NE 130th Street station

NE 130th Street is a planned station on Sound Transit's Link light rail system in Seattle, Washington, United States. It would be built on a section of the Lynnwood Link Extension, adjacent to the intersection of Interstate 5 and Northeast 130th Street in northern Seattle. The station was originally deferred from Lynnwood Link but restored as an infill station project under the Sound Transit 3 ballot measure, with an opening tentatively set for 2031. A proposal from Sound Transit would accelerate construction for a 2025 opening.

NE 130th Street
Link light rail station
Location5th Avenue NE & NE 130th Street
Seattle, Washington
Coordinates47°43′24″N 122°19′26″W
Operated bySound Transit
Line(s)
  Lynnwood Link Extension
Platforms2 side platforms
Tracks2
History
Opening2025 or 2031 (proposed)
Services
Preceding station  
  Following station
  Future service  
Line 1

Location

The station will be located along the east side of Interstate 5 at its interchange with Northeast 130th Street and Roosevelt Way Northeast near Haller Lake and the Jackson Park golf course. It will serve several outlying neighborhoods, including Bitter Lake and Lake City, with proposed bus connections.[1][2]

Sound Transit estimated that the station will serve less than 1,000 daily riders by 2040,[3] but ridership would grow if the area around the station are proposed and approved.[1]

History

The 130th Street station was deferred from the final plans for the Lynnwood Link Extension, which was approved by the Sound Transit Board on April 23, 2015. Instead, a provision for future accommodation for construction of the station without impacting service was included in the board's resolution, at an estimated cost of $10 million.[4][5][6]

The station's construction was supported by advocacy groups from surrounding neighborhoods, including Bitter Lake to the west and Lake City to the east. The Seattle City Council passed a resolution in October 2013 recommending the inclusion of a station at NE 130th Street in the final environmental impact statement for the Lynnwood Link project.[7] In March 2016, city councilmember Debora Juarez of the 5th district, which encompasses most of north Seattle that would be served by the station, criticized its exclusion and lack of priority when compared to other proposals in the Sound Transit 3 plan. She called the station "the focal point of a powerful east–west transit connection", citing a population of 90,000 residents who could benefit from feeder bus service to the station.[8][9] The city council also recommended the formation of an urban area at the site of the proposed station, allowing for increased building heights and mixed-use development under the city's comprehensive plan.[10] A 2013 report from Sound Transit determined that the station area held limited potential for transit-oriented development, citing existing single-family homes, the presence of Jackson Park and other undevelopable areas, and the low desirability for retail to develop at the site when considering proximity to Northgate Mall.[11] Sound Transit expressed concerns over the inclusion of NE 130th Street station in the Lynnwood Link Extension, including a possible loss of federal funding proposed for the project after the record of decision was published without the station.[9]

The draft plan for Sound Transit 3, a ballot measure for light rail expansion, was revised in May 2016 to include $80 million for an infill station at NE 130th Street that could open in 2031. Earlier plans had listed the station as provisional, deferred until additional funding could be found, but lobbying to the Sound Transit Board by Seattle councilmembers allowed for the amendment to pass unanimously.[12][13]

A proposal to open the station as soon as 2025 was presented to Sound Transit in January 2020, costing $23 million less than the estimate to build the station in 2031, but requiring additional debt to be raised sooner.[1] In February 2020, the Sound Transit Board approved $29 million in funds for final engineering of the NE 130th Street station, with the goal of opening in 2025. Accelerated construction of the station is expected to cost $144 million and will require a separate vote from the board in 2021.[14]

References
  1. Lindblom, Mike (January 9, 2020). "Support grows to add a N.E. 130th Street light-rail station in north Seattle quicker than planned". The Seattle Times. Retrieved January 9, 2020.
  2. "Infill Light Rail Station: 130th Street (Provisional)" (PDF). Sound Transit 3 Candidate Projects List. Sound Transit. March 29, 2016. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 2, 2016. Retrieved May 1, 2016.
  3. Lindblom, Mike (May 26, 2016). "Light-rail stations could open years earlier under new Sound Transit plan". The Seattle Times. Retrieved June 6, 2016.
  4. Lindblom, Mike (April 23, 2015). "4 North End light-rail stations get Sound Transit's green light". The Seattle Times. Retrieved February 2, 2016.
  5. "Sound Transit Resolution No. 2015-05" (PDF). Sound Transit. April 23, 2015. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 2, 2015. Retrieved February 2, 2016.
  6. "Council Voices Support for Future Light Rail station at 130th Street" (Press release). Seattle City Council. October 9, 2013. Retrieved June 6, 2016.
  7. Juarez, Debora (April 18, 2016). "Sound Transit must add North Seattle light-rail station". The Seattle Times. Retrieved April 20, 2016.
  8. Green, Josh (March 30, 2016). "Councilmember calls light rail plan 'unacceptable'". KING 5 News. Retrieved April 20, 2016.
  9. "3.1.1: Preferred Alternative". Seattle 2035: Final Environmental Impact Statement for the Seattle Comprehensive Plan Update (PDF) (Report). City of Seattle Office of Planning and Community Development. May 5, 2016. Retrieved June 6, 2016.
  10. "Chapter 6: NE 130th Street Station TOD Potential". Station Area Transit-oriented Development Potential Report (PDF) (Report). Sound Transit. Retrieved June 6, 2016.
  11. Jaywork, Casey (June 2, 2016). "Light Rail Is Coming to North Seattle". Seattle Weekly. Retrieved June 8, 2016.
  12. Kroman, David (June 6, 2016). "Debora Juarez plays chicken with transit leaders — and wins". Crosscut.com. Retrieved June 6, 2016.
  13. Lindblom, Mike (February 27, 2020). "Sound Transit fast-tracks North Seattle's 130th Street Station". The Seattle Times. Retrieved February 27, 2020.
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