Lynnwood Transit Center

Lynnwood Transit Center, also known as Lynnwood TC, is a bus station and future light rail station in Lynnwood, Washington. It is the largest transit hub in southwestern Snohomish County and is served by Community Transit and Sound Transit Express. The transit center also includes a parking garage with 1,670 spaces and bicycle facilities.

Lynnwood Transit Center
Northward view of the A and B bays in 2016
General information
Location20100 48th Avenue West
Lynnwood, Washington, U.S.
Coordinates47°48′58″N 122°17′47″W
Owned byWashington State Department of Transportation, Sound Transit
Train operatorsSound Transit (planned)
Bus routes19
Bus stands20
Bus operatorsCommunity Transit
Sound Transit Express
Construction
Parking1,670 parking spaces
Bicycle facilitiesBicycle lockers and racks
AccessibleYes
History
OpenedMay 25, 1981 (1981-05-25)
Rebuilt2003, 2024 (planned)
Services
Preceding station Sound Transit Following station
Link
Future service
Terminus 1 Line
(2024)
 Mountlake Terrace
toward Angle Lake
2 Line
(2025)
 Mountlake Terrace
toward Downtown Redmond
Proposed service
West Alderwood
toward Everett
 3 Line
(2037)
 Mountlake Terrace
toward Alaska Junction

In 2024, Lynnwood Transit Center will become the northern terminus of Sound Transit's Link light rail system; the 1 Line and 2 Line will serve the Lynnwood City Center station as part of the Lynnwood Link Extension. The Link extension was approved in 2008 as part of the Sound Transit 2 ballot measure and began construction in 2019. The Stride bus rapid transit system will also terminate at the station, connecting it with areas along Interstate 405.

Location and layout

The Lynnwood Transit Center is located on the north side of Interstate 5 at 44th Avenue West, southwest of Alderwood Mall in Lynnwood. The 17.5-acre (7.1 ha) transit center includes 20 bus bays and a park and ride.[1] A five-story parking garage on the southeast side of the site provides 1,670 park and ride spaces and has driveways from two streets.[2] The bus bays have passenger information displays that have real-time arrival information for inbound buses. A customer service center called "RideStore" is located at the north end of the transit center.[3][4]

The transit center is also located adjacent to the Interurban Trail, which runs through the southeast parking lot and connects it to Alderwood Mall, Aurora Village and downtown Everett.[5]

The 2003 renovation of the transit center came with the installation of two pieces of public artwork created by Claudia Fitch, known collectively as Shift. The art installation consists of a pair of 30-foot-tall (9.1 m) steel beacons resembling newel posts that are used to mark the two main crosswalks.[6]

History

Planning for a large park and ride lot in Lynnwood began in the late 1970s with the formation of Community Transit and increasing population growth in Lynnwood that had begun to affect the nearby Northgate lot.[7] Construction on 13-acre (5.3 ha) lot began in February 1980, with the project's $1.5 million cost paid for almost entirely by the Federal Highway Administration.[8] The park and ride opened on May 25, 1981, with 808 stalls, becoming the largest park and ride in the state of Washington, serving Community Transit as well as Seattle-bound commuter buses operated by King County Metro.[9]

In September 2003, Sound Transit and Community Transit rebuilt the park and ride lot and renamed it "Lynnwood Transit Center".[10] The $33.6 million project expanded the lot to over 17 acres (6.9 ha), added 300 parking spaces to the lot, and consolidated the bus bays on the site of an old warehouse; additional amenities built during the project included a coffee stand, bathrooms, public art, and a customer service center.[1][11] The following year, a $31.2 million direct access ramp to Interstate 5's high-occupancy vehicle lanes, the first in the state, was opened to replace the congested onramp on 44th Avenue West.[12]

