Sound Transit Opens Landmark $3.1 Billion Lynnwood Link Light Rail Extension Connecting King and Snohomish Counties

Historic 8.5-Mile Light Rail Extension Crosses County Boundaries

SEATTLE, Washington — In a transformational leap for regional mobility across the Puget Sound, Sound Transit has officially launched commercial revenue passenger service on the landmark $3.1 billion Lynnwood Link Extension. Extending the agency’s 1 Line 8.5 miles northward from the previous terminal at Northgate Station in north Seattle into Snohomish County, the major rail expansion marks the first time Sound Transit’s high-capacity light rail network has crossed county borders to deliver rapid transit connectivity to suburban commuters.

Supported by a comprehensive Full Funding Grant Agreement (FFGA) through the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) Capital Investment Grants program, the dual-track alignment parallels the congested Interstate 5 corridor. By transferring tens of thousands of daily commuters from highway gridlock to high-speed zero-emission electric rail, the extension establishes an enduring spine for sustainable economic development across northern King and southern Snohomish counties.

Four Brand-New Multimodal Stations Designed for Regional Connectivity

The 8.5-mile extension introduces four architecturally distinctive, fully accessible passenger stations engineered to optimize intermodal transfers:

• Shoreline South / 148th Station: Situated along the NE 145th and 148th Street corridor in Shoreline, this elevated transit hub features an integrated pedestrian overpass spanning Interstate 5, dedicated regional bus loading bays, and a 500-vehicle parking structure.
• Shoreline North / 185th Station: Serving the northern Shoreline residential and commercial core, this facility connects local feeder routes directly to light rail platforms adjacent to a newly constructed multi-level parking garage.
• Mountlake Terrace Station: Fully integrated into the existing Mountlake Terrace Transit Center, delivering seamless transfers between Community Transit express buses and 1 Line trains alongside expanded commuter parking.
• Lynnwood City Center Station: The expansive northern terminus of the extension, anchoring a massive regional transit center with high-capacity bus transfer islands, extensive park-and-ride capacity, and prime acreage reserved for high-density, mixed-use transit-oriented development (TOD).

Rapid Commute Speeds and High-Frequency Electric Rail Operations

The Lynnwood Link Extension delivers dramatic travel-time reliability for regional travelers. Passengers boarding at Lynnwood City Center reach Westlake Station in downtown Seattle in just 27 minutes—bypassing unpredictable highway congestion—and can travel continuously south to the University of Washington, Capitol Hill, and Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (Sea-Tac) in approximately 60 minutes.

Trains operate with high frequencies of every 8 minutes during peak commuting windows and every 10 minutes throughout off-peak hours. The entire line is powered by clean electric traction, and every station is equipped with dual redundant elevators, escalators, digital real-time arrival screens, and full ADA-compliant boarding platforms.

Slashing Regional Carbon Emissions and Driving Transit-Oriented Growth

Regional transportation planners project the Lynnwood Link corridor will transport between 47,000 and 55,000 daily passengers, removing thousands of solo-occupant motor vehicles from the I-5 corridor every day.

Around the Lynnwood City Center terminal and Shoreline stations, local municipalities have enacted progressive zoning reforms to spur thousands of units of transit-oriented housing, commercial retail, and community health centers. The opening delivers on Sound Transit’s regional mass-transit vision, knitting the Pacific Northwest together through high-capacity public rail.