Photo Tour: Lynnwood Link, quarantine edition

The state's message to motorists on Interstate 5

It's been 9 months since Sound Transit broke ground on Lynnwood Link, the first step towards a light rail spine in Snohomish County. While the past few months have gone in an unexpected direction, there has still been visible progress along the I-5 corridor from Northgate to Lynnwood.

As with past photo tours, these shots were taken in the past few weeks from areas that are open to the public, but such access may be changed as construction continues. As we are still under stay home, stay healthy orders, please follow health guidance and limit trips to essential journeys. For the record, this photo tour was completed using a personal vehicle instead of short bus rides between the future stations.

Lynnwood City Center StationLynnwood City Center Station's north tail track columns

The columns that will eventually support the platform and tail tracks at Lynnwood City Center Station have been erected in place. Sound Transit is preparing to move some of the parking lots at the transit center in the coming months, at the expense of some small businesses ($).

South end columns

The platform's crossing of the HOV direct access ramp should be a nice place to watch buses file in and out of the transit center in 2024. For now, there's open sky above the ramp here.

Mountlake Terrace StationLayover at Mountlake Terrace TC

Contractors have stripped away the asphalt from the surface lot at Mountlake Terrace Transit Center to make way for staging and the eventual station structure. The uphill area has also been demolished for eventual use as temporary parking and perhaps long-term TOD.

Mountlake Terrace has also been preparing the area for intense TOD, including a rebuild of nearby 236th Street Southwest to be more welcoming". The nearby Terrace Station development is also nearing completion.

Column formwork south of Mountlake Terrace TC

Further south, formwork for columns have been erected on the approach to the station from Interstate 5.

Shoreline North/185th StationShoreline North/185th Station

There's not much to see at the northern of the Shoreline pair, but there is plenty of room for the future garage and bus layover area. Community Transit recently decided that the Swift Blue Line will approach this station via Meridian Avenue.

Looking south from NE 190th Street

All along the Shoreline section of I-5, the future light rail guideway is obviously marked. Trees have been trimmed away and dirt has been dumped to provide a level working area. The NE 190th Street pedestrian bridge, which will remain in place even after light rail construction ends, provides an excellent vantage point.

Shoreline South/145th StationLooking north at the Shoreline South/145th Station site

Link contractors are taking full advantage of the ample room for equipment staging at Shoreline South/145th Station. Progress here has been slow, but should ramp up as the columns in the south draw closer.

Looking south from NE 145th StreetNE 130th Street StationColumns at the interchange of I-5 and NE 130th Street

The infill station at NE 130th Street has an uncertain fate due to the yet-announced program realignment that Sound Transit will have to consider. There's plenty of early work visible here for the guideway, but there should be plenty of time to add an integrated structure with the platforms and canopy as proposed.

Northgate StationNorthgate Station, from the south

The future Link riders of Shoreline and Snohomish County will have something to look forward to much sooner: truncated and improved bus service to Northgate Station in 2021. The station is largely complete from the outside, and work has moved to adding all the finishes and furnishings around the entrances.

Among these furnishes are a few commuter-sized bus shelters around the now-poured bus loop. These shelters are similar to those used at the former Overlake Transit Center in Redmond and are arranged into three columns that ring the bus loop and the east edge of 1st Avenue Northeast.

That's it for this quarantine edition of the photo tour. I hope to produce more frequent updates during the stay home, stay healthy period in order to provide the full construction-gawking experience for everyone at home.