BellHop is here! I love BellHop and am so glad that it's where I live! BellHop is a free transit service for riders in downtown Bellevue that extends to central Bellevue and the Spring District...for now!
BellHop is on a trial run until December as this free shuttle service is run by the City of Bellevue and paid by lodging taxes, so thank you, visitors to Bellevue! The shuttle service provides a transit option around downtown and central Bellevue neighborhoods through the Circuit app. Like with Uber and Lyft, you request a driver/shuttle through the Circuit app and are able to set a drop off location within the border of the BellHop service.
I would not recommend this shuttle service if you're on a time crunch and need to get somewhere right there and then, as BellHop is a shared riding experience. Therefore, you'll ride with other passengers along your route, which also means you may pick up and drop off passengers along the way. I've used BellHop a few times, and it really just depends on the time of day and route to assess the wait times. I had an appointment around Lake Bellevue and waited 18 minutes for my BellHop to arrive and there was an instance where I was at the downtown Bellevue Park and only waited five minutes for a BellHop shuttle. You can't really complain though since it's a FREE service! You have the option of tipping your driver through Venmo or cash.
I love this service for my city! It's already exceeding expectations, providing up to 300 rides a week. So, I'm hoping that with its success, the borders will eventually expand to other neighborhoods in Bellevue and will go beyond the December deadline. I'll continue to use BellHop to get around my neighborhood. read more