10 May saw the USD 1.2bn extension of Seattle’s isolated 6.6-mile (10.6km) light rail line by 3.4 miles (5.4km) from Redmond Technology to Downtown Redmond. Sound Transit, the transit provider in this US city, hopes this will boost patronage that has been hovering below 4000 daily boardings despite coupled sets of articulated Siemens LRVs operating every 10 minutes since the line opened on 27 April 2024. However the Bellevue light rail line as the USD 3.7bn project is known is unlikely to reach its full potential until the four-mile (6.4km) link to downtown Seattle (International District/Chinatown) is completed later this year or early in 2026.
The first stage of the Bellevue line was predicted to carry 4000-5700 passengers/day; Sound Transit is hoping that the link to Marymoor Village and Downtown Redmond (a dormitory suburb many of whose residents work in technology near other stations on the line) will boost patronage to 7-9000/day. The whole Bellevue line should be carrying 43 000-52 000 daily riders by late 2026.
Photo: Marymoor Village station on the new extension of Seattle’s light rail. (Sound Transit)
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