Longer Sounder train with more seats planned for Friday afternoon on Mariners' playoff game

Anticipating that many fans at Friday's Mariners playoff game may choose to ride the Sounder commuter train home to Auburn, Sumner and Tacoma to avoid the afternoon traffic jams, Sound Transit will add two additional passenger cars to either the 5:25 or 5:45 p.m. regularly scheduled service depending on the conclusion of the game. This is a special addition to regular commuter service and there will be no Sounder service should the game go into extra innings.

The longer eight-car train adds 280 seats to the existing 840 seat six-car trains, for a total of 1,140 seats. The cars have standing room for hundreds more passengers.

The Friday 5:25 p.m. Sounder trip is one of the most popular among commuters, with last Friday's run carrying 694 riders home to Sumner, Auburn and Tacoma.

Voter-approved in 1996, Sounder inaugurated rush hour service between Tacoma and Seattle two weeks ago serving Tacoma, Sumner, Auburn and Seattle with service to Kent in November, Puyallup next February and Tukwila next fall. Sounder will extend north to Everett, Edmonds and Mukilteo and south to Lakewood by 2002.

Sound Transit is also operating 13 limited-stop regional ST Express bus routes with five more scheduled to begin service within two years; in 2002, a 1.6-mile system Link light rail line will serve Tacoma and a 21-mile Link light rail line will begin service for Seattle, Tukwila and SeaTac in 2006/2007.

For more information please visit the Sound Transit Web site at www.soundtransit.org/, or call or write for more information at Sound Transit, Union Station, 401 S. Jackson St., Seattle, WA 98104, (206) 398-5000 or 1-800-201-4900.

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