LYNNWOOD, Wash. — Sound Transit opened the latest piece of its light rail network on Friday, an 8.5-mile, four-station addition that extends the 1 Line north into Snohomish County and to Lynnwood for the first time. In addition to the Lynnwood City Center station, the new extension includes a station at Mountlake Terrace and two in Shoreline, as well as three new parking structures.
The project began construction in 2019 after being approved by voters in 2008. The $3.1 billion project is the third extension to the Sound Transit light rail network in a year, following an addition in Tacoma last September and the opening of the 2 Line between South Bellevue and Redmond in April [see “Sound Transit launches …,” Trains News Wire, April 28, 2024]. KOMO-TV reports the line is projected to carry about 50,000 riders daily, and will offer a rider from Lynnwood to downtown Seattle in about 28 minutes. Trains will operate at 4- to 6-minute intervals.
“Opening the 1 Line to Lynnwood is a major milestone in the growth of light rail,” Sound Transit Board Chair Dow Constantine said in a statement. “For the first time, the light rail system is joining two counties, bringing voters’ vision for our region’s integrated transit system one step closer to reality.”
The website The Urbanist reports the rail line has spurred nearby growth, with nearly 10,000 new residential units built or in development near the four stations.
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