| 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 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 first quarter of 2024, the system carries riders on an average of 42,600 trips per weekday,[4] comprising about 18 percent of King County Metro's total daily ridership. At present in Seattle, a very common alternative term for trolleybus is trolley.[5][6][7]
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 March 14, 2024.
- ^ "Transit Ridership Report First Quarter 2024" (PDF). American Public Transportation Association. May 23, 2024. Retrieved May 31, 2024.
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ReturnBowwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "Public Transportation Ridership Report – Third Quarter, 2023" (PDF). American Public Transportation Association. November 30, 2023. Retrieved December 6, 2023.