Trip Planner Tips

Entering Locations

To create a trip plan you need to enter both a starting location (origin) and an ending location (destination).

For information about stops, schedules, or service at a specific location, you only need to enter one location.

The following will help you enter a location:

The Trip Planner recognizes most street intersections and addresses as well as many landmarks in King, Pierce, and Snohomish Counties. If what you entered is not immediately recognized, the Trip Planner will show you some possible options on the Clarify Location page. See the Tips for more information on how to use the Clarify Location page. When entering any location you can safely leave out the city, state, ZIP code, and punctuation.

Addresses

  • You don't need to type in the city, state, or ZIP code along with the address. The Trip Planner shows the possible city names as options if needed.
  • You don't need to type in St., Street, Ave., Avenue, or similar street types unless they precede the street name. The Trip Planner shows the possible alternatives as options if needed. (Examples: type 110 Jones instead of 110 Jones Boulevard. But type 19600 SR 99 for 19600 Highway 99 in Snohomish County or 200 Avenue A instead of 200 A.)
  • You should leave out the street direction, but if a direction name is part of a street name, you should include it. (Example: type 1000 Main instead of 1000 S Main. But type 1000 West Viewmont for 1000 West Viewmont Way W.)
  • Some streets and addresses are unknown to the Trip Planner. You may need to enter another nearby location, such as an intersection or a landmark.
  • You don't need to enter the suite number or apartment number, just the house number and street name (Example: type in 401 Broadway instead of 401 Broadway Avenue Suite 800).

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Intersections

  • Type the "&" symbol or "and" between two street names to show an intersection. (Examples: 1st & B, James and Madison)
  • You should leave out the city, state, and ZIP code. The Trip Planner shows the possible city names as options if needed.
  • You don't need to type in St., Street, Ave., Avenue, or similar street types unless they precede the street name. The Trip Planner shows the possible alternatives as options if needed. (Examples: type Conifer & Jones instead of Conifer Circle & Jones Boulevard. But type 196 & SR 99 for the intersection of 196th SE & Highway 99 in Lynnwood or 2 & Avenue A instead of 2 & A.)
  • You should leave out the street direction, but if a direction name is part of a street name, you should include it. (Example: type 3rd & Main instead of 3rd S & S Main. But type 34th & West Viewmont for 34th W & West Viewmont Way W.)
  • Some streets are unknown to the Trip Planner. You may need to enter another nearby intersection or a landmark.

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Landmarks

The Trip Planner recognizes many landmarks of these types:

Landmark type

Examples

Government Sites:

King County Courthouse, Regional Justice Center, Kirkland City Hall

Major Commercial Sites:

Microsoft Corp., Bellevue Square, Westin Hotel

Transportation Facilities:

Washington State Ferries, Sea-Tac Airport, Greyhound Bus Depot

Schools & Colleges:

University of Washington, Highline Community College

Sports & Leisure:

Safeco Field, Seattle Public Library, Space Needle, Zoo

Medical Facilities:

Swedish Medical Center, Group Health

Transit Centers:

Aurora Village Transit Center; Bellevue Transit Center

Park and Ride Lots:

Houghton Park & Ride, Shoreline Park & Ride, South Federal Way Park & Ride Tip: use Metro Online to find a Park & Ride near you.

Metro Tunnel Stations:

International District, Pioneer Square, University, Westlake, and Convention Place. Tip: enter 'TS' for Tunnel Station
  • Type a landmark name to enter it. Many landmarks have a short name or abbreviation that is easier to enter. See the Glossary for a list of these.
  • The Trip Planner offers you a list of choices if there is more than one landmark with a similar name.
  • You can safely leave out the city, state, ZIP code, and punctuation.
  • You may need to enter an address or an intersection for some landmarks.
  • It is not possible to maintain some other types of landmark categories that might seem like a good idea, such as grocery stores, convenience stores and others.
  • The Trip Planner recognizes major landmarks in the categories shown above, but may be missing some. Use the comments button or feedback link to suggest adding a landmark.

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