Link Transit is the

public transit Public transport (also known as public transit, mass transit, or simply transit) are forms of transport available to the general public. It typically uses a fixed schedule, route and charges a fixed fare. There is no rigid definition of wh ...

authority of Chelan and

Douglas Douglas may refer to: People * Douglas (given name) * Douglas (surname) Animals * Douglas (parrot), macaw that starred as the parrot ''Rosalinda'' in Pippi Longstocking * Douglas the camel, a camel in the Confederate Army in the American Civil ...

counties in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

. It operates fixed bus and

paratransit Paratransit (also community transport in the United Kingdom, or intermediate public transport) is a type of public transport service that supplements fixed-route mass transit by providing individualized rides without fixed routes or timetables. P ...

services between 17 communities in the

Wenatchee–East Wenatchee metropolitan area The Wenatchee–East Wenatchee Metropolitan Statistical Area, as defined by the United States Census Bureau, is an area consisting of Chelan and Douglas Counties in Washington state, anchored by the cities of Wenatchee and East Wenatchee. A ...

, including the cities of Chelan, Leavenworth, Waterville and

Wenatchee Wenatchee ( ) is the county seat and most populous city of Chelan County, Washington, United States. The population within the city limits in 2010 was 31,925, and has increased to 35,508 as of 2020. Located in the north-central part of the stat ...

. In 2014, Link Transit carried 987,376 passengers on its 18 bus routes. It is one of only two

public transportation benefit area A public transportation benefit area, abbreviated as PTBA, is a type of public-benefit corporation for public transit operators in the U.S. state of Washington. It was authorized in 1975 along with a funding mechanism that uses sales taxes levied w ...

s, along with

Ben Franklin Transit Ben Franklin Transit is the operator of public transportation in Franklin County, Washington, Franklin and Benton County, Washington, Benton counties in the U.S. state of Washington (U.S. state), Washington. Eighteen routes provide local servic ...

in the Tri-Cities, to cover more than one county. The Chelan-Douglas Public Transportation Benefit Area was founded in November 1989 and a 0.4%

sales tax A sales tax is a tax paid to a governing body for the sales of certain goods and services. Usually laws allow the seller to collect funds for the tax from the consumer at the point of purchase. When a tax on goods or services is paid to a govern ...

was approved by voters in September 1990 to fund a bus system. The Link Transit moniker was adopted shortly before bus service began on December 16, 1991. Link Transit was initially a fare-free system until February 2000.

Routes

Link Transit operates 18 bus routes, with service operating from Monday through Sunday. 3 of these routes are "trolley" routes using

trolley-replica bus A tourist trolley, also called a road trolley, is a bus designed to resemble an old-style streetcar or tram, usually with false clerestory roof. The vehicles are usually fueled by diesel, or sometimes compressed natural gas. The name refers t ...

es branded as "The Current", running electric battery buses and not charging fares; 6 are intercity routes connecting Wenatchee to outlying communities via major highways; and one is a season route to the

Mission Ridge Ski Area Mission Ridge Ski Area is a ski area in the western United States, located near Wenatchee, Washington. On the Windward and leeward, leeward east slope of the Cascade Range, its base elevation is at above sea level with the peak at , yielding a ...

, branded as "SkiLink", which is free for pass holders to the resort. Link Transit also operates one

dial-a-ride Demand-responsive transport (DRT), also known as demand-responsive transit, demand-responsive service,
US National Trans ...

service in Leavenworth. Most of these bus routes connect to the three main

transit center A transport hub is a place where passengers and cargo are exchanged between vehicles and/or between transport modes. Public transport hubs include railway stations, rapid transit stations, bus stops, tram stops, airports, and ferry slips. ...

s in Wenatchee and its suburbs: Columbia Station, Wenatchee Valley Mall in East Wenatchee, and Olds Station Park & Ride. Most routes also operate in loops with one-way segments.

Bus routes

Intercity routes

Shuttle and urban routes

Shuttle routes are fare-free and run at higher frequencies.

Fleet

Link Transit operates

electric buses Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter possessing an electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as described by Maxwel ...

, powered by batteries, on its "Current" frequent routes in Wenatchee and East Wenatchee. The first batch of five buses manufactured by EBus was delivered in 2014 and funded by a $2.9 million grant from the

Federal Transit Administration The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) is an agency within the United States Department of Transportation (DOT) that provides financial and technical assistance to local public transportation systems. The FTA is one of ten modal administration ...

(FTA). In 2016, the FTA awarded a $3.8 million grant to Link Transit to purchase additional electric buses to replace older diesel vehicles; Link Transit awarded a four-bus order to

BYD Auto BYD Auto Co., Ltd. ( zh, s=比亚迪汽车, p=Bǐyàdí Qìchē) is the Automotive industry, automotive subsidiary of BYD Company, a publicly listed Chinese multinational manufacturing company. It manufactures passenger battery electric vehicle ...

for their K9 electric buses. Link Transit received its BYD electric buses in 2017 and outfitted one with an experimental wireless 200 kW charger, the first of its kind in the United States.

Current Bus Fleet

References

External links

*{{Official website, https://www.linktransit.com/ Bus transportation in Washington (state) Transportation in Chelan County, Washington Transportation in Douglas County, Washington