Story by Ralph Nichols
Photos & Video by Oran Viriyincy

With Sound Transit’s Link light rail trains running at last between Tukwila and downtown Seattle, it was time to experience this new commuter option. So with my girlfriend, I boarded a train for a round trip from the South 154th Street station late on a busy Seafair Saturday afternoon.

With lots happening downtown, we weren’t surprised to find the station’s main parking lot full. (Tukwila has Link’s only free park-and-ride lot, like those at several Metro bus stops around King County, although there is private paid parking near the Beacon Hill station.) But there were a number of empty spaces at the overflow parking lot across the street.

Five minutes after parking, we bought our tickets – $5 per person for the round trip – and one minute later boarded a train that had just come in. With trains running from Tukwila every 10 minutes at that hour, this gave us 9 minutes to look around on the inside before our journey north.

Each $4 million electric-powered car, with electricity from overhead wires, is 95 feet long – three times longer than one of Metro’s articulated buses. Each car can seat 74 passengers and accommodate a total of 200 riders with standing room only, and each train consists of two cars. The trains travel at a maximum speed of 55 mph on the elevated track near Tukwila and at 35 mph on the ground.

The train doors closed – rather quickly it seemed – at 5:50 p.m. Soon it pulled out of the station, right on time. Less than half a mile down the track, we agreed the ride was not as smooth as expected; still, the vibration isn’t bad at all. And the train moves along at a steady clip without delays for vehicles when streets intersect with the tracks.

Station stops took far less time than I expected. Passengers got on and off with ease and without delay, and we moved right along. Here is how our station stops went:

5:59 p.m. – Arrived at the Rainier Beach station.

6:00 – Depart.

6:02 – Othello station.

6:03 – Depart.

6:06 – Columbia City station.

6:07 – Depart.

6.10 – Mount Baker station.

6:10 – Depart … and head into the tunnel under Beacon Hill.

6:12 – Beacon Hill (tunnel) station.

6:13 – Depart … and back into daylight.

6:15 – SODO station.

6:15 – Depart.

6:17 – Stadium station.

6:18 – Depart … and enter the downtown bus tunnel.

6:20 – International District/Chinatown station.

6:21 – Depart.

6:23 – Pioneer Square station.

6:23 – Depart.

6:24 – University Street station.

6:25 – Depart.

6:26 – Westlake station, the end of the line.

Twenty-six minutes from Tukwila to midtown Seattle via the Rainier Valley. Not bad.

When we left Tukwila, there were about 12 riders in our car including us. Picking up more riders at most stations along the route (none at a couple), usually ranging from an additional 6 to 12 at each stop, our car was almost full of seated riders by the time we reached Westlake. No one had to stand. As we stepped off the train, it looked like its other car had carried about the same number.

Getting from the train to street level – at Pine Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues just below Nordstrom – is easy, as is returning to the train, which we did about an hour later. On the return trip, which took the same time, only 16 people were riding in both cars and only 8 beyond the Mount Baker station. It is logical to assume, given the number of cars still in the parking lot when we got back to Tukwila, that southbound ridership was much higher after events wrapped up downtown and people headed home.

Above ground, the view from a train car ranges from interesting, even scenic, along the elevated track north of the Tukwila station to very drab through part of Rainier Valley not far up the line.

A trip on Link light rail is comparable to a ride on Portland’s MAX, although a good stretch of that line parallels Interstate 84 – the major highway into that city – rather than winding through nearby neighborhoods along the way.

Sound Transit has reported that Link light rail carried an average of 12,000 riders per weekday in its first five days of regular paid service, and 16,900 riders on July 25 and 15,100 on July 26 during the first big Seafair weekend, when both the Mariners and Sounders also were in town.

With service on to Sea-Tac International Airport scheduled to begin in December, Sound Transit projects 26,600 one-way trips daily (13,300 round trips) along its 16-mile light-rail route by the end of 2010. The current trip from Tukwila to Seattle is 14 miles.

A footnote about our trip: While the actual travel time from Tukwila to Westlake was a reasonable 26 minutes, it took another 9 minutes to drive from my home and park, then another 14 minutes to get into the station, buy tickets, board a train and wait for it to depart. Riders who take light rail from other stations must walk, ride a bicycle or take a bus to get there since they have no park and ride lots.

Convenience, including time and destination, may be the determining factor for riding light rail for many commuters. I might take light rail from Tukwila to a Mariners game or dinner in the International District, but would not do so from, say, Columbia City due to lack of parking. At the same time, I probably would drive to SODO to shop or the Othello community to go to the park.

