News releases
Read the latest Sound Transit news, expansion developments, and more here.

Construction progress celebrated at Sound Transit's King Street Sounder train station

Publish Date
Body

A spirited collection of train songs sung by kids from Seattle's Phinney Ridge Neighborhood Children's Center and the powerful beat of the Tsunami Taiko youth drum team highlighted the energetic celebration of construction progress on Sound Transit's Sounder platform at Seattle's King Street train station. 

"I hope that children will be a part of every Sound Transit celebration, because they're the reason we are creating this transit system that will benefit generations to come," said Sound Transit Board Chair and Tacoma City Councilmember Paul Miller. 

Construction of the $5.6 million Sounder train station is a joint partnership between Sound Transit, Amtrak and the Washington state Department of Transportation, and it will feature 600-foot long platforms, metal canopies, information kiosks and state-of-the-art ticket vending machines. The station was designed by OTAK of Seattle and is being built by Carey Construction of Issaquah. 

"The progress at the Sounder King Street station is a great example of how Sound Transit is moving forward to create new transportation options for the people of our region," said Sound Transit Boardmember and Seattle Mayor Paul Schell.

"Seattle is ranked as the tenth busiest of Amtrak's more than 500 stations nationwide, and with Sounder train service next year and continuing efforts to fund the restoration and renovation of historic King Street Station, we're excited by the growing popularity of passenger rail," said Steve Robinson, Amtrak senior project manager. 

Seattle's King Street Sounder train station will be one of 14 stations along the 82-mile Sounder train system using existing Burlington Northern/Santa Fe railways serving the cities of Lakewood, Tacoma, Puyallup, Sumner, Auburn, Kent, Tukwila, Seattle, Edmonds, Mukilteo and Everett. The 40-mile line between Tacoma and Seattle is scheduled to offer demonstration runs by the end of this year with commuter service to begin in 2000. In 2001, Sounder will extend service north to Everett and south to Lakewood. 

Sounder is just one part of Sound Move, the regional transit plan approved by voters in 1996 which also includes the development a 21-mile Link light rail between SeaTac and Northgate; a 1.6-mile downtown Tacoma Link light rail line; and the Regional Express program which includes at least 18 new limited-stop ST Express bus routes and numerous improvements to transit centers, park-and-ride lots and HOV lanes throughout the region.

For up-to-date information on Sound Transit please visit our Web site at www.soundtransit.org/. or call for more information: 1100 Second Ave., Suite 500, Seattle WA 98101 (206) 398-5000, 1-800-201-4900, TTY/TDD: (206) 398-5086.


# # #


Sound Transit plans, builds and operates regional transit systems and services to improve mobility for Central Puget Sound.