Sound Transit says testing on its East Link light-rail extension is in full swing with civil construction winding down along the alignment and the 14-mile extension expected to open in 2023.
For several nights last week, light-rail vehicles traveled at speeds up to 35 miles per hour between the Bellevue Downtown, Wilburton and Spring District/120th stations to conduct testing to ensure the new line will be ready for passengers.
Testing activities over the first weekend of February focused on the systems that provide power to the vehicles. Crews checked for any arcing between the overhead catenary wires and the pantographs on the light-rail vehicles.
Live wire testing will continue at the Redmond Technology Station later this month. Once live wire testing is complete, the next testing phase will utilize light rail vehicles to test signal systems.
East Link will extend light rail 14 miles with 10 stations from Seattle's International District to Judkins Park, across I-90 to Mercer Island and South Bellevue and through downtown Bellevue and the Bel-Red area to Redmond Technology Station. When East Link opens in 2023, passengers will be able to ride almost 40 miles of fast, reliable light rail, from the Eastside to downtown Seattle and Northgate and to Sea-Tac Airport and Angle Lake.
