Walsh Construction to build Hilltop Tacoma Link Extension
Written by Kyra Senese, Managing Editor
Sound Transit will perform rail grinding maintenance for the next four weeks.
Sound Transit
The Sound Transit Board of Directors has awarded Walsh Construction Company II, LLC a $108 million contract to build the Hilltop Tacoma Link Extension.
Walsh will also build seven new platform stations for the project, which will extend the rail line from the Theater District in downtown Tacoma, Wash., to the Stadium District and Hilltop neighborhoods.
“We couldn’t be more excited to finally break ground and begin construction on this expansion of Tacoma Link to the Hilltop,” said Sound Transit Board member and Tacoma Mayor Victoria Woodards. “This project has already generated economic growth in the Hilltop district and we anticipate future development that will draw more people who want to live and work in downtown Tacoma in the coming years.”
The contract includes relocation of utilities, construction of five traction power stations, an overhead contact system, new traffic signals, new Americans with Disabilities Act-compliant curb ramps, roadway restoration and expansion of the existing Tacoma Link Operations and Maintenance Facility and rail yard, officials said.
The project will also procure five new light-rail vehicles to add to the Tacoma Link fleet.
The $217 million Hilltop Tacoma Link Extension project is working to expand the existing Tacoma Link system by adding 2.4 miles up Stadium Way, 1st Street, Division Avenue and down Martin Luther King Jr. Way.
The project is funded through a partnership between Sound Transit, the city of Tacoma and a $75 million grant from the Federal Transit Administration, officials said.
The new extension is set to begin service in 2022. A future voter-approved extension of the Tacoma Link will also extend the service to Tacoma Community College by 2039.
More information about the Hilltop Tacoma Link Extension is available here.
