Link light rail in the Seattle metropolitan area of Washington is a light rail system managed by Sound Transit since its inception in 1996. , it consists of the 1 Line, the 2 Line, and the T Line; with several extensions under construction and other lines in planning.
The first lines were approved by a ballot measure in 1996, but a series of financial missteps and planning errors resulted in escalating costs and delayed construction for Central Link (now the 1 Line). The 21-mile line was shortened to a 14-mile line running from Westlake Center in downtown Seattle south to Seattle–Tacoma International Airport, and opened in 2009. Federal grants received in 2005 funded a northern extension to the University of Washington in 2016. Further funding extended the line south to Angle Lake in 2016, and north to Northgate in 2021.
Further ballot measures Sound Transit 2 (ST2) in 2008 and Sound Transit 3 (ST3) in 2016 have funded further expansions, as well as the construction of new lines across the region that will total by 2041. Construction is underway on the 2 Line, which will open in two phases: from South Bellevue to the Microsoft campus in Redmond in 2024; and to Seattle in 2026. Other ST2 projects include an extension north to Lynnwood to open in 2024 and south to Federal Way in 2025. Future extensions to be built with ST3 funding to Tacoma, Issaquah, and Everett are scheduled to open by 2044.
Predecessors Attempts to finance the construction of a rapid transit system to connect Seattle's neighborhoods, and later other cities in the region, first emerged with civil engineer Virgil Bogue's comprehensive plan in 1911. A referendum on the plan, which included of subway tunnels and of elevated tracks, was rejected by city voters the following year. The region's transit system faced chronic under-investment and declining bus ridership as new highways and freeways, including Interstate 5 through Seattle, were constructed to serve a growing number of automobile users.
Rapid transit in Seattle was reconsidered as part of the Forward Thrust ballot measures placed on the ballot in 1968. The 1968 vote featured 13 different ballot measures, including options for only Seattle and for all of King County. The rapid transit ballot measure failed at the ballot box. Four of these measures, including the rapid transit measure, was placed on the ballot again in 1970, but all four failed a second time. After the failed vote in 1970, the federal transit funding instead went to build the MARTA system in Atlanta.
The Seattle Transit System, which operated buses within the city, launched one of the nation's first express bus systems in 1970. The program drew new suburban riders but the system continued to face financial issues. King County voters approved a ballot measure in 1972 to acquire the Seattle Transit System and a private suburban operator to form a new countywide bus system that would be managed by the Municipality of Metropolitan Seattle, an existing water treatment and sewage agency. The bus system, named Metro Transit (now King County Metro), began operations in January 1973 and increased ridership from 30million with Seattle Transit in 1971 to 66million in 1980.
Prior to the inauguration of the Link system, King County built a system of large underground tunnels beneath the city of Seattle. At the time of their construction, these tunnels carried the busses operated by King County Metro Transit. These tunnels provided a convenient grade-separated alignment for transit through downtown Seattle.
Early years In 1990, the state of Washington allowed transit agencies in the Puget Sound region to form regional transit committees by the January 1, 1991. The State further enabled these regional transit committees to form regional transit authorities to succeed the committees. It pushed for the development of the structure and financing plan underpinning these authorities to be finalized by September 1, 1992. The same law also required subsequent approval by county authorities and voters. Sound Transit was formed in 1993 as a Regional Transit Authority (RTA) spanning the urban areas of King, Pierce, and Snohomish counties.
Light rail Creation Sound Transit submitted its first transit plan and associated tax increases for voter approval on March 14, 1995. This plan was rejected by voters. On November 5, 1996, a scaled-back plan, called "Sound Move" was submitted for voter approval. This plan was approved by voters. The approved plan included increases in sales taxes and vehicle excise taxes to pay for a US$3.9 billion transit package that included $1.7 billion for a 25-mile light rail system. The system included a streetcar in Tacoma, Washington which would become the T Line, and another line from the University District in north Seattle to Sea-Tac Airport south of Seattle, originally planned to open in 2006. Sound Transit released an environmental impact study in 1998 which saw costs for the system rise to US$2.2 billion, and which added three miles to the line by extending it to Northgate.
Designing the system The feasibility of regional light rail in the Puget Sound was studied throughout the 1980s. Alternative transit systems, such as heavy rail, which had been the centerpiece of the Forward Thrust measure, were subsequently reassessed. Light rail was ultimately chosen over heavy rail for its comparative cost-effectiveness and versatility.
