A more user-friendly King County Metro Transit (Metro) "Metro Online" home page, a new “KCMetro-Alert” e-mail subscription service and a pilot project called, “Eye on Your Metro Commute,” have been designed to keep customers informed of incidents that could cause delays in bus service.

Redesign of the Website is a work in progress, but the first phase, unveiled May 1, should make it easier to search frequently-accessed items such as bus schedules and the Trip Planner. Visitors will now see simpler Web design and navigation. Plus, Metro Online now has more space to call attention to news that transit riders need to know. Riders can also subscribe to KCMetro-Alerts, an online email subscription service that provides general information about major disruptions.

Just as traffic reporters alert motorists of spot problems on roadways, Metro’s own “transit reporters” are launching another online product, “Eye on Your Metro Commute.”  As part of the pilot project, they will monitor information coming into Metro’s Transit Control Center during daily morning and afternoon commutes and will share what they are hearing. Reporters will be looking for spot problems that could delay or disrupt bus service. 

These products are part of a series of improvements Metro has committed to delivering following one of the worst winter storm seasons in recent memory. These new services will alert riders of disruptions that may impact bus service during morning and afternoon commutes. The pilot will run through the end of 2009 and may be extended following an evaluation of the service.