West Seattle Link Extension project updates
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Overview
The West Seattle Link Extension (WSLE) will provide fast, reliable light rail connections to dense residential and job centers in the SODO, Delridge, and West Seattle neighborhoods. This project is part of the regional transit system expansion approved by voters in November 2016. As selected by the Sound Transit Board in October 2024, the project to be built will add 4.1 miles of light rail service and up to four new stations from SODO to West Seattle’s Alaska Junction neighborhood.
Current project status
The Federal Transit Administration (FTA), issued a Record of Decision on April 2025, signifying the end of the planning phase and the beginning of the decision phase. During the design phase, the project team is:
Identifying and advancing opportunities to reduce costs and effects on the community.
Finalizing route and station designs.
Obtaining land use and construction permits.
Acquiring the land needed to build the project and providing relocation support to residents and businesses.
Procuring and commissioning station and public art.
Continuing to engage residents and businesses along the WSLE route.
In 2024, updated cost estimates indicated that the project would cost significantly more than previously projected. The Sound Transit Board then directed staff to develop a workplan for programmatic, financial, and project-level measures and opportunities to improve the project’s financial situation (Board Motion M2024-59).
Per the Board’s direction, the WSLE project team has been evaluating a range of strategies to reduce costs and community impacts while still delivering on the vision to bring light rail to West Seattle. On March 12, WSLE project staff briefed the Board’s System Expansion Committee (SEC) on key cost-saving opportunities that would meaningfully reduce the project’s cost estimate and reduce effects on the community. Measures being considered include station consolidation, station refinements and optimizations, light rail guideway and route adjustments, and special trackwork modifications. Additional information on these cost-saving opportunities is included in the presentation from the March 12 SEC meeting.
The measures under consideration have the potential to reduce project costs by $2.1-2.6 billion, resulting in a new cost estimate of $4.9-$5.3 billion in 2025 dollars.
These cost saving concepts are not final decisions. More work needs to be done to confirm technical feasibility and community benefits and impacts, and additional measures to reduce costs and community effects will be studied and implemented throughout the design phase.
Where can I learn more as a project neighbor?
- Visit the project’s online open house to learn more about how the West Seattle Link Extension reached the design phase. If you have any questions or would like to set up a meeting to learn more, contact the project team at westseattlelink@soundtransit.org.
- If you live, work, or own property near the project, please note that final decisions have not yet been made. The project team will reach out to you if you may end up being impacted by the measures under consideration or if you may no longer be impacted following the Sound Transit Board’s decision. You can learn more about the property acquisition and relocation process on the online open house. If you have questions or want to learn more, please contact the project team at westseattlelink@soundtransit.org.