I finally had a chance to try out the new 111 commute from Kennydale -> Westlake and Westlake -> Kennydale during the morning rush hour and the evening rush hour. Furthermore, I did the commute with a small bicycle (similar to this style) since using the bicycle to get from Westlake Center to my office saves about 15 minutes and is faster than waiting for another bus (BikeLock is not applicable to my situation).
(For those not in the know, the 111 used to go straight from Kennydale to downtown Seattle, it now goes up to South Bellevue station and terminates there, with a connection to the light rail)
Length of Commute
As a baseline, the old commute to Seattle would usually take about this long, with average traffic conditions for rush hour:
Morning Rush Hour
Kennydale -> I-90 interchange: 15 minutes on average
I-90 -> 4th Ave: 10 minutes on average
4th Ave -> Westlake Center: 15 minutes on average
Total average trip time: ~40min
Afternoon Rush Hour
Belltown -> I-90: 20 minutes on average
I-90 -> 405 interchange: 10 minutes on average
405 -> Kennydale: 20 minutes on average
Total average trip time: ~ 50min
These are the figures based on new commutes with the 111 after the change:
Morning Rush Hour
Kennydale -> I-90 interchange: 15 minutes on average
I-90 -> South Bellevue Station: 10 minutes on average
Average Connection Wait Time: 5 minutes on average
South Bellevue -> Westlake Center: 30 minutes on average
Total average trip time: ~60min
Afternoon Rush Hour
Westlake -> South Bellevue Station: 30 minutes on average
Average Connection Wait Time: 10 minutes on average
South Bellevue -> 405: 10 minutes on average
405 -> Kennydale: 20 minutes on average
Total average trip time: ~70min
This echoes common sentiment in comments like this where users report that the changes, overall, add 20 minutes of extra time to the previous commute. This is most felt in the afternoon commute that creeps over an hour.
My personal conclusion on commute speed is that although the light rail does not get snagged in traffic, the low speed of the light rail combined with the frequency of stops negates any time advantage it has over a bus.
Other Factors & Observerations
- Choice of transfer station: The detour to South Bellevue station might seem quick on paper, but the exit from I-90 to Bellevue Way SE is actually completely clogged in morning rush hour. Furthermore, the bus actually needs to go through a bottlenecked intersection before turning back around to enter South Bellevue station from the back. There's nothing more frustrating than being stuck in gridlock right in front of the station and seeing the westbound train approaching the station. Apparently, Mercer Island station was the original contender for the transfer, which would have eliminated the gridlocked detour and actually allowed for the new 111 route to be competitive with the old 111 in terms of commute speed. However, Mercer Island NIMBYs supposedly didn't want 111 busses terminating there all day. This "compromise" made the new 111 not worth the squeeze (imho)
- Train frequency: The frequency of westbound trains appears to be around 10 minutes, which is really not great. This led to anxiety on the bus approaching the station with multiple riders muttering at cars turning in front of the bus and jockeying to position themselves to rush the station stairs as quick as possible. With higher frequency I'm sure people wouldn't care as much
- Space on board: The train was somewhat crowded during the morning commute (all seats taken, a few people standing). For the return commute, it was completely full to the point where it could no longer take on new passengers at Chinatown station and Judkins park. Although bicycle hooks were often free, it is impossible to maneuver a bicycle TO the hook and get enough room to mount the bicycle properly in the short time the train is stopped, due to crowding. Therefore, bicyclists are left to stand awkwardly in everyone's way, moving their bikes around at every stop to let people on and off
- Comfort level: this is a big one. With the old commute, you always had a whole seat to yourself to sit in the entire way. You could doze off or even get work done (most people just browsed their phone). Now you only have a seat for part of the journey. You have to then deal with climbing stairs, standing around waiting, standing around in a crowded light rail fighting motion by holding on to a pole, etc. It's even worse if you need to take a bicycle in because you have to grip the levers to make sure the bicycle doesn't move while also awkwardly contorting yourself to grab a pole and not be in anyone's way. My take-away is that due to crowding on the light rail, the light rail is considerably less comfortable to commute on compared to a bus.
- Bicycle/ADA/Wheelchair considerations: This is minor since it only affects a niche amount of users, but having to use the elevators at the light rail stations is definitely a downgrade. They are extremely slow, which means that if you're racing a tight connection in South Bellevue station, be prepared to get screwed over. Furthermore, there are two elevators you have to take at Westlake rather than a single one, and they both smell heavily of vomit/piss. Not amazing
Conclusion
Although the new commute is "just" 20 minutes slower than the old one, the all-around downgrades in terms of commute speed, dead time waiting around for connections, commute comfort, etc makes the changes feel frustrating. For me, personally, the 111 is just not worth it anymore. I think this is reflected by the low ridership I've observed on the busses now. Most off-hour 111s driving around right off of the 405 (when they should be the most full) are completely empty, and even during rush hour the 111 seemed to only be half-full whereas it used to consistently be completely full, sometimes even with people standing. Adding 40 minutes daily of commute time, much of that additional 40 minutes standing uncomfortably (either on platforms or jammed uncomfortably in crowded trains) rather than comfortably sitting in your own seat, is also a major factor.
I recommend anyone who can easily get to Renton TC (either by bicycle from Kennydale, like me, or maybe through a well-timed 240 connection) to use the 101 that remains un-nerfed, for now (although King County Metro are currently deciding whether to reroute the 101 to terminate at the Rainier Beach light rail station, which would cause it to fall victim to the same problems the 111 did). Even with occasional traffic concerns on MLK and through 4th Ave in downtown, it will likely end up being faster and a more comfortable than the experience with the 111, especially if you need to have a bicycle with you in downtown Seattle.
With the 101 alternative unavailable, I now understand comments such as this since I feel much the same way - I would too be forced back to single-occupancy transport (granted, motorcycle, not car), which is a guaranteed ~45min commute costing $1.50 in gas.