Regardless, once you’re moving on a light rail train, it’s a comfortable trip in good time to your stop. Still, at $2.3 billion for this line, it’s one expensive commute for the convenience it affords.

If you haven’t yet ridden Link light rail, here’s a video by Oran Viriyincy:

This section, approaching Tukwila Intl. Blvd., has the steepest grade in the system. You can hear the motors as the train climbs.

So…have YOU ridden Link light rail yet? Please take our poll or Comment below…

Burien’s new Transit Center will open this coming Saturday, May 30th as part of King County Metro Transit seasonal service change.

Metro’s new Burien Transit Center has six off-street bus bays for more convenient boarding.

The $12.5 million Burien Transit Center features six bus bays for passenger boarding, including one dedicated to paratransit service. All of the boarding areas are now located off-street, enhancing safety for both transit customers and motorists in downtown Burien.

The transit center, located at 209 SW 148th Street (near where Rooty’s used to be), has covered waiting areas with benches and windscreens, as well as etched glass art on its awnings. The adjacent park-and-ride lot has parking for 340 vehicles and includes five charging stations for electric vehicles. The transit center has lighting and 24/7 monitored security. It is served by Metro routes 120, 121, 122, 123, 131, 132, 133, 134, 139, 140, 180, and Sound Transit Express Route 560.

Metro’s project team worked cooperatively with the City of Burien to integrate the transit center into the city’s downtown revitalization plans. The transit center is close to civic amenities, such as Burien Town Square – home of the new city hall, King County Library, and mixed-use retail and residential development.

In addition to the new transit center, Metro is also expanding operating hours in the Downtown Seattle Transit Tunnel (DSTT), consolidating park-and-ride spaces in the Northgate area, and revising some bus routes and schedules to update service.

Starting in July of this year, it’s going to cost $2.50 to take the Sound Transit Link light rail from the new Tukwila station to downtown Seattle.

On Thursday (March 26th), the Sound Transit Board adopted the fare structure for the Link light rail system that will open in July. Light rail fares will be comparable to regional buses under the distance-based system, with a $1.75 base fare plus $.05 per mile, rounded up or down to the nearest quarter.

The $2.50 fee to travel from the airport to downtown will be the same as a bus ride. Youth base fares will start at $1.25 and have a maximum fare of $2.00 and Senior/disabled fares will start at $.75 and have a maximum fare of $1.25 under the adopted structure.

“We’ve said from the start that light rail fares should be in line with local bus services, and today’s decision does just that,” said Sound Transit Board Chair and Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels.

The fare structure supports Sound Transit’s goal of recovering 52 percent of annual operational costs by 2017.

The fares will apply on the whole light rail line, including the Downtown Seattle Transit Tunnel (DSTT). The Board considered offering free service in the DSTT, which would have required increasing the base fare by $.25, for a maximum fare of $2.75. Sound Transit conducted extensive public outreach on the options, collecting nearly 200 comments via the web, phone and 16 events. Overall, opinions between the two options were virtually split. The majority of comments at 10 meetings in the Rainier Valley and Beacon Hill — areas that are home to many future Link riders — favored the lower base fare achieved by charging for trips in the DSTT.

Link light rail is on schedule to open for passenger service between downtown Seattle and Tukwila in July and to Sea-Tac International Airport by the end of the year. Buses will carry passengers between Tukwila and the airport until the direct airport connection opens in December.

More information about the new fare structure can be found here: www.soundtransit.org/linkfares.

The 360-degree view of the new Tukwila Sound Transit Link Station above is courtesy Francis Zera Photography / zeraphoto.com, created for client PCL Construction.

The Burien Transit Center is taking shape, and is reportedly on target to begin operations on Saturday, May 30th.

The center, located on SW 148th, across from the Safeway complex where Rooty’s Sports Bar used to be, will be the main transit hub for the Burien area.

Here’s a direct quote from Elizabeth Morgan, Project Manager for King County:

The Burien Transit Center construction is going very well.

We are on target to open the new transit center with our June Transit Service Change process and coaches will start using the center on Saturday, May 30, 2009 with the first regular weekday of service out of the new center on Monday, June 1, 2009.

The transit center moves to the off street location off of SW 148th Street. There is one main platform that will serve the majority of service and a smaller platform that will serve ACCESS and some less frequent routes. Customers will now be able to transfer without crossing the street and will utilize our improved waiting environment.

Additionally many coaches will “layover” on site. This will increase schedule reliability and save money.

The new center has improved passenger amenities and security elements.

It also has some etched glass awnings and panels, which you can see in the photo below:

Anyone still remember when this place used to be home to Rooty’s?

This town has come a long way since the only busing done on this land was for dirty dishes.