While the Link system was initially designed around a 750 VDC traction electrification system., Sound Transit later instead opted to design the system around a 1500 VDC system, though it retained traction electrification. Few transit systems in the United States use 1500 VDC despite prevalence internationally. This system was chosen because some initial Link stations were expected to experience unusually high daily ridership numbers despite system limitations on the number of cars per train and a lack of grade separation along parts of the line. Sound Transit calculated that the use of 1500 VDC rather than 750 VDC would result in an increase in the cost of acquisition of train cars to be 3% higher, though the change also resulted in cost savings in other respects, including the need for a reduced number of substations.
Early Issues The decision to have the line run at grade through the Rainier Valley was met with objections from some local residents, who formed a group called Save Our Valley, which advocated for the Link to run below ground like much of the rest of the route starting at Beacon Hill. Save Our Valley alleged in a lawsuit that the decision to go with a cheaper option with greater community impacts through their majority-minority neighborhood violated federal environmental, housing, and civil rights laws. City leaders of Tukwila, also south of Seattle, were concerned that route bypassed the shopping district around Southcenter Mall.
A vote by the Sound Transit board on February 25, 1999, that made minor modifications to the route, did little to ease the concerns in Seattle's southern neighborhoods and northern suburbs. Increasing land values and changes to the route voted in by the board added hundreds of millions of dollars to the cost, requiring cuts to the plan to bring the project back to within budget. The cuts were finalized in a November vote that deferred construction on two stations, to only partially build the station under Beacon Hill, and route modifications. The Save Our Valley lawsuit was dismissed in 2003, and planning proceeded for the original street level alignment.
In late February 1999, a financial analysis stated that building light rail out as far as Northgate might not be possible for over 12 years due to decreases in federal grant money and local tax shortfalls. Sound Transit then planned to move extension of the line to Northgate to a new second phase of construction. In June of that year, Sound Transit publicly announced that the remaining planned first phase of construction would overrun its planned budget by hundreds of millions of dollars.
University of Washington Differences between the University of Washington and Sound Transit over station locations, impacts from the route's running under several science buildings on the campus, and construction impact deferments threatened to delay the project and raise costs. After months of negotiations, university leaders and Sound Transit reached agreement in April 2000 with Sound Transit agreeing to install dampeners on the rails that run under the science buildings, install air cushions to tables in the science buildings, and mitigate environmental impacts due to construction and traffic impacts from having the station on university grounds. However, in November 2000, the Sound Transit board voted to defer construction on the tunnel to the university when the construction estimate came in $171 million over budget. This news prompted concerns that Sound Transit could lose out on $500 million in federal grants, but King County Executive Ron Sims said he had been in contact with Federal Transit Administration (FTA) officials who said the grant was still possible. This announcement coincided with the resignation of light rail's chief, Paul Bay. Two weeks later, Lyndon Wilson Jr., the man credited with turning around Portland's MAX Light Rail project, was tapped as the systems interim director.
Within days of Wilson's arrival, new estimates from Sound Transit staff increased the cost of the 21-mile project from $1.9 billion to $3.8 billion and added three years to the construction time. The report cited the frequent changes made to the route in order to appease community members, third parties, and the wishes of board members and the ambitious construction schedule as reasons for the cost increase. Just days later, Capitol Hill business and civic leaders withdrew their support from the project due to concerns that two years of construction needed to build the station on Capitol Hill would drive customers away from area businesses and force those businesses to close.
In January 2001, the Sound Transit board agreed in advance to accept a then-future fixed $500 million grant from the FTA were the FTA to approve such a grant after the review of the project; Sound Transit was required to approve the grant prior to its contingent issuance. The decision effectively locked Sound Transit into building a 7-mile route from Lander Street to the University of Washington. Days later, the chairman of the House Appropriations Transportation subcommittee, Representative Hal Rogers, sent a letter to Transportation Secretary Rodney Slater saying his committee could not approve the grant and requesting a review by the Inspector General. Despite this, Sound Transit was still optimistic that the grant would be approved later that week. Representative Jennifer Dunn, Washington's ranking House Republican, voiced her support for the independent audit, but stopped short of calling for the FTA to not approve the grant. Despite these questions, on his last day as Transportation Secretary, Rodney Slater, signed the agreement granting Sound Transit $500 million in annual installments through 2006. Shortly after obtaining the grant approval, Sound Transit's executive director, Bob White resigned, citing a need for new leadership to restore public confidence in the agency.
Declining support