Published September 6 2013
With the design of the East Link light rail line along the Bel-Red corridor now approximately 60 percent complete, Sound Transit will hold an open house Tuesday at the Highland Community Center for community members to review the progress and offer input.
| Bel-Red Corridor Open House |
During the final design process, Sound Transit encourages community members to comment on station design plans, landscaping, station materials and more. Attendees can obtain information on the project schedule and final design elements, pedestrian and bicyclist amenities, sustainability features and plans for STart public art installations.
The area that will be the focus of this open house is generally bounded by Bel-Red Road on the south, SR-520 on the north, 116th Avenue Northeast on the west, and 140th Avenue Northeast on the east. It also includes two stations planned at 120th Avenue Northeast and 130th Avenue Northeast along the future Northeast 15th /Northeast 16th Street.
The City of Bellevue will also share information about its concurrent transportation projects at the open house. City staff will be on hand to explain plans and answer questions about several roadway corridor improvement projects in Bel-Red including 120th, 124th, and 130th Avenues Northeast, Northeast Fourth and Sixth Streets, and Northeast 15th and 16th Streets. These projects will help create stronger multi-modal connections between Bel-Red, downtown Bellevue, and surrounding areas.
The scheduled 2023 opening of East Link will offer riders fast and reliable access to destinations along a regional light rail system stretching approximately 50 miles. Irrespective of roadway congestion, riders departing from Bellevue Transit Center will be able to reach downtown Seattle in 20 minutes, Overlake Transit Center in 10 minutes and Sea-Tac International Airport in 55 minutes.
As the regions population continues growing East Link will provide expanded transportation capacity to the I-90 corridor. Increases in the length and frequency of trains over time offer the capacity to carry from 9,000 to 12,000 people per hour in each direction, more than doubling the person-carrying capacity of I-90. By 2030 East Link is projected to carry about 50,000 riders each weekday.