Buses have been running in cities for hundreds of years, serving the needs of people without means to procure private transportation. In the American age of the automobile, the bus has come to be defined as transportation for people who can’t afford a car. For many decades, riding the bus was just as much a symbol of class status as being chauffeured around in a limousine. But recently, in many of the hipper urban sectors of the country, the bus has been making a comeback. Some young people are choosing the city over the suburbs, and have begun integrating their urban lives with urban transit systems.
The following map shows just how far someone would have to walk to find a bus stop in Seattle. Much of the city is within 250 meters of a bus stop, including all of downtown – and almost all of the city is within 500 meters. There are only 2 places within the city limits that are more than a kilometer from the nearest stop, and both of them are urban parks that are also unaccessible by car. Of course this map says nothing about the convenience of the busline servicing the stop, or the greater design of the bus network, or its integration with services outside the city limits. All it says is that if one needs a bus, there’s probably one nearby.
Not to be used for navigation or trip planning.
Data Sources: King County GIS Data Portal
Projection: NAD83 HARN State Plane Washington North
Tools: ArcGIS
