Lynnwood Link light rail extension receives $100 million federal appropriation

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

With Congressional approval of the Federal Fiscal Year 2017 Appropriations Bill, Sound Transit will receive $100 million in federal funds for its Lynnwood Link Extension that will begin construction next year. The funding is the first installment of a potential $1.174 billion full funding grant agreement for the project, which in 2023 will extend light rail service from Northgate to Shoreline, Mountlake Terrace and Lynnwood. The President is expected to sign the bill into law this week.

"Thanks to the tireless leadership of Sen. Patty Murray and other members of our congressional delegation, Sound Transit will again be able to move confidently ahead with bringing light rail to Lynnwood," said Sound Transit Board Chair and Snohomish County Executive Dave Somers. "Now in final design, Lynnwood Link is slated to start construction next year, with planned completion in 2023. Maintaining promised federal funding is critical to keeping this voter-approved project on track."

"Communities in Washington state and across our country deserve a federal government that not only partners with them on infrastructure projects, but also one that gives transit agencies the certainty they need to carry out long-term projects," said Senator Murray, a senior member of the Senate committee that oversees transportation funding. "I'm glad Congress was able to come together on this bipartisan deal to keep current projects on track, and I look forward to continuing to fight for investments that allow communities to plan, create jobs, improve public transportation, and move our economy forward."

"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." 

https://www.soundtransit.org/About-Sound-Transit/News-and-events/News-releases/lynnwood-link-light-rail-extension-receives-100

[dixiegrrrrl]

1. A pleasant surprise.

When I was a kid, Lynnwood was a small shopping center called James village, with a Safeway store, and I went to the rather new grade school, for a year.
I remember that it seemed very far away from Seattle, on the long drive via Hwy. 99. thru mostly still dense forest.
More than enough time has passed for them to have built rail, and the fact they are finally doing it now says a lot about the future of cars, oil, and of course feelings about the environment.

[BBG]

2. The unpleasant reality

Lynwood will have rail before Ballard. We should have had, would have had monorail by now if we were being smart about it.