Light rail
A typical bus bay at Lynnwood Transit Center

Lynnwood Transit Center was selected as the northern terminus of the Lynnwood Link Extension, a 8.5-mile (13.7 km) light rail extension that is part of the Link light rail system. The extension and its $1.6 billion in funding was approved by voters in 2008.[13] The extension is projected to carry 63,000 to 74,000 daily riders by 2035;[14] 17,900 daily riders are expected to board at Lynnwood Transit Center's station.[15]

The Lynnwood City Center[16] light rail station will be elevated 24 feet (7.3 m) above the direct access ramp and southeastern parking lot, crossing from the southwest to the northeast. The station will have two entrances connected to its mezzanine below platform level: one that travels across the roadway and leads to a ground-level plaza; and another with direct access to a five-story parking garage with 500 stalls. The existing bus station would be retained and slightly expanded to accommodate more layover space. Parking at the transit center would increase to 1,900 stalls, with room to expand further.[15][17]

Lynnwood Transit Center Parking Garage opened in April 2023

Construction of the station will require the demolition of a furniture store to the east of the bus bays, a well as a gas station, restaurant and strip mall.[18] Demolition of the stores began in July 2018 and the project broke ground in September 2019.[19][20] In early 2020, Sound Transit opened a temporary parking lot on the east side of 46th Avenue West to replace several closed areas of the park and ride that will be used for construction staging.[21] Construction on the five-story parking garage began in October 2020 and it opened for use on April 17, 2023.[22][23] The garage replaces the existing and temporary surface lots, which will be used for construction staging and bus layover space; 226 surface stalls will remain once construction is complete, giving Lynnwood Transit Center a total of 1,900 park and ride spaces.[23][24]

Sound Transit determined in 2011 that the area around the transit center had "moderate to strong" potential for transit-oriented development, including housing and offices.[25] The area around the transit center is part of a regional growth center designated by the Puget Sound Regional Council;[26] the Lynnwood city government designated the area between the transit center and the Alderwood Mall to the northeast as its city center, preparing for heavy development that is expected to follow light rail expansion.[27][28] The city raised the height limits for buildings in the area to 350 feet (110 m) in 2005, looking to "resemble downtown Bellevue".[27][29] The light rail station's northeast construction staging area is planned to be offered for transit-oriented affordable housing development after 2024.[30]

Light rail service is planned to begin in late 2024 on the 1 Line and 2025 on the 2 Line.[31] Trains from Lynnwood are anticipated to take 28 minutes to reach Westlake station in Downtown Seattle.[32] Community Transit plans to truncate most of its commuter routes to Lynnwood Transit Center and add new all-day express routes along the Interstate 5 corridor.[33] A further extension of the light rail system to Everett is planned to carry the 1 Line and 2 Line and be opened in phases from 2037 to 2041.[34]

Services

As of 2016, more than 40 percent of Community Transit's bus routes serve the transit center, with 500 total buses passing through each day. Buses arrive at Lynnwood Transit Center at an average frequency of every three minutes during peak periods.[35] In 2022, Community Transit launched a ride-hailing service, called "Zip", to serve Lynnwood with a focus on connections between the transit center and local destinations.[36]

