Pierce Transit, in full "The Pierce County Public Transportation Benefit Area Corporation", is a mass transit agency serving Pierce County, the second most populous county in Washington state. Pierce County is the second most populous county in the US state of Washington. Washington ( is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States.
Pierce Transit was formed in 1979 when voters passed a 0. 3 percent sales tax to fund public transportation. By authorizing this taxing authority, a municipal corporation (Pierce Transit) was formed under Chapter 36. 57A of the Revised Code of Washington. In 2002, voters passed an additional 0. 3 percent sales tax to replace revenue lost when Initiative 695 cut off the Motor Vehicle Excise Tax as a source of funding for public transportation.
Pierce Transit provides transportation services over a 450-square-mile (1,200 km²) area with an estimated population of 675,000. Pierce Transit's service area includes the cities and towns of Bonney Lake, Buckley, DuPont, Fife, Edgewood, Fircrest, Gig Harbor, Lakewood, Milton, Orting, Puyallup, Ruston, Steilacoom, Sumner, Tacoma and University Place, along with extensive unincorporated areas of Pierce County. For other places called Bonney Lake see Lake Bonney disambiguation page Buckley is a city in Pierce County, Washington, United States. DuPont is a city in Pierce County, Washington, United States. Fife is a city in Pierce County, Washington, United States. The population was 4784 at the 2000 census and a 2008 estimate of 7525 according to the Washington Edgewood is a city in Pierce County, Washington, United States. Fircrest is a city in Pierce County, Washington, United States. Gig Harbor is a city in Pierce County, Washington, United States. Lakewood is a city in Pierce County, Washington, United States. Milton is a city in Washington. It is split between King County and Pierce County. Orting is a city located in Pierce County Washington. As of 2008 the city has a total population of 6075 according to the Washington State Office of Financial Management Puyallup Washington (pjuːˈɑːləp is a city in Pierce County, Washington about five miles east of Tacoma. Ruston is a town in Pierce County, Washington, United States. Steilacoom is a town in Pierce County, Washington, United States. Sumner is located in North Pierce County major cities located near Sumner include Puyallup WA to the west Auburn WA to the North and Enumclaw University Place is a city in Pierce County, Washington, United States.
Contents |
Administration
The agency is governed by a Board of Commissioners. The Board is composed of nine elected officials representing the City of Tacoma, Pierce County, Lakewood, University Place/Puyallup (a rotating appointment) and the smaller towns and cities of Pierce Transit's service area.
The Chief Executive Officer is responsible for implementation of the policies legislated by the Board of Commissioners. In order to provide overall management for the Authority, six departments have been established: Executive; Transit Services; Policy, Planning, and Public Affairs; Capital Development; Human Resources; and Finance, Audit & Administrative Services.
Services
Pierce Transit provides 50 local bus routes, SHUTTLE (specialized transportation for people with disabilities), vanpool, ridematching and intercounty express service (provided in cooperation with Sound Transit and Intercity Transit) to Seattle, Sea-Tac Airport and Olympia. Sound Transit has been the popular name of Washington state's Central Puget Sound Regional Transit Authority since 1996 Olympia is the Capital of Washington and is the County seat of Thurston County. Pierce Transit's fixed-route system includes routes that operate on more than 900 miles (1,400 km) of city streets, county routes and state highways from Seattle through Tacoma and on to Olympia. Serving these areas is a fleet of over 250 buses, all wheelchair accessible and all running on compressed natural gas. Seven Transit Centers, over 3,000 bus stops, more than 200 covered bus shelters and 19 park-and-ride lots are provided for patrons. Pierce Transit's fixed-route service carried more than 13 million passengers in 2003.
Pierce Transit's demand-response service, SHUTTLE, provides transportation for people certified eligible for the service because they are functionally unable to ride a fixed-route bus. Rides are organized on a subscription, group or call-in basis. More than 500,000 trips were provided in 2003, with nearly 70% of these trips provided by a private contractor.
Alternate Fuels
Pierce Transit's exploration of alternate fuel options began in 1986 when the agency launched a four-year demonstration project to test the feasibility of using compressed natural gas (CNG) as a fuel source for its bus fleet. CNG was chosen for its environmental benefits and safety record. Working with the Washington State Energy Office and Washington Natural Gas (now Puget Sound Energy), Pierce Transit converted two 1974 GMC buses to run on both diesel and CNG.
When results were compared with six diesel buses of the same age, the agency found it cost less per mile in most cases to operate CNG buses. The engines also ran quieter, helping curb noise pollution in neighborhoods. In 1992, a fast-fill compressor station was built, capable of refueling three CNG buses simultaneously in less than 10 minutes; a second station has since been added. The agency bought the first low-floor buses in the state powered by CNG in February, 1999.
By 2004, the agency's entire fleet had been converted to alternative fuels.
While the fueling stations and their accompanying natural gas detectors and ventilation systems in the shop are expensive, fuel costs for CNG-powered buses can be much lower than for diesel-powered vehicles. In 2000, the CNG buses cost 7 cents per mile to fuel while diesel buses cost 13. 6 cents per mile.
Pierce Transit's clean-air efforts have garnered a number of awards from such groups as the American Lung Association, the Natural Gas Vehicle Coalition, American Gas Association and the U.S. Department of Transportation. The American Lung Association ( ALA) is a Non-profit organization that "fights lung disease in all its forms with special emphasis on Asthma, The United States Department of Transportation ( DOT) is a federal Cabinet department of the United States government concerned with Transportation Most recently, the U.S. Department of Energy honored Pierce Transit with a Clean Cities National Partner Award. The United States Department of Energy ( DOE) is a Cabinet -level department of the United States government responsible for energy policy
The Department of Energy's Clean Cities awards promote the use of alternative, nonpolluting fuels. Pierce Transit was nominated for its award by the Puget Sound Clean Cities Coalition, a regional government/industry partnership led by the City of Seattle to promote the use of alternative fuels.
Cities served
- Tacoma
- Puyallup
- Lakewood
- Gig Harbor
- Purdy
- Fort Lewis
- Orting
- South Hill
- Bonney Lake
- Sumner
- Milton
- Federal Way
Adjoining Transit Agencies
External links
Puyallup Washington (pjuːˈɑːləp is a city in Pierce County, Washington about five miles east of Tacoma. Lakewood is a city in Pierce County, Washington, United States. Gig Harbor is a city in Pierce County, Washington, United States. Purdy is a small Unincorporated community north of the city of Gig Harbor, on the northern boundary of Pierce County Washington. Fort Lewis is a Census-designated place and United States Army post located in Pierce County Washington, United States. Orting is a city located in Pierce County Washington. As of 2008 the city has a total population of 6075 according to the Washington State Office of Financial Management South Hill is a Census-designated place (CDP in Pierce County, Washington, near the city of Puyallup. For other places called Bonney Lake see Lake Bonney disambiguation page Sumner is located in North Pierce County major cities located near Sumner include Puyallup WA to the west Auburn WA to the North and Enumclaw Milton is a city in Washington. It is split between King County and Pierce County. Federal Way is a city in King County, Washington, United States. There are also other systems named Metro Transit Metro Transit, or Metro for short is the Public transit authority of Kitsap Transit is a public transportation agency serving Kitsap County Washington, USA Intercity Transit (more commonly referred to as "IT" by locals is a public transportation service for the cities of Lacey, Olympia, Tumwater, This page is about the ferry system operated by the state of WashingtonDapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic