New light rail plans keep West Seattle on track, add Graham Street Station to the mix, and will build the massively expensive tunnel needed to reach Ballard — but not reach Ballard

(Image: Office of Planning & Community Development)

You are going to have to likely wait a lot longer than 2039 to take light rail to Ballard — but you will have a new destination in the Rainier Valley at Graham Street Station.

Thursday, the 18-member Sound Transit board agreed on a package of deferrals and cuts to address a projected $34.5 billion shortfall.

The body that includes ten members representing King County, seven representing Pierce and Snohomish Counties, and one state representative voted on updates to the “Sound Transit 3” plan as dismal economic forecasts and rapidly rising land and construction costs made it impossible to move forward on the full package.

The biggest compromise for Seattle riders will come with the planned Ballard extension — a meaty target with the current framework requiring $11 billion for a second downtown transit tunnel parallel to the existing one.

Under Thursday’s actions, the Ballard Link Extension’s segment to Seattle Center — essentially that very expensive tunnel — will be funded. However, the stretch from Seattle Center to Market Street is deemed “not affordable.” Under the new plan, Sound Transit will complete design for that leg but must hunt for funding before construction can begin.

Officials Thursday adopted a compromise that will build the “initial segment to Seattle Center” of the planned Ballard Link Extension but push the plan of completing the line onto the back burner.

Under the compromise, budget will be preserved to complete a design for the full Ballard extension and “identify potential cost savings and efficiencies” — and, possibly, identify new ways to pay for it all.

Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson who was part of Thursday’s vote admitted frustration but expressed optimism about support for exploring new options for delivering the full Ballard extension soon.

“I’m frustrated and disappointed that we have not yet been able to find a way to deliver more for people in Ballard who have been paying into the program for years and not seen enough results,” Wilson said in a statement. “I’m pleased the Board adopted my amendment requiring us to consider additional options so we can find a better way forward, and I’m committed to keep doing the work to deliver what voters are demanding and build the damn trains all the way to Market Street so we can finish what we are starting here today.”

Dan Strauss, Ballard’s representative on the Seattle City Council, was one of only two votes against Thursday’s compromise plan. MyBallard reported here on a failed amendment from Strauss that would have prioritized the Seattle Center to Market Street segment to operate as a “starter line” until the expensive downtown to Seattle Center route could be completed.

CHS reported here on “the stand” made by Seattle leaders over projects like the Ballard extension and a promised Graham Street Station serving Rainier Valley as the Sound Transit cost-cutting process has played out.

Graham Street, Wilson’s biggest priority, was held up as an example by the mayor following Thursday’s vote.

“When I came into office, Sound Transit was eliminating projects, searching for billions of dollars of savings, and there was not a clear to pathway to key things moving on key Seattle projects,” Wilson said in her statement.

“After six months of public mobilization and hard work by my team and many others, today we finally have a plan to deliver Graham Street, we’re moving West Seattle forward, and the development of the regional system once again has continued momentum. This is just a start, but it’s meaningful progress.”

The West Seattle expansion plans pencil out as affordable under current projections though it is not clear if the 2032 delivery timeline can be met.

Sound Transit has been studying (PDF) concepts for the second transit tunnel

King County Executive Girmay Zahilay highlighted investments kept on track by Thursday’s actions, including the West Seattle Link Extension — minus a planned Avalon Station — and the Graham Street station.

The full roster of what is preserved, what is changed, and what is deferred reflect a process that prioritized the regional nature of the Sound Transit system over Seattle priorities where the bulk of current riders on the system live.

Affordable projects within existing resources

 

The following projects are fully funded and will be completed through construction:

• Tacoma Dome Access Improvements
• West Seattle Link Extension, no Avalon Station
• Renton Transit Center Parking Garage
• Tacoma Dome Link Extension
• Everett Link Extension, phase 1
• Everett Link Extension, phase 2
• Ballard Link Extension, initial segment to Seattle Center
• TCC Tacoma Link Extension (now 2043)
• South Kirkland – Issaquah Link (now 2050)
• Link Operations and Maintenance Facility South
• Link Operations and Maintenance Facility North
• Graham Street Station
• Sounder Maintenance Base

The following projects are partially funded and will be completed through planning and design:

• Ballard Link Extension, final design phase
• Boeing Access Road Station, final design phase
• Sounder South additional trips (partially funded)
• DuPont Sounder Extension, planning phase
• Regional Parking Fund
• ST Express Bus Base (partially funded)
• High-capacity transit corridor studies/ST4 planning (partially funded)

Projects not currently affordable within existing resources

The agency will continue to pursue additional funding for the following projects:

• Ballard Link Extension, Seattle Center to Market Street
• Boeing Access Road infill station
• Sounder additional trips
• DuPont Sounder Extension, final design and construction
• High-capacity transit corridor studies/ST4 planning

Projects deferred until resources are identified

• Tacoma Dome Link Extension Parking
• Everett Link Extension Parking
• Stride Bus Rapid Transit Parking
• North Sammamish Park-and-Ride
• Edmonds and Mukilteo Parking and Access Improvements
• Bus on Shoulder project
• SR 162 Corridor Improvements
• Sounder South Platform Extensions
• Sounder South Station Access Improvements
• ST Express Bus Base, remainder

“This resolution reflects realism and optimism,” Snohomish County Executive and board chair Dave Somers said in a statement.

To further bridge the gap, the agency is deferring parking projects, delaying lines like the South Kirkland-to-Issaquah segment now pushed to 2050, and pursuing tools to increase debt capacity.

Staff have until the end of 2026 to implement a framework to prevent overruns.

The complete resolution approved by the board Thursday is below:

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