Drivers from Ballard to West Seattle are familiar with the Alaskan Way Viaduct replacement tunnel project. As they drive to and from downtown, they notice that the southern end of the Viaduct has been removed to make way for work on the south portal. But the Viaduct replacement project is not the only big tunnel project in town. Sound Transit is hard at work on various extensions to the Seattle light rail system.
Tunnel boring machines are well along on “U Link,” which will connect downtown Seattle to Husky Stadium via Capitol Hill. For the latest news and access to webcams mounted behind the construction fences, click here.
Design continues on “North Link,” which will run from Husky Stadium up to Northgate. Three tunnel stations (U District, Roosevelt, and Northgate) should reach 60% design during the first half of 2012. For current information and renderings of the planned stations, click here.
Several other projects are still in their infancy, including the North Corridor Transit Project, which will connect Northgate with Lynnwood, and the ambitious “East Link,” which will take light rail across the I-90 bridge to Bellevue and beyond. For the latest information on these and other projects, go to the Sound Transit homepage.