Posted by Will in Seattle at 11/20/08 10:23 a.m.

I like the fact the light rail will run late - nothing is more aggravating than the bus tunnel closing early!

Posted by Kurosawa at 11/22/08 5:01 p.m.

Too bad they won't be running until 2 am, when the bars and clubs close. I remember back in the 70s when the buses only ran until about midnight - if you missed the last bus, you had to walk home, or catch a taxi.

Posted by JonSM99 at 12/3/08 8:44 p.m.

Yeah, but why would they run trains later during the week than on weekends?? If we get train service until 1am during the week, it should be at least as late on weekends. In DC, the Metro closes at midnight during the week and 3am Friday and Saturday nights.

Posted by Canary_yo at 12/4/08 6:15 a.m.

There are more people out and about later on the weekends, so it just makes sense to run the trains when people are in need of transportation.

Posted by seascorpio82 at 12/8/08 12:41 a.m.

I think the mentality, rightly so in my opinion, is that the light rail will be for MASS transit...commuting people. After 10 on any night, less people are out. At least with this first segment, I highly doubt there will be high demand for Seattle to Tukwila service in the way of trains running every 15 minutes. I imagine once we open the lines to Bellevue and UW, the times might be altered.

Posted by unregistered user at 12/11/08 6:16 p.m.

I'm actually moving back to Seattle, because the buses don't run late enough. To get back to Issaquah I have to catch the 11:30pm bus. That's when I'm at my prime!! I know the buses aren't just for me, but I'm trying to stay off the road here and $50 cab rides make me cringe! On the positive side....Seattle here I come....again!

Posted by Tenochtitlan at 12/14/08 11:53 p.m.

1 am weeknights and midnight weekends is too early. Many people are out and about in the evenings, especially around the weekend, and are making their trips home at all hours. It really isn't until after 3 am that the roads finally quiet down. And what about the airport? Planes come and go around the clock; are those folks supposed to fork over thirty bucks for a taxi?

Posted by MetroDriver22 at 12/15/08 8:18 a.m.

Six minute service is a dream. A couple of months ago, we ran a simulation in the tunnel of several scenarios. The simulation involved "recreating" the bus traffic that is normally scheduled in the tunnel during Peak Hour service, then running in trains at different intervals. The 9 minute interval had some problems that probably could be worked out. The 7 1/2 minute interval had some fairly significant delays, but *possibly* could be ironed out to work. The 6 minute interval was such a mess that the scenarios was stopped early. The only way a 6 minute interval will work is if buses are taken out of the tunnel and put up on the surface.

Posted by proudtobealiberal at 12/27/08 2:53 p.m.

The airport light rail line running late is fine, but they're not starting nearly early enough in the morning.

Planes don't really take off and land around the clock. But morning flights out start around 6:00 a.m., which means you need to be at the airport to check in by 4:00 a.m., which means you will need to leave home by 3:00 a.m. And what about airport workers who are doing check-in, and selling coffee, and doing security checks for all those early departures?

All of a sudden, starting the rail line at 5:00 a.m. or 6:00 a.m. doesn't sound that early, does it? Just add once-every-half-hour service starting at 3:00 a.m., and switch to your every-5-minutes schedule after 5:00 a.m. or whenever you have planned.

A rail line you can't use is about as useful as no rail line at all. C'mon, the tracks will already be built, the trains will just be sitting there, all you gotta do is fire 'em up.

Posted by Oranviri at 1/4/09 9:43 p.m.

When they say 5 am and 1 am, they mean the first and last trains from the ends of the line. Since a train needs to be departing the Airport station at 5:00 am they have to leave the yard around 40 minutes earlier, accounting for some layover time at the airport. So this means people in the valley and Beacon Hill will get some early service to the airport before 5 am. Same thing for the last train. The last train leaves Westlake at 1 am, there those in the valley will get some service after 1 am. There will be a night owl bus service to the airport hourly at 2 am, 3 am, and 4 am to make up the lack of rail service, giving 24-hour transit service between downtown and the airport.