Shop, Dine & Ride

Seattle has this great underground bus tunnel that runs throughout all of downtown, where buses roam without the traffic above ground. I rode buses through this tunnel for a year when I worked in the International District/Pioneer Square area for Amazon and loved it. It was the one time that I felt like a hip city dweller---walking down the hill, over I-5 and its morning traffic, grabbing a latte somewhere and then walking through Nordstrom's to go down below to catch any bus entering the tunnel...only to pop me out in the midst of the International District. Enough reminiscing.

This bus tunnel is going to be closed for TWO years beginning September 24th to make way for the fancy schmancy new Light Rail project, which will link the 14 miles between downtown Seattle and SeaTac Airport. Know what this means? All those buses that went through the tunnel are now going to be rerouted up top and traffic will be fun in the downtown area.

Anyway, I just learned about the new Shop, Dine & Ride program where commuters can get discounts on local stores and restaurants. All that's needed is a valid ticket pass, transfer ticket, ticket or ferry pass along with the coupon. Sweet. The full list of stores and restaurants will appear on the site tomorrow. A new guide will be published every six months until the tunnel reopens in two years. There'll be a kick-off party tomorrow from 11:30 am-1:30 pm at the Westlake Park in downtown Seattle. Check it out!