The Sound Transit Board approved a $1.2 billion 2016 budget on Thursday that provides $802.9 million in light rail and other system expansions.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u201cOur region\u2019s commuters will see historic progress in 2016,\u201d said Sound Transit Board Chair and King County Executive Dow Constantine in a media release. \u201cWe will open light rail extensions to Capitol Hill, the UW and Angle Lake, and successfully complete our tunneling between Northgate and UW. In November, the Sound Transit 3 ballot measure will allow the region to vote on further light rail extensions to places like Everett, Tacoma, downtown Redmond, Ballard and West Seattle.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
A Kent-area project in 2016 includes $22 million to complete Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) work on the Federal Way Link Extension and begin preliminary engineering to Kent\/Des Moines to near South 240th Street. The agency plans to extend light rail to Kent from SeaTac with the line opening in 2023.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Another project next year that impacts the Kent area is $23 million to complete an elevated station and guideway, and a 1,050-stall parking garage, construction for the South 200th Link project in SeaTac opening fall 2016.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Other projects in the 2016 budget include:<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u2022 $40 million to complete station construction, systems installation and testing for the University Link project opening in early 2016<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u2022 $165 million for Northgate Link construction<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u2022 $203 million for East Link final design and start of tunneling and construction<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u2022 $70 million to complete preliminary engineering and begin final design for Lynnwood Link<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u2022 $44 million to complete final design and begin constructing the Tacoma Trestle<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u2022 $11 million to complete final design and start construction of an expanded Sounder layover facility in Lakewood that will accommodate added south line service by 2017<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u2022 $9 million to purchase new coaches for expanded Sounder service to Lakewood<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u2022 $11 million to expand Link light rail fleet<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u2022 $75 million for the I-90 Two-Way Transit & HOV Operations project to upgrade fire safety components of the outer tunnels<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u2022 $49 million to fund the Operations and Maintenance Satellite Facility<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u2022 $7 million for the Tacoma Link extension<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
In response to strong support for continued expansion of regional mass transit services, the Sound Transit Board will shape a package for a Sound Transit 3 ballot measure that voters will consider next November. A draft package is scheduled to be released for public review in early 2016. Information on the candidate projects being considered is available at soundtransit3.org.<\/p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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