3 new light rail stations in Seattle's Northgate Link extension set to open in October
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3 new light rail stations in Seattle's Northgate Link extension set to open in October

By , SeattlePI
New Roosevelt station set to open this fall.

New Roosevelt station set to open this fall.

Sound Transit

Mark your calendars: Seattle's long-awaited Northgate Link extension will officially open for passenger service starting on October 2, 2021 giving residents a new traffic-free option for travel.

Sound Transit announced Friday that the new 4.3 new miles of light rail will connect Northgate to downtown Seattle in just 14 minutes. The extension will culminate with the opening of three new stations in the University District, Roosevelt and Northgate neighborhoods in the fall.

"Our City is under construction before our eyes, and investments like light rail will be transformational for North Seattle," said Sound Transit Board Member and Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan. "We are building a more connected city that has safe, affordable, and reliable options for people walking, rolling, taking transit, and biking, no matter where you live."

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King County Executive and Sound Transit Vice Chair Dow Constantine called the opening "a milestone in our region's comeback tour."

"You are never going to get stuck in ship canal traffic again," Constantine said. "It's a continuous 8-mile subway tunnel from here all the way to Chinatown-International District."

The announcement marks the beginning of several years of new link openings until 2024, exponentially expanding the service in the region.

The East Link extension, set to open in 2023, will bring a total of ten new stations and 40 miles of tracks to Judkins Park, Mercer Island, Bellevue and Redmond. Construction on that link is expected to cause weekend closures in April.

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New U-District station set to open this fall.

New U-District station set to open this fall.

Sound Transit

The Federal Way extension is then expected to open in 2024, bringing service south through Angle Lake, Kent/Des Moines and Federal Way. The Lynwood extension is also expected to open that year, serving four new stations including two in Shoreline, one in Mountlake Terrace, and one at the Lynwood City Center.

Another two stations will also open in 2024 in Redmond, connecting the downtown retail core and Marymoor Village near Marymoor Park.

Constantine emphasized the importance of the expanded transit system for the region's economic recovery to the COVID-19 pandemic.

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"This is a remarkable transformation for our regions. "We are going to nearly triple the amount of miles in the system in the next three and a half years, from 22 miles today to 62 miles in 2024. Not only will this region be in business again, but we will be doing business better."

The Northgate opening also coincides with the National Hockey League's new facility for the Kraken.

Callie is a web producer for the SeattlePI focusing on local politics, transportation, real estate and restaurants. She previously worked at a craft beer e-commerce company and loves exploring Seattle's breweries. Her writing has been featured in Seattle magazine and the Seattle University Spectator, where she served as a student journalist.