Key findings regarding usability and support of East Link include:
- Non-residents use buses more frequently. More than half of non-residents surveyed (56.6%) ride at least once per month compared to 30.1% of residents responding.
- Ridership is influenced by route availability. When asked if they would ride the bus more frequently if more direct bus routes to different parts of the region were provided, 58.5% of residents and 60.3% of non-residents said yes.
- A change in park and rides did not indicate as significant an increase in ridership. If more park and rides were available, 38.4% of residents and 47.4% of non-residents said they would ride the bus more.
- Half of all Bellevue (50.1%) residents surveyed said they would prefer an expanded bus service if it could be made available for 50% of the cost of building and operating East Link light rail.
- Residents are significantly more likely (50.1% vs. 41.2% for non residents) to prefer an expanded bus system. But two-thirds (65.6%) of the Bellevue residents who said they are highly likely to use East Link reported they would not prefer expanded bus system instead of light rail.
- Bellevue residents also are more likely to prefer an expanded bus service to light rail if it was made available in a shorter time frame than East Link. More than half of residents surveyed (51.6%) vs. 39.7% of non-residents indicated this preference.
