Sound Transit to test more frequent trains before 2 Line opens
Published 1:30 am Saturday, November 22, 2025
EVERETT — Riders using Sound Transit’s Link light rail will see additional trains along the tracks starting next week, as the regional transit agency prepares to double the frequency of its service between Lynnwood and downtown Seattle in early 2026.
In a blog post earlier this month, Sound Transit wrote that out-of-service trains will operate in between passenger trains between Lynnwood City Center and the International District/Chinatown stations. Those empty one-car trains will run so operators can practice for the increased service that will come with the opening of the 2 Line, connecting Lynnwood to Bellevue and beyond, through a long-awaited transit connection across Lake Washington.
When that connection opens, trains running between Lynnwood and downtown Seattle will run every 4 minutes, twice the current maximum of 8-minute frequencies during peak hours.
The testing is set to begin early Monday morning, according to Rachelle Cunningham, a Sound Transit spokesperson.
Testing is expected to take place 4:30-9:30 a.m. Nov. 24 to 25; 2:30-7:30 p.m. Dec. 1 and 2; 4:30-9:30 a.m. Dec. 8; 2:30-7:30 p.m. Dec. 15 and 16; and 4:30-9:30 a.m. on Dec. 19. Those schedules are subject to change, Cunningham wrote. The testing will not interfere with regular service.
The Urbanist first reported on the schedule of the upcoming testing.
Other testing and maintenance will necessitate the late-night closure of some stations along the 1 Line in December. Starting at 11 p.m. from Dec. 2 to 4, 1 Line service will be suspended between Northgate and Capitol Hill. Starting at 10 p.m. on Dec. 12, 13, 20, 21, 27 and 28, 1 Line Service will also be suspended between Capitol Hill and Stadium stations. Buses will replace trains during those times.
The 2 Line connection across Lake Washington has been beset by multiple delays due to the complexity of building the world’s first-ever light rail line to run on a floating bridge. But when it opens — likely in early 2026 — the project is expected to be transformational, bringing more frequent service to Snohomish County commuters and giving travelers from the Eastside new service connecting to downtown Seattle. The agency expects about 176,000 daily boardings once the connection opens, Cunningham wrote in an email Friday.
The agency will also open an extension of the existing 1 Line in south King County on Dec. 6, connecting the rail line as far south as downtown Federal Way.
Link light rail is expected to reach south Everett by 2037 and arrive at Everett Station by 2041.
Will Geschke: 425-339-3443; william.geschke@heraldnet.com; X: @willgeschke.
