Crosslake Simulated Service Suspended Indefinitely (Update: Service has resumed)

Northbound and southbound 2 Line trains at Shoreline North/185th station

Update (Feb 21, 3:30pm): Crosslake 2 Line simulated service has resumed.

Following a power outage between Bel-Red station and Downtown Redmond station that started on Thursday, Sound Transit has decided to suspend simulated service on the full 2 Line until further notice. As of this morning, 2 Line trains will operate between South Bellevue station and Downtown Redmond station. The 2 Line will not run between International District/Chinatown station and Lynnwood City Center station. The 1 Line will run as scheduled.

Unexpected outages and service disruptions occur on all transit systems. When issues occur, transit agencies should clearly communicate the situation with passengers and quickly coordinate alternative travel options. Based on the past two days, Sound Transit needs to revamp how it manages outages on the 2 Line.

Communication Challenges

Sound Transit's communication during the recent 2 Line power outage was all but clear. The agency's first alert on the disruption (Thursday at 8:16pm) said 2 Line trains are temporarily disrupted until further notice due to power issues." and encouraged passengers to use local bus service instead. Ten minutes later, a second alert clarified that 2 Line service was only suspended between Overlake Village station to Redmond Technology station. Trains were still operating from South Bellevue station to BelRed station, and from Downtown Redmond station to Marymoor Village station. This alert mentioned that shuttle buses had been ordered between Overlake Village station to Redmond Technology station.

About twenty minutes after the second alert, a third alert announced a complete 2 Line closure and free shuttle bus replacement for all stations on the Eastside. Ten minutes later, a fourth update said 2 Line Shuttle buses are replacing the 2 Line from BelRed Station to Downtown Redmond Station until further notice due to power issues". The update continued: Regular 2 Line service continues from South Bellevue Station to Spring District Station".

After four conflicting alerts, the replacement service plan had stabilized. Around 9:30pm, a fifth alert announced the 2 Line would end service at 10pm. Prior to the start of simulated service, the 2 Line ran until about 10pm each night. However, since February 14, 2 Line trans have operated until midnight. Cutting the 2 Line's operating hours with little notice certainly left some passengers stranded. The same alert reported the suspension of 2 Line trains between Seattle and Lynnwood.

Along with the service alerts, Sound Transit staff play an important role in assisting passengers during disruptions. Unfortunately, some reports suggest staff on the ground did not have the necessary information to help riders. One passenger documented their experience in a series of Bluesky threads (Bluesky sign-in required to view).

Service Alternatives

For minor Link disruptions, Sound Transit usually relies on local bus service to fill in the gap. On the 1 Line, this is an okay option as every station has bus service and most routes are frequent. This is not the case for the 2 Line.

Bus routes that serve 2 Line stations (Sound Transit)

As the diagram above shows, several 2 Line stations only have bus service from one route. Spring District station does not have any local bus service. Worse, many of these routes run every 30 or 60 minutes during the day. The bus network on the Eastside is not inherently an issue, though it could be better. The problem is Sound Transit's default option to rely on it as replacement for Link service. Link provides fast frequent service while many of the bus routes are infrequent coverage routes. Instead, Sound Transit needs to have replacement shuttle service quickly deployed for all 2 Line disruptions.

At the end of the day, this situation is why transit agencies run simulated service before opening a new route. Sound Transit should dissect what went wrong and improve it's procedures to ensure clearer communication and faster replacement service during the next disruption. The agency plans to open the full 2 Line on March 28, 2026.

Update (Feb 21, 10:30am): In a statement to Seattle Transit Blog, Sound Transit confirmed the 2 Line simulated service suspension is directly [related] to the recent power issues and damage to the OCS. The issue is not connected to copper wire theft. We are continuing to investigate the root cause of the damage and the associated service disruption.

There is no apparent damage in the Crosslake section, and the Crosslake opening date has not changed.

2 Line service has resumed. Simulated service is expected to resume shortly, with a gradual ramp up and a return to steady state by noon."