Sound Transit federal funding for Lynnwood extension safe

Written by Mischa Wanek-Libman, editor
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A portion of federal funding committed to Sound Transit for the Lynnwood Link Extension was saved as part of the Federal Fiscal Year 2017 Appropriations Bill, which gained congressional approval on May 4.

 

The bill is part of a deal to keep the federal government operating through September 2017 and is expected to receive President Donald Trump’s signature. The bill calls for Sound Transit to receive $100 million in federal funds. The funds are the first installment of a potential $1.174 billion full funding grant agreement (FFGA) for the Lynnwood Link Extension, which is slated for construction next year.

The FFGA is expected to be executed with the Federal Transit Administration in 2018. Sound Transit noted that engineering approval by the FTA last year enabled the agency to move forward with final engineering work on the extension and gave the project its second-highest possible rating under its competitive grant process.

“We’re hitting ‘go’ on a massive capital investment program that will give our citizens a real way out of ever worsening congestion. Federal funding will continue to be a critically important contributor to our success,” said Sound Transit CEO Peter Rogoff. “This first grant installment for Lynnwood Link will help us finally deliver light rail to Snohomish County and get thousands of daily riders off of the traffic on I-5.”

The 8.5-mile extension is set to open in 2023 and trains on the Lynnwood Link Extension will run along the I-5 corridor from Northgate to Lynnwood with four new stations including Northeast 145th Street, Northeast 185th Street, the Mountlake Terrace Transit Center at 236th Street Southwest and at the Lynnwood Transit Center. The project will be built to accommodate the potential for future stations at Northeast 130th Street in Seattle and 220th Street Southwest in Mountlake Terrace. New parking structures at 145th, 185th, and Lynnwood Transit Center will add approximately 1,500 park and ride spaces in the corridor as part of the project.

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