BOTHELL—After several years of experiencing transportation gaps in Bothell, resident Geethapriya Kumaraguru has taken matters into her own hands by launching a petition calling on local governments and transportation agencies to expand service.
Kumaraguru’s petition currently has about 64 signatures and is addressed to Bothell Mayor Mason Thompson, Bothell City Council, Kenmore Mayor Nigel Eubank, Kenmore City Council, Mill Creek Mayor Stephanie Vignal, Mill Creek City Council, Shoreline Mayor Chris Roberts, Shoreline City Council, King County Metro Board of Directors, Community Transit Board of Directors, Snohomish County Executive Dave Somers and Snohomish County Council, and King County Executive Girmay Zahilay and King County Council.
In short, the petition calls on these dignitaries and transportation agencies to “take concrete, funded action to improve public transit across the greater Bothell region,” making the point that Bothell is one of Washington’s fastest-growing cities, yet its residents are served by a patchwork of routes that run every 25-60 minutes, with service ending at 7:30 p.m.-9 p.m., and large residential areas sometimes being left entirely without service.
Kumaraguru would love to see a direct connection to Lynnwood Recreation Center, Sno-Isle Libraries, local pharmacies, grocery stores, and nearby Lynnwood light rail as a result of her grassroots efforts.
Currently Community Transit’s route 121, for example, operates between the Ash Way Park & Ride and the UW Bothell/Cascadia College campus. It serves North Road and Lynnwood High School but does not stop at a light rail station. Alternatively, riders can transfer to the Swift Orange line at Ash Way Park & Ride, or the Swift Green Line at Canyon Park Park & Ride to easily reach light rail connections, however.
Growing up in India, Kumaraguru told the Lynnwood Times she regularly rode public transportation because “having a car was a luxury”. Here in the states, her family is fortunate to have a vehicle, but it has to be divided between five schedules (Kumaraguru, her husband, brother-in-law, mother, and her three-year-old daughter’s daycare). Because of this she finds herself continuing to rely on public transportation often, yet she has grown frustrated over the years with how long it takes to get from point A to point B.
Her petition comes at a time when Community Transit is currently in the works of drafting its 2026-2031 Transit Development Plan (TDP), which essentially maps out the transportation agency’s goals, strategies, and financial forecasts for the next five years.
To Kumaraguru, drafting a petition advocating for a more efficient transportation network aligns with her longstanding commitment to public service, since she first immigrating to the Pacific Northwest from Chennai, India.
While attending the University of Washington’s Foster School of Business (where she was awarded the Professor Scott Rutherford memorial Scholarship and recognized with the Emerging Leader Award for her contributions both in and outside the classroom), she logged over 230 hours volunteering at the Washington Talking Book and Braille Library, helping residents with visual and physical disabilities receive materials on time.
After receiving her master’s in supply chain management, she went on to build a career in global logistics and operations working across procurement, demand planning, and inventory management, most recently as a Supply Chain Manager for Amazon. But in 2024 she stepped away from her career to care for her young child.
Though her community involvement didn’t end there. While raising her child she organized a growing series of family outings for Greater Seattle parents and young children, bringing together over 100 families across farm visits, nature tours, and a behind-the-scenes airport airfield experience.
Kumaraguru volunteered at Shoreline Library helping adult learners practice English conversation, contributed to Sno-Isle Libraries‘ regional focus groups, and judged student competitions in both business and debate. In 2026, SOLE, the International Society of Logistics, awarded her the Demonstrated Master Logistician designation, one of the most respected honors in her field, recognizing not just her professional expertise but her sustained commitment to the discipline she has spent her career practicing.
Kumaraguru informed the Lynnwood Times that her petition – calling for better bus service and on-demand transit in Bothell – is a “natural continuation of everything she has always done” regarding serving her community. She does not see advocating for her community as work separate from her career. She sees it as the whole point of having built one, she said.
“The tools I spent years mastering, network analysis, demand planning, closing gaps in complex systems, were never just corporate assets. They were always meant to serve something larger,” said Kumaraguru. “When I saw neighbors with no reliable way to reach the Lynnwood City Center light rail station, seniors cut off from the Lynnwood Recreation Center, and families unable to get their children to the local library without a car, I did not look away and hope someone else would fix it. I built the case myself.”
To reach out to Kumaraguru, and get a link to her petition, those interested can contact her via email at: k.geethapriya228@gmail.com
Author: Kienan Briscoe
