The next new Link light-rail stations opened a little more than six years after the celebration at the airport. Even before Link opened to the airport, construction was underway on the final light-rail segment approved in 1996, from downtown Seattle to the University District, and plans were in progress for further extensions of the light-rail system. The Link line from downtown to Sea-Tac was part of the initial Sound Transit system approved by King, Pierce, and Snohomish County voters in 1996, which also included the Tacoma Link light rail that opened in 2003, Sounder commuter trains between Seattle and Tacoma and Seattle and Everett, and express bus service. The ride took about 36 minutes and the one-way fare was $2.50. With the opening of the SeaTac/Airport Station, Link light rail, built at a cost of $2.57 billion, ran from Seattle’s Westlake Center to the airport, with 13 stops serving downtown, SODO, Beacon Hill, Mount Baker, Columbia City, Othello, Rainier Beach, Tukwila, and the airport. The extension from Tukwila to the airport is 1.7 miles long. The first 14 miles of light rail between downtown Seattle and the Tukwila/International Boulevard Station had opened the previous July. 1961), and Seattle City Councilmember Jan Drago.

1936), King County Executive Dow Constantine (b. Speakers praising this long-awaited infrastructural improvement to the region include Port of Seattle Commissioner John Creighton, U.S. 1955) does the honors of cutting the ceremonial ribbon with an oversized pair of scissors. The inaugural ribbon-cutting attended by some 500 celebrants takes place before the station opens at 10 a.m., at which time trains begin regular service. On December 19, 2009, Sound Transit’s Link light rail connecting Seattle with Sea-Tac International Airport reaches SeaTac/Airport Station. I think it’s quite a milestone to celebrate the one thing to happen in the past ten years that has actually made air travel easier for people.Īccording to HistoryLink and Priscilla Long:

By Andrew Nash from Vienna, Austria - Seattle Light Rail - 1Uploaded by Tokfo, CC BY-SA 2.0,

Seatac light rail