Travel Washington

Travel Washington is an intercity bus service in the U.S. state of Washington funded by the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT). It has four routes that connect major cities to other modes, including Amtrak and Greyhound Lines.

Travel Washington
ParentWashington State Department of Transportation
Commenced operationDecember 2007 (December 2007)
Headquarters310 Maple Park Avenue SE
Olympia, Washington
Service areaWashington state
Service typeIntercity bus
Routes4
OperatorNorthwestern Trailways, Greyhound Lines, Bellair Charters and Airporter
Websitewsdot.wa.gov/transit/intercity

History

Greyhound Lines formerly ran extensive intercity service in Washington state that was cut in 2004 as part of a regional restructure to focus on profitable routes.[1] In 2007, the Washington State Department of Transportation began planning for an intercity bus network pilot project.[2]

The first Travel Washington bus route to open was the Grape Line, which began service in December 2007. It was also the first bus service to be funded through a private-public partnership between the Federal Transit Administration and private operators, with the former matching the latter's investments with grant money.[3]

The Dungeness Line's contract was transferred to Greyhound in 2018 and came with the addition of a new stop in Port Townsend.[4]

Routes

Travel Washington consists of 4 routes connecting major cities in Washington to other intercity transit services offered by Amtrak, Greyhound and Northwestern Trailways, as well as regional airports in Seattle and Pasco. Most stops are sited at major transfer points with local bus systems.

Routes are named after Washingtonian products and resources, such as Dungeness crab and apples.[5][6]

Route Termini Other stops Length[7] Daily
roundtrips[7]		 Began
service[7]		 Operator Website
Southern/western Northern/eastern mi km
Apple Line Ellensburg Omak George, Quincy, Wenatchee (Columbia Station), Orondo, Chelan Falls, Pateros, Brewster, Malott, Okanogan 49 79 1 October 28, 2008[8] Northwestern Trailways appleline.us
Dungeness Line Port Angeles Seattle–Tacoma International Airport Sequim, Port Townsend, Discovery Bay, Downtown Seattle (King Street Station) 98 158 2 September 17, 2008[5] Greyhound Lines dungeness-line.com
Gold Line Spokane International Airport Kettle Falls Downtown Spokane (Spokane Intermodal Center & STA Plaza), Deer Park, Loon Lake, Chewelah, Addy, Arden, Colville 80 130 2 September 8, 2010[9] Bellair Charters and Airporter gold-line.us
Grape Line Tri-Cities Airport Walla Walla Regional Airport Pasco (Pasco Intermodal Train Station), Burbank, Wallula, Touchet 160 260 3 December 10, 2007[3] Bellair Charters and Airporter grapeline.us

See also

References
  1. Koenig, David (June 26, 2004). "Greyhound cutbacks will affect state routes". The Seattle Times. Associated Press. p. B2.
  2. "About the 2007 Intercity Network Plan". Washington State Department of Transportation. 2007. Retrieved July 14, 2016.
  3. "WSDOT Holds Ribbon Cutting for Travel Washington Grape Line" (Press release). Washington State Department of Transportation. December 10, 2007. Archived from the original on July 24, 2008. Retrieved July 14, 2016.
  4. Gottlieb, Paul (June 29, 2018). "Greyhound to take over Dungeness Line, adding Port Townsend stop". Peninsula Daily News. Retrieved June 29, 2018.
  5. Casey, Jim (September 17, 2008). "New bus service connects North Olympic Peninsula to rest of nation". Peninsula Daily News. Retrieved July 15, 2016.
  6. "Grape Line celebrates 4 years of transit service" (Press release). Washington State Department of Transportation. November 17, 2011. Archived from the original on January 25, 2012. Retrieved July 15, 2016.
  7. Fravel, Frederic D.; Barboza Jr., Reyes (2012). "Development and Application of a Rural Intercity Demand Model" (PDF). Journal of Public Transportation. Tampa, Florida: Center for Urban Transportation Research. 15 (3): 34. ISSN 1077-291X. OCLC 30755822. Retrieved July 15, 2016.
  8. "Travel Washington Apple Line provides needed bus service in North Central Washington" (Press release). Washington State Department of Transportation. October 28, 2008. Archived from the original on February 1, 2009. Retrieved July 15, 2016.
  9. "Northeast Washington strikes gold with new bus service" (Press release). Washington State Department of Transportation. September 20, 2010. Archived from the original on October 27, 2010. Retrieved July 14, 2016.
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