SEATAC is limited. You’ll need to get to the 4th floor of the parking garage. This is between the arrivals and departures level (so when you’re in the airport, it feels like the 2nd floor, and isn’t marked 4 anywhere). There’s a skybridge. Some elevators were under construction, so I had to walk to the next one.

It’s a bit of a walk in the parking garage, depending on which terminal you’re in. About a 10 minute walk for me.

Bought an ORCA card at the machine. There was a line for machines, except for the one with a broken card reader that accepted cash only. I had cash, so I did that (RIP my double Amtrak points for transit).

Had to step back toward the entrance to tap for the ride. Not the best placement of readers.

Riding was easy, train was fast and efficient. Same/similar model as Minneapolis. Got crowded downtown, but manageable. Bike friendly.

Bus

The ORCA reader is a bit low and to the right on the bus, and it’s black with a black screen. I didn’t see it at first. There are three other readers in the usual “fare reader” area, none of which are for ORCA.

Once the bus driver pointed me to the reader, it worked without issue.

Bus came fairly quickly (a couple minutes behind Transit app estimates), stop was well labeled, bus was efficient and not too crowded. Good experience.

Transfers

Transfers were very generous. When you tap in, it seems like you get unlimited rides for a couple hours. I took a train, got a burger, fries, bubble tea, and samosas, and walked around for about an hour, then got on a bus. The bus ride was free, still within the transfer window.

💡

There’s an app, Transit GO Ticket. It’s messy and more expensive. May have a use case for locals but not for visitors.

Google Pay is also now an option, apparently. Have not tried it.

🥇

I could pay easily: 4/5

I could find where it stops: 4/5

It came at a reasonable time: 5/5

It went where I want: 5/5

I liked riding it: 5/5