Sound Transit’s Link light rail returns to normal operations July 21 as platform work at the Columbia City Station wraps up four days ahead of schedule.
The northbound platform at the Columbia City Station, which had been closed for construction, is reopened, and all trains are running on a regular schedule between Northgate and Angle Lake Stations.
"We thank our riders for their patience as we undertake the work necessary to build a safe and improved system ready for our next phase of growth," said Sound Transit Interim CEO Brooke Belman. "Thanks to the hard work of the construction crew, we are able to resume regular service earlier than we had originally planned."
To enable platform work at Columbia City Station, one track was closed to remove the existing platform tiles and replace them after establishing a new surface they will reliably adhere to, eliminating tripping hazards and safety risks from cracking tiles.
A second two-week period of construction will take place on the southbound platform at Columbia City Station from Aug. 19 to Sept. 1, necessitating single tracking at the station. During this time, trains will operate with the same frequencies as they did for the previous closure.
Every other 1-Line train headed south will terminate at Stadium Station rather than continuing southward on the single open track, which will need to alternate between serving southbound and northbound trains. Passengers on the half of trains that must terminate at Stadium Station will have to wait approximately 10 minutes before boarding the next trains south. Throughout the service impacts, the agency will be providing frequent communication with passengers to help them plan their rides.
The work at the Columbia City Station is the first in a series of “Future Ready” projects Sound Transit will undertake before the Link system expands from 26 to 58 miles within the next few years, which will prevent impacts to far greater numbers of passengers.
Later phases of Future Ready work, for which full details will be announced in advance, include electrical work to minimize future Downtown Seattle disruptions and work to replace more than three miles of overhead wire between Rainier Beach and Tukwila International Boulevard Stations to increase reliable train performance.
