Pierce Transit, officially the Pierce County Public Transportation Benefit Area Corporation, is an operator of public transit in Pierce County, Washington. It operates a variety of services, including fixed-route buses, dial-a-ride transportation, vanpool and ride-matching for carpools. The agency's service area covers the urbanized portions of Pierce County, part of the Seattle metropolitan area, and includes the city of Tacoma. In 2023, the system had a ridership of 7,021,900, or about 23,100 per weekday as of the fourth quarter of 2023.

Public transportation in Pierce County historically focused on the city of Tacoma, which laid its first streetcar lines in 1888. The streetcars were phased out in the 1930s and replaced with citywide bus service, with the last line closing in 1938.^[3] The operators of the streetcar and bus systems, Tacoma Transit Company, was acquired by the city government in 1961 for $750,000. Under city ownership, the system was funded by a $0.75 monthly household tax first levied in 1965.^[4]

A public transportation benefit area (PTBA) was created in 1979 with the goal of establishing a countywide bus system. On November 6, 1979, voters in Tacoma approved a 0.3 percent sales tax to fund a new transit system, initially named the Pierce County Public Transit Benefit Area Authority, that would eventually expand to cover the county.^[5] The Pierce County PBTA took over Tacoma Transit's routes on January 1, 1980, and over the following year annexed other systems throughout the county.^[4] The takeover of Tacoma Transit was done on a temporary agreement while a final cost for the system was under negotiation.^[6] The agency adopted its new name, "Pierce Transit", in June 1980; the name "Tahoma Transit" was favored by staff, while board members proposed "The Bus" and "GO".^[7]

Pierce Transit began expanding outside of Tacoma on July 1, 1980, with new routes to Federal Way, Fife, Milton, Puyallup, Sumner, Fort Lewis, and McChord Air Force Base.^[8] The Federal Way route was created through an agreement with Metro Transit, King County's system, to provide a seamless transfer to an existing express route to Downtown Seattle.^[9] These new routes competed with an existing private operator, who filed a lawsuit to halt Pierce Transit's expansion after negotiations broke down.^[10] Under threat of a potential injunction from the Pierce County Superior Court, a tentative agreement was reached between Pierce Transit and the operator, who would operate new routes under a contract with the agency.^[11]

Pierce Transit began operating direct express bus service from Lakewood and Tacoma to Downtown Seattle on September 17, 1990.^[12] The routes were later converted into Sound Transit Express routes, funded by the regional transit authority and operated by Pierce Transit, in 1999.^[13] The agency opened its central bus hub at Tacoma Dome Station in 1997, where Sounder commuter rail and Tacoma Link light rail service began operating in 2000 and 2003, respectively.^[14][15]

The passage of Initiative 695 in 1999 eliminated the use of motor vehicle excise tax, a funding source for local transit throughout the state, leading to service cuts at Pierce Transit despite it later being ruled unconstitutional by the Washington Supreme Court. In 2000, 14 percent of service was reduced and a fare increase was set to temporarily make up for revenue from the tax, which made up 38 percent of the agency's operating budget. Voters approved a 0.3 percent sales tax increase to fund transit service during a special election in February 2002,^[16] preventing a planned cut in bus service of up to 45 percent, and up to 25 percent for paratransit.^[17][18]

Pierce Transit is operated by nine-member Board of Commissioners composed of elected officials throughout the county. The agency is led by the chief executive officer, who is appointed by the board. Since 2021, this position has been held by Mike Griffus.^[32][33] A staff of approximately 1,000 man the five departments, with over 50% working in Transit Operations.^{[citation needed]}

As of 2012, Pierce Transit served a 292-square-mile (760 km²) area with a population of approximately 557,000.^[23] Areas served include Auburn, Edgewood, Federal Way, Fife, Fircrest, Gig Harbor, Joint Base Lewis–McChord, Lakewood, Milton, Pacific, Purdy, Puyallup, Ruston, South Hill, Steilacoom, Tacoma and University Place.

In 2008, 19 million people utilized its services. 272 wheelchair-accessible buses circulate between 3,300 bus stops, 626 bus shelters and 28 park-and-ride lots. Additionally, Pierce Transit runs 11 transit centers and stations. Pierce Transit also provides vanpool, ridematching and express transportation between counties. Disabled passengers who are not able to use Pierce Transit's buses have access to a special transportation system called SHUTTLE.^{[citation needed]}

The agency launched an on-demand ride-hail service, named "Runner", in 2020 to serve the Ruston Way corridor.^[34] It was expended to Joint Base Lewis–McChord, Spanaway/Parkland, and the Port of Tacoma in 2021.^[35]

In 1986, Pierce Transit began experimenting with compressed natural gas as a fuel source for its bus fleet by modifying two existing buses, becoming the first agency in the nation to do so.^[37] As of 2018, 118 of the 249 buses in the agency's fleet run on compressed natural gas. Other models are diesel–electric hybrids or use electric batteries.^[38]

• King County Metro
• Kitsap Transit
• Intercity Transit
• Washington State Ferries