Since August 29, buses from North Bend, Issaquah Highlands and Marymoor Village have been ending their runs at Mercer Island Station. King County Metro's fall service change rebuilt the Eastside network around the 2 Line, which started crossing Lake Washington on March 28, 2026. Three Metro routes now start and end on the island, and Sound Transit's Route 550, a fixture of the I-90 corridor for years, is gone. Metro planned the new routes, but much of what they do once they reach the island was settled nine years ago. That includes where they stop, which streets they use and how long they can sit.

What started ending here on August 29

Metro's change pointed several routes at the island at once. The table shows what each one does now, based on Metro's published plan and Seattle Transit Blog's breakdown of the fall change.

Before the change, Route 218 made five peak-direction trips a day. It now runs a full half-hourly peak schedule, but only as far as the island. Metro lists the 2 Line as the way to continue into downtown Seattle. The Mercer Island Reporter noted in late August that Sound Transit's Route 554 ended on the same day as the 550. The 2 Line and Route 556 now carry the Bellevue–Seattle and Issaquah–Seattle trips those two routes used to make.

Islanders who used to catch the 550 now take the train. The City lists Mercer Island Station hours as Monday through Saturday, 5 a.m. to 1 a.m., and Sunday, 6 a.m. to midnight. On opening day, the Seattle Times reported a ride of about 10 minutes from the island to either downtown Seattle or downtown Bellevue.

The agreement that sets the rules on the street

In fall 2017, the City of Mercer Island and Sound Transit signed a settlement that includes a section on how buses and rail would meet at the station. The City's signature is dated October 18, 2017, and Sound Transit's is dated November 2. Of two possible layouts, the parties chose the "77th Avenue SE Configuration" and modified it with several specific terms:

1. No regional bus stop on 80th Avenue SE. All pick-up, drop-off and layover areas for buses other than island-only routes go on the south side of North Mercer Way.
2. SE 27th Street stays off the bus route. Except in emergencies, only on-island buses use SE 27th Street. Regional buses are kept to North Mercer Way and 77th Avenue SE.
3. A roundabout at North Mercer Way and 77th Avenue SE. Sound Transit had to build it before East Link opened so buses could turn around.
4. A cap on bus volumes. Buses cannot be scheduled in a way expected to push North Mercer Way volumes above 2017 levels: 34 in the morning peak, 34 in the afternoon peak and 346 a day. Island-only buses are excluded from the count.
5. Short layovers, and no idling. Except in emergencies or breakdowns, layovers are limited to 15 minutes and allowed only from 3:30 to 7 p.m. Buses that are not fully battery-powered may not idle except while loading, unloading or waiting in traffic.

Those terms are why the new routes look the way they do on the island. Sound Transit's station page lists Bay 1 and Bay 2 at North Mercer Way and 80th Avenue SE, and both bays serve Routes 215, 218 and 269 along with the island's local Routes 204 and 630. The roundabout at 77th was finished early. The City reported it operating in April 2023, along with completed station plazas at both 77th and 80th.

The settlement also has some built-in flexibility. Implementing the layout required King County Metro's agreement. The loading-side, layover and idling terms in Section 4.3 come with a promise that the City will not unreasonably withhold approval of changes requested for Metro operational reasons. Later litigation between the City and Sound Transit was resolved in 2022 under a separate agreement, which committed the City to pay Sound Transit $2.1 million and provided for dismissing the case.

How much bus traffic the layout was built for

A 2019 operations study, reported by Seattle Transit Blog, estimated that the layout consistent with the agreement could handle about 12 buses an hour. Alternative configurations were rated at 16 or 20. That study figure is a capacity estimate. The settlement's binding limit is the 2017 volume ceiling on North Mercer Way.

Ridership on the new routes is not yet known. No official bus counts or North Mercer Way traffic figures have been published since August 29. One firsthand report, from a Seattle Transit Blog writer riding on a weekend shortly after the change, counted a single passenger on his Route 215 trip and saw no one board the 269 at Mercer Island. On the first day, the same writer found one bay without route-direction signs and another with an outdated sign. That's normal for the opening weeks of a large restructure, and one weekend ride does not show how the routes perform.

Station boardings are measured. Sound Transit data reported by Seattle Transit Blog show an average of 1,723 weekday boardings at Mercer Island Station in April 2026, the station's first full month of service. That number came before any Eastside bus was rerouted to feed the platform.

What did not change: parking and the island's own buses

The fall restructure added buses from off the island. It did not add parking. Sound Transit's lot across from the station has 447 spaces, 10 of them ADA spaces. The City says the garage generally filled by about 7 a.m. on weekdays before the pandemic, and that use is still recovering. In April, Mayor Dave Rosenbaum told KOMO that the lot fills quickly and early. He also said most nearby streets require permits from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays.

For residents, the rest of the parking setup looks like this:

• Town Center Parking Area: The City lists 33 stalls on the former Tully's site at 7810 SE 27th St. Parking is free for two hours, then $2.50 an hour, with a $12.50 daily maximum and a 14-hour limit. KOMO's April report gave 36 spaces, so the City's page is the one to check.
• North Mercer Restricted Parking District: This resident-permit program covers specified streets north of North Mercer Way. It was created in 2003 to keep commuters from parking on residential streets when the Park-and-Ride is full. Permits are available only to residents inside the district, cost $25 per two-year period and include up to two guest permits per household.
• Bikes: The station has 32 spaces in a secure storage room and 50 rack spaces.

The island's own bus service changed less than the regional routes. In April, before the restructure, Mayor Rosenbaum told KOMO that DART Routes 204 and 630 ended before 7 p.m. on weekdays even though trains ran later. On August 29, Route 630 gained one inbound and two outbound trips, which brings it to 30-minute frequency, and it now runs on 9th Avenue on First Hill. Metro's current timetables are the place to confirm evening hours for either route. The City's Getting Around page still lists Routes 550 and 554 as serving the Park-and-Ride, even though both ended August 29.

Around the station this month

The blocks near the station are busier than they were in the spring. Lunara, a 146-apartment mixed-use building at 7750 SE 29th St., opened July 14, and its first residents moved in July 20. In late August, the Mercer Island Reporter said its seven retail spaces were still future spaces. On opening day, Daniel Brawer, owner of Hap's Burgers and Taps, told KOMO that business was about 50% above a typical day. That was one day, and no later reporting measures how Town Center businesses have done since.

For the next few weeks, these dates matter:

• Through October 2: Sound Transit sidewalk work near the 77th Avenue SE entrance closes the north-side sidewalk, including the pick-up and drop-off spot, from 6 a.m. to 5 p.m. Riders are directed to enter from the south.
• Through October 3: Single-tracking at Mercer Island may delay trains toward Downtown Redmond by 5 to 10 minutes. Late at night, both directions board from the Redmond-bound platform.
• October 30, 4 to 6 p.m.: Town Center Trick or Treat. The City's participant list includes Island Books, Barrels, Macrina and Mioposto.

Once the sidewalk work ends, the drop-off spot at 77th reopens. Regional buses will keep loading on the south side of North Mercer Way, using the roundabout at 77th to turn and staying off SE 27th Street, as the 2017 agreement requires.

If you'd like to talk about how the new station and bus routes affect a particular Mercer Island street or a sale you're planning, Conway Florence Team is glad to go over the details with you. Request a Confidential Consultation.

This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional about your situation.