Living in Seattle working in Kirkland?
Is it realistic to live in Downtown Seattle (Belltown, Queen Anne) and work in Kirkland? What would the commute be like and how long during typical business hours? Is there a method of Mass Transit like the Sky Train in Vancouver,BC that could get you around?
Seattle - 3 Answers
People's Answers, Critics, Comments, Opinions :
Answer 1 :
Between Seattle and Kirkland you have some great transit options. The best bet would be Metro express bus line #255 which operates daily express service along the highway 520 freeway between Downtown Seattle and Kirkland. The route runs frequently and the travel time is only about 30 minutes each way. The fare is only $1.50 during off peak times and $2.25 during rush hours with greater saving using a monthly pass. Good Luck!
Answer 2 :
I think it's a little silly to live downtown and work in Kirkland. If you're commuting during normal business hours, you are going to hit bumper to bumper traffic every single day morning and evening. Kirkland is just off SR 520 which is notorious for horrible traffic. Plus, they're planning on modifying it soon, so that'll be construction on top of traffic. I think you would be WAY better off to live in Kirkland. Kirkland is actually a really nice place and has a lively downtown area and waterfront. Of course, it's no Seattle, but it is less expensive to rent an apartment there, it's a good-sized city, and it has lots to do. Plus, it takes maybe 15 min. to get into downtown Seattle from Kirkland during non-commuting hours. If you live downtown and commute to Kirkland, count on tacking on at least 45 min. to an hour each way. That makes an 8 hour work day more like a 10 hour work day. There is a good bus system from downtown to the Eastside (Eastern suburbs of Seattle), but again that's adding time onto your commute. Of course, it's up to you, but if you want to live in Seattle, I would recommend finding a job downtown.
Answer 3 :
The commute would be terrible! It's the way that more traffic is running, heading east in the morning and west in the evening. Doing the opposite, living on the Eastside and commuting downtown would be more feasible, though 520 is not fun to cross either way at rush hour. It just gets pretty congested. The commute back to Seattle from the Eastside at rush hour is miserable and on 520, you need 3 people to be in the carpool lane, which will moderately help. In terms of mass transit, Metro does have buses that run from downtown to the Eastside and so does Sound Transit. The 255 runs from downtown to Kirkland, the Sound Transit 550 runs from downtown Bellevue into Seattle, and there are various buses that also run back and forth and to the University District. They will help, but the buses can only go as fast as the rest of the traffic will allow, so it's not perfect. It's WAY less frustrating to let the bus driver take it, though! You could also realistically bike around the lake on the Burke-Gilman Trail from downtown to Seattle and only will intersect with automobiles at a few intersections, avoiding car traffic for the most part
Is it realistic to live in Downtown Seattle (Belltown, Queen Anne) and work in Kirkland? What would the commute be like and how long during typical business hours? Is there a method of Mass Transit like the Sky Train in Vancouver,BC that could get you around?
Seattle - 3 Answers
People's Answers, Critics, Comments, Opinions :
Answer 1 :
Between Seattle and Kirkland you have some great transit options. The best bet would be Metro express bus line #255 which operates daily express service along the highway 520 freeway between Downtown Seattle and Kirkland. The route runs frequently and the travel time is only about 30 minutes each way. The fare is only $1.50 during off peak times and $2.25 during rush hours with greater saving using a monthly pass. Good Luck!
Answer 2 :
I think it's a little silly to live downtown and work in Kirkland. If you're commuting during normal business hours, you are going to hit bumper to bumper traffic every single day morning and evening. Kirkland is just off SR 520 which is notorious for horrible traffic. Plus, they're planning on modifying it soon, so that'll be construction on top of traffic. I think you would be WAY better off to live in Kirkland. Kirkland is actually a really nice place and has a lively downtown area and waterfront. Of course, it's no Seattle, but it is less expensive to rent an apartment there, it's a good-sized city, and it has lots to do. Plus, it takes maybe 15 min. to get into downtown Seattle from Kirkland during non-commuting hours. If you live downtown and commute to Kirkland, count on tacking on at least 45 min. to an hour each way. That makes an 8 hour work day more like a 10 hour work day. There is a good bus system from downtown to the Eastside (Eastern suburbs of Seattle), but again that's adding time onto your commute. Of course, it's up to you, but if you want to live in Seattle, I would recommend finding a job downtown.
Answer 3 :
The commute would be terrible! It's the way that more traffic is running, heading east in the morning and west in the evening. Doing the opposite, living on the Eastside and commuting downtown would be more feasible, though 520 is not fun to cross either way at rush hour. It just gets pretty congested. The commute back to Seattle from the Eastside at rush hour is miserable and on 520, you need 3 people to be in the carpool lane, which will moderately help. In terms of mass transit, Metro does have buses that run from downtown to the Eastside and so does Sound Transit. The 255 runs from downtown to Kirkland, the Sound Transit 550 runs from downtown Bellevue into Seattle, and there are various buses that also run back and forth and to the University District. They will help, but the buses can only go as fast as the rest of the traffic will allow, so it's not perfect. It's WAY less frustrating to let the bus driver take it, though! You could also realistically bike around the lake on the Burke-Gilman Trail from downtown to Seattle and only will intersect with automobiles at a few intersections, avoiding car traffic for the most part
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