En Route To Expansion

Whatcom Transportation Authority’s proposed bus station expansion will bring big changes to downtown Bellingham and increase the efficiency of the transit system. 

Story by Gabrielle Emanuels // Photos by Jesse Paull

December 14, 2024

It is another windy October afternoon at the Downtown Bellingham Bus Station. Amidst the concrete pillars, the sounds of crows cawing in the landscaping, the robotic voices of the bus intercom, and the classic rock music blaring from a man in a cowboy hat’s boombox echoes through the station. Bellingham Station is a cornerstone of downtown, connecting the city and providing transportation to residents, but it will soon be razed. 

Whatcom Transportation Authority wants to expand its service, and although many people like the current station for its small size and security, its size limits any further expansion. 

New hybrid buses and additional routes require more space and bays. The transportation authority requires additional office space for employees to accommodate their growth. A new station has been a goal for years and would allow Whatcom’s transit to meet current and future needs.

The transit authority’s priority with the new station is to increase service capacity, providing more buses that can carry more people. As Bellingham grows, increasing by about 1,400 people a year, the demand for new bus lines does too. Routes, excluding the color-coded Go Lines that where buses run every 15 minutes, are suffering from insufficient service. 

Michael Grass is a remote professor at the University of Washington in the School of Information. Grass lives car-free and started a blog known as Bham By Bus to share his experience and help others navigate the transit system. 

“It depends where you live and where you're trying to get to, if you live near frequent transit or semi-frequent transit, it's decently easy to make some changes and shifts and keep your eye on schedules and things like that,” Grass said. “But I think it's different if you live along a bus route that only has service once an hour. There's the saying ‘frequency equals freedom.’” 

The transportation authority hopes to bring bus rapid transit to Whatcom County, which is a high-frequency alternative where buses arrive every 5 to 10 minutes along the busiest routes.  These buses could serve the Gold, Blue, and Green Go lines, which make up 60% of ridership in Bellingham, with the highest demand around Western Washington University and Whatcom Community College.

Along with streamlining bus routes, the transit authority plans to vastly increase the size of the station to accommodate community needs. The transportation authority hosted a series of meetings and workshops with neighborhood businesses, nonprofits, and property owners to learn more about the neighborhood’s needs.

Although there are no final building plans, the transportation authority hopes for approximately four to six floors, with the bus concourse on the first floor.

“If we already have to dig into the ground, what else might we be able to do to solve some of the community's problems by expanding the station and going vertical?” Mary Anderson, the transportation authority’s senior transit planner, said. 

The rest would serve the downtown community’s needs by providing gathering and meeting rooms, green space, and even housing.

“WTA is known as an agency that punches above its weight class,” Grass said, “So, they squeeze a lot of service out.”

One reason they’re trying to increase service: the threat of urban sprawl. 

Urban sprawl happens when single-family homes with large lots -- or apartments with a small number of units -- are built outside of the area the city has planned for urban growth. In Bellingham, this occurs North and North-East of the city toward Lynden. This creates several problems including heavy reliance on private transportation, increased utility costs, lack of community resources and a larger carbon footprint.

Downtown Bellingham has an advantage with development since it is zoned as an urban village. Urban villages are a unique mix of commercial and residential buildings that prioritize walkability and economic development. These villages, including downtown, the Fountain District, and Fairhaven, make up only 4% of Bellingham's land area, but they are anticipated to hold 30% of its growth.

The success of these villages relies on increased housing density and transportation to support them. The housing incorporated into the station would help alleviate the stress of building housing in other areas of Bellingham. 

Successful transit-oriented development can also lead to a decreased need for parking. Railroad Avenue is currently one big parking lot and transforming it into a destination would attract more people and boost foot traffic.

This new station could provide an opportunity to redevelop Railroad, transforming it into a space centered around people, not cars. 

“[Transit is] about having a connection to community. When you're driving by at 35 or 45 miles an hour, you have the windshield view and you're going to miss things,” Grass said.

The current station is surrounded by publicly-owned sites. These sites could be used for housing development or potentially hosting the new station. 

The property that hosted Basecamp, a walk-in emergency center, is currently up for sale, and the transportation authority is attempting to purchase it. This property is valuable as it is across the street from Unity Care, one of the largest healthcare providers in Bellingham. The proximity would improve access by making doctors, dentists and mental health professionals within walking distance of the station. 

“It may not work that someone can ride the bus for all of their trips, but if they get rid of some other trips or have one fewer car per household,” Anderson said, “that's going to save a lot of money for that family.”

At the earliest, construction for the new Downtown Station would begin in 2027. As Bellingham continues to grow, a Bellingham Station that is inviting and efficient will be fundamental to the downtown community and Bellingham as a whole. 

“Trying to make it feel like it's a space that is welcoming to everyone is going to be very important because public transit really is for everyone,” Anderson said. “It is our system. It is everybody's system.”