On Monday the Bellevue City Council learned more about a recently revised plan to bring light rail to the city via a downtown tunnel. (You can watch a video of the study session here.)
The briefing by Sound Transit staff was part of an effort by Bellevue officials to locate the East Link light rail line in a way that balances regional transportation interests while minimizing neighborhood impacts and maintaining mobility on local streets, according to a press release issued by the city. (This week Sound Transit is also holding neighborhood public workshops on East Link.)
The council's study session covered the initial results of efforts to develop a "side-running" alternative to the B3 alternative in south Bellevue, a presentation of the 110th Ave. N.E. tunnel alternative for downtown Bellevue, and results of Sound Transit, city and developer investigation of routing options through Bel-Red.
East Link is a voter-approved plan to extend light rail from Seattle, through Bellevue and on to the Overlake Transit Center in Redmond.
But the line has stirred up some controversy (check out Northwest Hub's coverage of issues surrounding the line here and here).
In May Sound Transit's Board of Directors expressed a preference for a street-level route on two roadways, 108th and 110th avenues northeast, but agreed to further study a "deep-bore" tunnel on 108th Avenue Northeast, from Main Street to Northeast 12th Street.
However, Bellevue City Council members have maintained a downtown tunnel is needed in order to avoid traffic congestion on streets and to assure that trains run on schedule, and two tunnel options were identified at a cost of about $500 million more than the street-level or elevated alternatives. Sound Transit then requested that Bellevue identify funding options by the end of 2009 to pay for the higher costs of a tunnel.
And Sound Transit recently identified a third tunnel option, called C9T, that would carry light rail trains in a tunnel from Main Street, north under 110th Avenue Northeast, then east on Northeast Sixth Street on an elevated line over Interstate 405. A cost estimate for this option is expected to be available by late November.
Sound Transit officials on Monday also discussed efforts to develop a city-backed "side-running" route on the east side of Bellevue Way and 112th Avenue Southeast, in the area between I-90 and downtown. It's an alternative to Sound Transit's preferred route in the middle of the roadways.
For the Bel-Red area, from downtown to the Overlake Transit Center, Sound Transit officials reviewed work with Bellevue and a developer on routing options in the area of 120th and 124th avenues Northeast where a station is planned.
In early 2010 the Sound Transit Board is expected to revisit its preferred alternatives and choose which route to focus engineering efforts on. The final environmental impact statement is scheduled for release in fall 2010. A final decision on the route and stations will be made shortly after that. Design work will be done from 2011 to 2013 and construction of East Link is scheduled to begin by 2014; light rail service to Bellevue is slated to start in 2020.
To learn more, check out Sound Transit's website.
