Sound Transit Approves Light Rail Plan as I-5 Bridge Sees Summer Reopening

Sound Transit Board Approves Revised Expansion Plan

The Sound Transit board has approved a long-range plan that will guide which voter-approved transit projects move forward over the next 25 years and how the agency plans to pay for them as it confronts a multibillion-dollar funding shortfall. The board approved the plan Thursday night on a 16-2 vote, with board members Claudia Balducci and Dan Strauss casting the only votes against it. The vote marks the culmination of Sound Transit’s yearlong Enterprise Initiative, an effort launched after agency leaders warned that inflation, rising construction costs, labor shortages and supply-chain disruptions had dramatically increased the cost of delivering the ST3 expansion package approved by voters in 2016.

Board members say they were able to erase the glaring $34.5 billion funding gap they were facing in order to build the entire ST3 system on its original schedule. Now, numerous projects are slated to have full funding, while several still have partial funding for planning and design phases, but not construction. Thursday’s board meeting went over 6 hours, and the board gave people an hour during public comment, which over 100 people signed up for, to participate in person or through Zoom. Board members say the revised plan does not cancel any work to connect all of the promised areas, like Ballard, but some areas could see delays.

Projects Receiving Full Construction Funding

Under the approved plan, numerous projects are fully funded through construction. The Tacoma Dome Access Improvements will proceed as planned, along with the West Seattle Link Extension (without Avalon Station). The Renton Transit Center Parking Garage also received full funding approval. Major spine projects including the Tacoma Dome Link Extension, Everett Link Extension Phase 1, and Everett Link Extension Phase 2 are now fully funded, ensuring the main regional transit backbone will be completed.

The initial Ballard Link Extension segment to Seattle Center secured full funding, although the complete extension to Market Street remains unfunded for construction. Other fully funded projects include the TCC Tacoma Link Extension, South Kirkland-Issaquah Link, and critical infrastructure like Link Operations and Maintenance Facility South and Link Operations and Maintenance Facility North. The Graham Street Station and Sounder Maintenance Base also received complete funding authorization.

Projects Awaiting Additional Revenue Sources

Several projects will continue through planning and design while Sound Transit pursues additional funding. The Ballard Link Extension final design from Seattle Center to Market Street falls into this category, meaning the project can advance through engineering studies but cannot break ground on construction. The Boeing Access Road Station final design received similar treatment, allowing planning work to proceed without construction authorization.

Additional Sounder South trips remain in planning, while the DuPont Sounder Extension stays in the planning phase. Projects requiring additional funding before construction include the complete Ballard Link Extension from Seattle Center to Market Street, Boeing Access Road infill station, additional Sounder service, and DuPont Sounder Extension final design and construction. Delays because of affordability remain a big concern for people in Ballard, Everett, Tacoma, and other cities on the east side of King County.

I-5 Ship Canal Bridge Prepares for Temporary Reopening

A brief sense of relief is in sight for drivers as Washington State Department of Transportation crews wrap up repairs in the left northbound lanes of Interstate 5 over the Ship Canal Bridge and prepare to fully reopen the freeway during the FIFA World Cup. I-5 has been reduced to two northbound lanes at the bridge since mid-January while crews completed the 60-year-old bridge’s first major preservation project in roughly four decades.

So far, crews have focused on removing deteriorating concrete, completing major deck repairs, and pouring new modified concrete, according to WSDOT. Other work included drainage improvements aimed at preventing future water damage and replacing several of the bridge’s expansion joints. Project leaders said the need for major improvements has only grown after crews completed more than 300 emergency repairs on the Ship Canal Bridge over the past five years. Messay Shiferaw, assistant regional administrator of construction for WSDOT, said disruptions impact not only I-5 but the entire regional traffic network.

World Cup Reopening Schedule and Future Work

The work zone will be cleared, and all lanes of I-5 will reopen to traffic from June 8 through July 10 during the FIFA World Cup. Before that can happen, a full northbound closure is scheduled from 10 p.m. Friday, June 5, through 5 a.m. Monday, June 8, so crews can remove the work zone. During the reopening period, the I-5 express lanes will return to their normal schedule – southbound in the mornings and northbound in the afternoons.

After the World Cup, another full northbound closure is scheduled for the weekend of July 10 so crews can reestablish the work zone. WSDOT crews will then shift construction from the two left lanes to the two right lanes of northbound I-5 for the remainder of the project. The temporary reopening offers commuters a five-week respite from the construction-related congestion that has defined travel patterns since January, although drivers should prepare for the work zone to return following the international soccer tournament.