| Seattle trolleybus system | |
|---|---|
 New Flyer Xcelsior XT40 trolleybus on route 36 in Seattle's Chinatown-International District | |
| Operation | |
| Locale | Seattle, Washington, United States |
| Open | April 28, 1940 |
| Status | Operating |
| Routes | 15 |
| Operator(s) | 1940–1972: Seattle Transit System 1973–1994: Municipality of Metropolitan Seattle 1994–present: King County Metro |
| Infrastructure | |
| Electrification | Parallel overhead lines, 700 V DC[1] |
| Depot(s) | Atlantic Base |
| Stock |
|
| Statistics | |
| Route length | 68 mi (109 km)[2] |
| 2023 ridership | 10,851,600[3] |
The Seattle trolleybus (or trolley[4][5][6]) system forms part of the public transportation network in the city of Seattle, Washington, operated by King County Metro. Originally opened on April 28, 1940, the network consists of 15 routes, with 174 trolleybuses operating on 68 miles (109 km) of two-way parallel overhead lines.[2] As of the third quarter of 2024, the system carries riders on an average of 39,500 trips per weekday,[7] comprising about 18 percent of King County Metro's total daily ridership.
Of the four trolleybus systems currently operating in the U.S., the Seattle system is the second largest (by ridership and fleet size), after the San Francisco system.[8]
- ^ "Construction & Contractors: Trolley buses". King County Metro. January 6, 2015. Retrieved June 12, 2015.
- ^ a b "Electric Trolley Bus Fact Sheet" (PDF). Seattle Department of Transportation. January 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 17, 2017. Retrieved June 13, 2015.
- ^ "Transit Ridership Report Fourth Quarter 2023" (PDF). American Public Transportation Association. March 4, 2024. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
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ReturnBowwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "Transit Ridership Report Third Quarter 2024" (PDF). American Public Transportation Association. November 20, 2024. Retrieved November 23, 2024.
- ^ "Public Transportation Ridership Report – Third Quarter, 2023" (PDF). American Public Transportation Association. November 30, 2023. Retrieved December 6, 2023.