Hawa and Asiyah enjoying the Community Van and Trail Head Direct. Photo credit: Sanwal Deen
Written by Helen Potter
Like going outside but don’t have a car? Want to get to nature but leave your car at home? Community Van & Trailhead Direct are here to help you and your group get outdoors.
What is the Community Van program?
Community Van is a community-based rideshare service provided through a partnership between King County Metro and participating city governments. Powered by certified volunteer drivers, Community Van connects people to popular destinations in their communities. And what better destination is there than the outdoors and nature?
How do I plan a trip with Community Van?
Email CommunityVan@KingCounty.gov or visit www.kingcounty.gov/CommunityVan to find the Community Van service area nearest to you.
Your area’s Community Transportation Coordinator (CTC) will help you register for volunteer driver training or match you with a certified volunteer driver.
Once you’ve been certified as a volunteer driver or matched with one, contact your CTC to plan your trip.
Call 206-553-3000 for an interpreter to support you with this process in Vietnamese, French, Somali, Russian, Korean, Swahili, Chinese, Nepali, and more languages.
What is the Trailhead Direct program?
Trailhead Direct is a transit to nature project co-led by King County Metro and King County Parks. This project seeks to expand access to hiking destinations, take cars off the road, and reduce parking congestion at trailheads. From May 13 – September 4 on weekends and holidays, the price of a standard Metro bus fare can connect you from Seattle’s urban core to hiking trails in under an hour. Remember – youth 18 and under always ride free on King County Metro!
Trailhead Direct service stops at the Capitol Hill light rail station, Downtown Seattle, the Eastgate Park & Ride in Bellevue, & the North Bend Park & Ride – going both directions. The trailheads served by the Mt. Si route are the Mt. Teneriffe, Mt. Si, or Little Si trailheads.
How do I plan a trip with Trailhead Direct?
Visit https://trailheaddirect.org/ to view the trip schedule and download a brochure in English, Spanish, Vietnamese, Simplified or Traditional Chinese, Oromo, or Amharic.
You can catch the service with your group at any of the times and destinations listed on the schedule brochure every Saturday, Sunday, and holiday from now until Labor Day. You can also use Metro’s online Trip Planner desktop, mobile or Android or iOS apps to plan trips on scheduled service in King, Pierce and Snohomish counties. It provides details about transit stops, routes and schedules.
Trip Planner itineraries do not include unplanned service disruptions and re-routes caused by weather, emergencies, traffic, events or construction. Subscribe to Transit Alerts to receive real-time email or text alerts about potential Trailhead Direct service disruptions.
Share your transit to nature experience with us!
Use the #TrailheadDirect and #CommunityVan hashtags and tag King County Parks and King County Metro in any trips you take using Trailhead Direct or Community Van.
For more information about the program, please visit:
For Community Van: https://trailheaddirect.org/2023/06/02/take-transit-to-nature-with-community-van/ For Trailhead Direct: https://trailheaddirect.org/mountsi/
