Everett Link Draft EIS Review
Everett Link Project Alternatives (Sound Transit)On September 18, Sound Transit released the Environmental impact Statement for the Everett Link extension. This light rail extension will extend the Link light rail system north towards Everett from Lynnwood. The first phase plans to build the West Alderwood, Ash Way, Mariner, and finally the SW Everett Industrial Center by 2037. The second phase would extend it north to Everett with SR 526/Evergreen and Everett Station by 2041. There is also one unfunded provisional station at SR 99/Airport Road.
MeetingsThe draft EIS comment period is open until November 2nd.
Virtual meeting/hearing:
- Oct. 6, 5:30 - 7:30 p.m. Online via Zoom
In-person meetings/hearings:
- Oct. 13, 5:30 - 8:30 p.m. Mariner High School, 200 120th St SW, Everett, WA 98204
- Oct 15, 5:30 - 8:30 p.m. Carl Gipson Center, 3025 Lombard Ave, Everett, WA 98201
- Oct. 21, 5:30 - 8:30 p.m. Lynnwood Neighborhood Center, 19509 64th Ave W, Lynnwood, WA 98036
Map of proposed alignments (Sound Transit)This article will mostly focus on the first phase up to SW Everett Industrial Center. Most of the station alignments were previously discussed in The Urbanist as well. This discussion will focus on the details of the preferred options. Unless otherwise cited, all images are from the Sound Transit online open house.
West AlderwoodFrom Lynnwood station, the line would continue north along the west side of I-5 then turn east near 33rd Ave W.
Among the alternatives considered, the preferred alternative is ALD-2D (Northern Mall Alignment with 33rd Avenue Station) shown in green. The first stop is West Alderwood next to Alderwood Mall. High retail activity and surrounding apartments should drive strong ridership.
Early station layout for station alternative ALD-D, located on the west side of Alderwood Mall along 33rd Ave W.The ALD-2D option will place the elevated station to the west of Alderwood Mall next to the JC Penney.
For the preferred alternative of ALD-D the three bus routes of 121, 122, and Swift orange would stop there. For the other alternatives of ALD-B and ALD-F the Swift Orange bus might skip the station.
There are some alternative options moving the station to the north or south of Alderwood Mall instead. Most of them have moderate tradeoffs with which properties would need to displaced. All of them would cost approximately the same at $1 billion.
Ash Way
From Alderwood Mall, the line would the continue north along I-5. There is no preferred alternative for this segment. The Ash Way station would be near the 164th St SW and I-5 intersection. The Swift Orange BRT would help connect residents along 164th St SW to the station. The line would reuse the existing Ash Way Park-and-Ride for parking.
ASH-1A (West of I-5 Alignment with Ash Way Park-and-Ride Station) has the line staying west of I-5. This would build the elevated Ash Way station next to the Ash Way Park-and-Ride.
The other option ASH-2D (East of I-5 Alignment with 164th Street Station) would build it on the east of I-5. One complication is that this would be complicated for the station to connect to the existing west transit facilities.
Snohomish County explored fixing the east station issues with the I-5/164th St SW Direct Access Improvements project to build an HOV/pedestrian bridge just north of 164th Street.
Assuming the I-5 overpass is built, the routes 112, 121, m103, 117, n14 and m2 will terminate at Ash Way. Swift Orange line will also using the crossing and continue along it.
The option ASH-1A staying on the west of I-5 supposedly costs more than ASH-2D. However, I'm somewhat skeptical of the numbers considering ASH-2D requires an expensive bridge across I-5 while ASH-1A stays on the same side.
Mariner
After Ash Way, the line will continue north along I-5 to the Mariner Station. Clusters of garden-style apartments along 128th St SW will generate strong residential ridership.
Station layout for station alternative MAR-B, an elevated station located on the south side of 128th St SW at the intersection with 8th Ave W.
Station layout for station alternative MAR-D, an elevated station between 4th Ave W and 8th Ave W across the street from Mariner Park-and-Ride.The MAR-1B (South of 128th Street Alignment with 8th Avenue Station) alternative will build the elevated Mariner station just south of 128th St SW.
The Mariner station would serve as the transfer point for many bus routes around South Everett.
The Swift Orange will likely be extended one mile and terminate at Mariner Station instead of its current terminus at McCollum P&R.
