Proposed federal grant: $1.1 billion for Lynnwood light rail

  • By Noah Haglund Herald Writer
  • Tuesday, February 9, 2016 10:09pm
  • Local News

LYNNWOOD — Commuters in south Snohomish County got some encouraging news Tuesday in a proposed federal budget, though traffic relief still is years away.

Under President Barack Obama’s proposed budget, Sound Transit stands to receive $125 million for the Lynnwood Link light rail extension. That’s part of an eventual $1.1 billion grant the Federal Transit Administration is prepared to award the project to bring light rail service to Lynnwood, Mountlake Terrace and Shoreline about seven years from now.

If all of the money materializes, it would cover nearly half the overall cost.

“We’re very excited,” said Everett City Councilman Paul Roberts, who serves as vice chairman on the Sound Transit board. “It’s obviously an investment in coming north and that’s exciting.”

Roberts and other Sound Transit board members credited Washington’s congressional delegation with helping to secure support for the federal dollars. Money would come from the New Starts program as part of the budget for the 2017 fiscal year.

Roberts also noted that the money should get the light-rail system a few stops closer to Everett. The Everett leg is part of the Sound Transit 3 proposal likely to reach voters in November. It would take at least another 15 years to build out the light-rail system to Everett following a successful ballot measure.

Political leaders in Snohomish County are lobbying for a route that would serve Paine Field at significant extra cost, over a cheaper option traveling straight up I-5 to reach Everett.

If the whole $1.1 billion grant materializes, it will be the largest federal grant Sound Transit has received to date, agency spokesman Bruce Gray said. No other projects in the country are rated a higher priority to receive federal funding. The final amount should be settled by the end of 2017.

Light rail is scheduled to reach Lynnwood by 2023.

Tuesday’s announcement won’t accelerate that timetable, but may help to keep it on track.

“There’s still a lot of engineering work that needs to be done,” Gray said.

Once light rail is running, a trip from Lynnwood to downtown Seattle is projected to take 28 minutes. Eventual daily ridership is expected to reach 74,000 people.

Sound Transit last year picked a route along the I-5 corridor between Lynnwood and Northgate. Stops are planned at the Lynnwood and Mountlake Terrace transit centers.

Two stops also are planned at NE 145th Street and NE 185th Street in Shoreline. New parking structures planned at the Lynnwood and Shoreline stations would add about 1,500 new spaces.

The Sound Transit board also directed staff to prepare for potential stations at 220th Street SW in Mountlake Terrace and NE 130th Street in Seattle. Tracks in those areas would be built to accommodate boarding platforms with minimal disruption.

Cost estimates for the 8.5-mile Northgate-to-Lynnwood line range from $1.5 billion to $1.7 billion. With rail cars and the shared cost of a future maintenance facility, the total project budget would be about $2.3 billion.

Construction is scheduled to begin in 2018.

Lynnwood light-rail service is among the expansion plans that voters approved in 2008 as part of a measure called Sound Transit 2.

The agency is preparing to initiate service to the University District and Capitol Hill on March 19, six months ahead of schedule.

Light rail is projected reach Northgate in 2021.

Noah Haglund: 425-339-3465; nhaglund@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @NWhaglund.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Local News

Trader Joe’s customers walk in and out of the store on Monday, Nov. 20, 2023 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
New Trader Joe’s opens this week at Everett Mall

It’s a short move from a longtime location, essentially across the street, where parking was often an adventure.

Ian Bramel-Allen enters a guilty plea to second-degree murder during a plea and sentencing hearing on Wednesday, March 6, 2024, at Snohomish County Superior Court in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
‘Deep remorse’: Man gets 17 years for friend’s fatal stabbing in Edmonds

Ian Bramel-Allen, 44, pleaded guilty Wednesday to second-degree murder for killing Bret Northcutt last year at a WinCo.

Firefighters respond to a small RV and a motorhome fire on Tuesday afternoon in Marysville. (Provided by Snohomish County Fire Distrct 22)
1 injured after RV fire, explosion near Marysville

The cause of the fire in the 11600 block of 81st Avenue NE had not been determined, fire officials said.

Ashton Dedmon appears in court during his sentencing hearing on Tuesday, March 5, 2024, at Snohomish County Superior Court in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Everett Navy sailor sentenced to 90 days for fatal hit and run

Ashton Dedmon crashed into Joshua Kollman and drove away. Dedmon, a petty officer on the USS Kidd, reported he had a panic attack.

A kindergarten student works on a computer at Emerson Elementary School on Wednesday, Feb. 28, 2024, in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
‘¡Una erupción!’: Dual language programs expanding to 10 local schools

A new bill aims to support 10 new programs each year statewide. In Snohomish County, most follow a 90-10 model of Spanish and English.

Logo for news use featuring the Tulalip Indian Reservation in Snohomish County, Washington. 220118
Woman drives off cliff, dies on Tulalip Reservation

The woman fell 70 to 80 feet after driving off Priest Point Drive NW on Sunday afternoon.

Everett
Boy, 4, survives fall from Everett fourth-story apartment window

The child was being treated at Seattle Children’s. The city has a limited supply of window stops for low-income residents.

People head out to the water at low tide during an unseasonably warm day on Saturday, March 16, 2024, at Lighthouse Park in Mukilteo, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Everett shatters record high temperature by 11 degrees

On Saturday, it hit 73 degrees, breaking the previous record of 62 set in 2007.

Snohomish County Fire District #4 and Snohomish Regional Fire & Rescue respond to a motor vehicle collision for a car and pole. The driver was pronounced dead at the scene, near Triangle Bait & Tackle in Snohomish. (Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office)
Police: Troopers tried to stop driver before deadly crash in Snohomish

The man, 31, was driving at “a high rate of speed” when he crashed into a traffic light pole and died, investigators said.

Alan Dean, who is accused of the 1993 strangulation murder of 15-year-old Bothell girl Melissa Lee, appears in court during opening statements of his trial on Monday, March 18, 2024, at Snohomish County Superior Court in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
31 years later, trial opens in Bothell teen’s brutal killing

In April 1993, Melissa Lee’s body was found below Edgewater Creek Bridge. It would take 27 years to arrest Alan Dean in her death.

Logo for news use featuring the municipality of Snohomish in Snohomish County, Washington. 220118
Man dies after crashing into pole in Snohomish

Just before 1 a.m., the driver crashed into a traffic light pole at the intersection of 2nd Street and Maple Avenue.

Bodies of two men recovered after falling into Eagle Falls near Index

Two men fell into the falls and did not resurface Saturday, authorities said. After a recovery effort, two bodies were found.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.