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| True story: I was asked by the bus driver to put on the seat belt before the bus would leave the stop. Also: Buses in Anacortes all have seat belts. |
For someone that's grown up in Los Angeles' car-centric culture, I am really taken by public transit. It's probably because I've never really owned a car and so I need rely on public transit and the occasional ZipCar to get around town, but I really do enjoy taking public transit. Luckily, Seattle has a fairly robust and reliable public transit system (barring any budget cuts and service reductions) and I've been able to get by without a car. When I decided to move up to Anacortes, I was worried that I'd need a car or risk becoming shut in since the area was not nearly as dense as the city. Fortunately I quickly discovered that there is a small fleet of buses servicing the Skagit County--with TWO WHOLE BUS LINES in Anacortes alone. Woo!
It's a different experience riding public transportation in Anacortes. The service hours are more or less for people traveling to/from work, so if you want to go anywhere after 7:30pm you're shit out of luck. The buses really only come once an hour (twice an hour, on certain smaller local routes) so if you miss one, you're shit out of luck. Along with the limited routes, there are only so many stops along the route, luckily the buses do serve the main drag and most businesses, but if you want to go anywhere that's just slightly out of the city (say Edison, WA), then you're shit out of luck.
However, the system does have some pretty cool upsides. Bus fare is only $1.00 and, depending on where you want to go, it's like a super cheap taxi. Skagit Transit is not nearly as frequented as the big city transit, many of the stops are "by request", so unless someone requests that a bus stops at a certain stop it will be bypassed. So, I can go from my house, walk three blocks to catch a bus, and be dropped off at the front door of the Senior Center (where I volunteer) for $1.00 and one bus transfer.
Additionally, Skagit Transit seems to dovetail well with the other transit systems. I can take the bus from Anacortes all the way down to Seattle and Seattle back up to Anacortes. And so can you! All you have to do is:
1. Take any bus from Seattle that will take you up to the Everett Transit Center.
2. Make sure that you arrive at the Everett Transit Center between the hours of 5:50am - 8:35am or 4:10 - 5:35pm (Monday through Friday only), so that you can catch the hourly 90X bus up to Skagit Station in Mount Vernon.
2a. Skagit Transit does not take ORCA cards, so you're going to want to make sure you have some cash on hand.
3. Once you're at Skagit Transit, wait for the 411W heading to Oak Harbor on Island Transit. Get off at the March's Point Park and Ride.
3a. Good news Island Transit is free!
4. Get off at March's Point. Wait for the 410 to Anacortes.
4a. You're going to want to break out that coin purse again to pay for your bus fare. Also note that the last bus leaving March's Point leaves at 6:25pm (Monday through Friday, earlier on Saturdays). If you get there after, you might want to phone a friend to pick you up.
5. Once you're on the 410 toward Anacortes, it'll take you through town and to the San Juan Ferry dock.
Believe it or not, the bus trip only takes about 3 hours in good traffic (driving takes about 1.5 hours). However, these times and routes are only applicable Monday through Friday. There's a "Plan B" Saturday public transit option, which goes through the Mulkiteo-Clinton Ferry and up through Whidbey Island, but that takes a mind boggling 5+ hours.
