Link light rail

Link light rail is a light rail system with some rapid transit characteristics that serves the Seattle metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Washington. It is managed by Sound Transit in partnership with local transit providers, and comprises three lines that total 63 miles (101 km) with 50 stations. The 1 Line and 2 Line travel on shared tracks from Lynnwood in Snohomish County to Seattle and split to serve other portions of King County. The 1 Line continues south to the Rainier Valley, Seattle–Tacoma International Airport, and Federal Way; the 2 Line crosses Lake Washington to the Eastside cities of Bellevue and Redmond. The T Line is disconnected from the other lines and operates as a streetcar for 4 miles (6.4 km) in Tacoma. In 2025, the system had a ridership of 39.1 million, or about 169,300 per weekday as of the second quarter of 2026, primarily on the 1 Line. Trains run at frequencies of 4 to 20 minutes. The Link light rail system was originally conceived in the 1980s following several earlier proposals for a heavy rail subway system that were rejected by voters. Sound Transit was created in 1993 and placed a ballot measure to fund and build the system, which was passed on its second attempt in 1996. Tacoma Link began construction in 2000 and opened on August 22, 2003, becoming the first modern light rail system in the state. Central Link construction in Seattle was delayed because of funding issues and routing disputes, but began in November 2003 and was completed on July 18, 2009. The trains initially ran from Downtown Seattle to Tukwila International Boulevard station before being extended south to Seattle–Tacoma International Airport in December 2009. Further extensions north to the University of Washington and south to Angle Lake station opened...