FOLLOWUP: Sound Transit Board finalizes $400+ million spending installment for West Seattle light rail

Two weeks ago, we reported on the Sound Transit Board‘s System Expansion Committee recommending approval of actions to allot $406 million toward West Seattle light rail – the first big commitment after the ST3 plan revision that cemented ST commitment to WS. At this afternoon’s meeting of the full board, the actions all got final approval, as did a much-smaller installment of spending on Ballard light-rail planning.

(Here’s the full slide deck as presented at the committee meeting, also including the current WS light-rail cost estimate of around $5 billion.)

On the horizon, according to the most-recent ST email update, is work to advance the plan for the new cross-Duwamish River light-rail bridge, shown in this rendering:

(Sound Transit rendering)

That work on the south end of Harbor Island (in a parking lot at 1001 Klickitat, according to city docs) will see crews drill a test bridge shaft approximately 10 feet wide and 250 feet deep to better understand ground conditions,” ST says, to obtain “key information needed to finalize the bridge design.”

15 Replies to "FOLLOWUP: Sound Transit Board finalizes $400+ million spending installment for West Seattle light rail"

  • Citizen Joe June 25, 2026 (10:12 pm)

    I’m all for the light rail, but that rendering is horrible. It’s going to block the view of the mountain. Jeez!

    • Curious George June 26, 2026 (7:48 am)

      Per their statement bridge design pending ground test hole so there’s always hope for change.  Waiting for the odds makers for actual start and completion dates.

    • Cheet June 26, 2026 (10:29 am)

      Block the view for who? Sincerely struggling to see who’s view will be blocked except maybe drivers on the bridge. Given that most cars are single occupancy and moving at 50+ mph, I’d rather they keep their eyes on the road and leave the views to train riders.

      • Lop June 26, 2026 (5:07 pm)

        Passengers in the vehicles.

    • Austin June 26, 2026 (11:04 am)

      Just another reason you should take the light rail to get the perfect view!

    • Jsteez June 26, 2026 (6:21 pm)

      This comment sounds an awful lot like the “keep the viaduct” comments prior to building the 99 tunnel. Those didn’t age particularly well. 

  • Bdubbs June 26, 2026 (6:58 am)

    We all now the WS Bridge was temporarily fixed, needing full replacement one day. Why aren’t we building this light rail, as seen, but with roadways on both sides? That way when it’s complete the old bridge is demolished? Have we forgotten how awful it was when we were bridge less? Commutes were terrible and so were attitudes.

    • Playtpus June 26, 2026 (9:29 am)

      That is not for sound transit to pay for. 

  • Mellow Kitty June 26, 2026 (8:27 am)

    16 million dollars for unforseen contingency budget seems awfully small when large construction projects in Washington have a history of running hundreds of millions over budget. To me it’s like having a 12 pack of granola bars as your emergency kit and calling it good. 

  • Derrick June 26, 2026 (10:05 am)

    We were told a few years ago that the west seattle bridge has a 40 year life expectancy and needs to be replaced.  If we are going to build something spanning the water now, wouldn’t it make sense to have agencies coordinate to build something that can accomodate both the light rail and the future roadway needs? 

    • WSB June 26, 2026 (10:30 am)

      When the bridge was repaired, SDOT said that it was expected to stay in service until its originally predicted end of lifespan, which is more than 30 years away.

    • SoLongDelridge June 26, 2026 (1:05 pm)

      No. Build it.

  • Common sense adult June 26, 2026 (11:20 am)

    This is not what I voted for in 2016.  Tired of being over charged for something that will not serve those who need it and something that based on current plans we won’t use either.  Disappointing we have no recourse to this.  I’m all for mass transit, but this plan doesn’t make sense. 

  • Paul June 26, 2026 (4:28 pm)

    This is great, very excited we continue to move forward.

  • Alex June 28, 2026 (10:21 am)

    All I care about is everyone getting better bus service and connectivity, NOT waiting another 5-7 years for Ballard to be done and for WSLE to connect all the way into Downtown. The absolute worst-case scenario for me would be leaving all the buses at their current frequencies all the way until 2037-2039. If that happens, I will be absolutely outraged. If not redirect the H Line, for example, then add all-day service on Route 56 (or better, route 57), or maybe just shorten Route 50 to skip Alaska Junction and Delridge all together so Alki and Admiral residents can use the 50 to go straight to SODO without having to wait for it to go through the Alaska Junction and Delridge neighborhoods.

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