SR 99/Airport Road (Provisional)
Once the line reaches Mariner, the train will then head west along Airport Road. There is the provisional unfunded SR 99 / Airport Road station at the intersection. This SR 99 / Airport Road is surrounded by mostly light industrial and commercial properties however it would also be a pretty vital half-way point transfer point for the Swift Blue BRT line.
SW Everett Industrial Center
The SW Everett Industrial Center station (a somewhat laborious way to say Boeing) will be built near Paine Field and the Everett Boeing factory. There has been some competing priorities of whether to build this station on the north nearby Boeing for the workers or whether to build it to the west near Paine Field for passengers.
Early station layout for station alternative SWI-A, an elevated station located just south of SR 526 across the highway from Boeing.The SWI-1A (Airport Road/SR 526 Alignment with SR 526 Station) is the preferred Alternative. This would place it closest to the Seaway Transit center that Boeing workers currently use.
One complication is that most of the buses would have to take a circuitous route to reach the Seaway Transit Center. A pedestrian bridge might be built to connect the station to Boeing across SR 526.
The SWI-1B alternative places it in the mid point between the airport and Boeing. While the SWI-1C alternative places the station closest to the airport. Also interestingly, there would be an airport shuttle bus with all three station sites from the station to Paine Field airport.
SR 526/EvergreenThese next two stations will be built in a later phase by 2041.
After SW Everett Industrial Center, the line will continue east along SR 526 to SR 526/Evergreen station. There are five alternatives here with much community pushback. We'll go over EGN-A and EGN-E.
Early station layout for station alternative EGN-A, an open-air station slightly below street level located on the north side of SR 526.The EGN-A alternative will place it just north of the SR 526 freeway with the least property impacts. This places it closer to apartments such as the Four Corners and the Cascade High School. A pedestrian bridge will be built to make it easier to cross south of the freeway. However, it is also tricky to transfer to some buses.
Early station layout for station alternative EGN-E, an elevated station located at the southeast corner of the Casino Road and Evergreen Way intersection.The EGN-E places it just south of W Casino Road.
Figure 4-13 2046 Conceptual Transit Routes for Station EGN-A
Figure 4-15 2046 Conceptual Transit Routes for Station EGN-EBoth alternatives would connect to the Swift Blue and the future Swift Silver Line (labeled as a rerouted Green Line above).
One advantage of the EGN-E station closer to Casino Ave, is that it is easier for a bus to reach Everett Mall.
Everett Station
The main preferred alternative is EVT-1A (Smith Avenue Alignment) which places the Everett light rail station closest to the existing Sounder Everett station.
Station layout for alternative EVT-A, an elevated station west of the existing Everett Station.EVT-A would be an elevated station at the corner of Smith Ave and 32nd St.
Operations and Maintenance Facility
Sound Transit has not yet decided where to place the new Operations and Maintenance Facility (OMF). One of the above three spots will be picked. The OMF is used for train maintenance, cleaning, and storage.
Ridership
The projected ridership with the initial phase (in green) and second phase (in pink) is shown above. The highest daily ridership is projected at Everett Station with 10,700 riders. The next two highest are Ash Way and Mariner with approximately 4,600 riders. Mariner would have an estimated 7,000 riders (2,400 more) with the initial phase due to I-5 freeway buses from Everett truncating there.
Travel Times| Destination | Start: Lynnwood via Link Light Rail | Start: Lynnwood via Freeway bus |
| Lynnwood | 0 min | 0 min |
| SW Everett Industrial Center | 18 min | 42 min |
| Everett Station | 29 min | 24-32 min |
The Everett Link extension will mostly benefit trips within the Everett and North Lynnwood area and not improve the freeway trips between Everett and destinations south of Lynnwood. Sound Transit estimates 29 minutes from Lynnwood station to Everett station which is on par with the current freeway bus times.
Operational Plan
The original operating plan for the ST3 calls for the 3 Line to serve all stations between Lynnwood and Everett. In addition, the 2 Line will be extended to Mariner station. During peak hours, Sound Transit plans to provide 3 minute frequency for the West Alderwood, Ash Way, and Mariner stations. North of Mariner, frequency will drop to 6 minutes.
With the phased implementation plan, the exact operation plan is not clear. In addition, the exact lines that serve the new stations will also depend on the opening timelines for other ST3 extensions to West Seattle and Ballard.
Transit Plan
Citations