References
  1. Hadley, Jane (October 27, 2003). "New bus-rider center typifies transit projects". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Retrieved July 21, 2016.
  2. "New Lynnwood Station garage to open for parking" (Press release). Sound Transit. April 13, 2023. Retrieved April 17, 2023.
  3. Bus Plus: Schedules & Route Maps (PDF). Community Transit. September 11, 2016. p. 32. Retrieved February 23, 2017.
  4. "RideStore". Community Transit. Retrieved August 2, 2016.
  5. Everett to North Seattle Interurban Trail (PDF) (Map). Community Transit. 2014. Retrieved February 23, 2017.
  6. "Lynnwood Transit Center - Public Art". Sound Transit. Archived from the original on July 16, 2010. Retrieved August 2, 2016.
  7. "17-acre site urged for park-ride lot". The Seattle Times. August 27, 1977. p. H7.
  8. "Work to start on largest park-ride lot". The Seattle Times. February 20, 1980. p. G3.
  9. Aweeka, Charles (May 20, 1981). "Lynnwood park-and-ride lot ready for use". The Seattle Times. p. G2.
  10. "New transit center to debut in Lynnwood on Sunday". The Seattle Times. September 24, 2003. Retrieved July 21, 2016.
  11. Sitt, Pam (August 30, 2002). "Park-and-ride will be improved - Lynnwood lot to have more parking, covered waiting areas, better lighting". The Seattle Times. p. B2.
  12. Hadley, Jane (November 16, 2004). "State opens direct-access ramps to I-5 at Lynnwood Transit Center". Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Retrieved July 21, 2016.
  13. "Lynnwood Link moves into final design" (Press release). Sound Transit. April 11, 2016. Retrieved August 1, 2016.
  14. "Fact sheet for Lynnwood Link Extension" (PDF). Sound Transit. July 2015. Retrieved August 1, 2016.
  15. "Chapter 3: Transportation Impacts and Mitigation" (PDF). Lynnwood Link Extension Final Environmental Impact Statement (Report). Sound Transit. April 1, 2015. pp. 3–24, 3–46. Retrieved August 1, 2016.
  16. "Project update: Lynnwood Link Extension, July 28, 2017: Permanent station names adopted". Sound Transit. July 28, 2017. Retrieved July 31, 2017.
  17. "Appendix F: Conceptual Plans" (PDF). Lynnwood Link Extension Final Environmental Impact Statement (Report). Sound Transit. April 1, 2015. pp. 44–45. Retrieved August 1, 2016.
  18. Davis, Jim (July 25, 2016). "Behind scenes work underway to bring light rail to Lynnwood". The Everett Herald. Retrieved August 1, 2016.
  19. Haglund, Noah (August 4, 2018). "Demo removes eyesores from future light rail path". The Everett Herald. Retrieved August 6, 2018.
  20. Giordano, Lizz (September 4, 2019). "Historic groundbreaking for Lynnwood light rail extension". The Everett Herald. Retrieved February 11, 2020.
  21. Watanabe, Ben (February 11, 2020). "Early light rail station preparations under way in Lynnwood". The Everett Herald. Retrieved February 11, 2020.
  22. "Construction begins on new garage at Lynnwood Transit Center" (Press release). Sound Transit. October 14, 2020. Retrieved December 1, 2020.
  23. "Sound Transit opening big garage today near Lynnwood Transit Center". Seattle Daily Journal of Commerce. April 17, 2023. Retrieved April 17, 2023.
  24. Zhou, Amanda (April 17, 2023). "Lynnwood parking garage opens in anticipation of light-rail service". The Seattle Times. Retrieved April 19, 2023.
  25. "Chapter 12: TOD Potential for Stations Serving Lynnwood Transit Center" (PDF). Lynnwood Link Extension Station Area Transit-Oriented Development Potential (Report). Sound Transit. April 2013. Retrieved August 2, 2016.
  26. Growing Transit Communities Oversight Committee (October 2013). "Lynnwood Transit Center: Future Light Rail/Bus" (PDF). The Growing Transit Communities Strategy. Puget Sound Regional Council. Retrieved August 2, 2016.
  27. Lindblom, Mike (November 3, 2016). "Lynnwood eager for growth and transformation that light-rail station will bring". The Seattle Times. Retrieved November 3, 2016.
  28. King, Rikki (April 22, 2015). "Lynnwood's City Center to include two apartment complexes, hotel". The Everett Herald. Retrieved August 2, 2016.
  29. Brooks, Diane (July 26, 2006). "Hotel, condos may start city's makeover". The Seattle Times. Archived from the original on October 1, 2019. Retrieved November 3, 2016.
  30. Miller, Brian (June 21, 2023). "Sound Transit readying Lynnwood site for affordable housing RFP". Seattle Daily Journal of Commerce. Retrieved June 24, 2023.
  31. Lindblom, Mike (August 24, 2023). "Eastside-only light rail should open in March, Sound Transit says". The Seattle Times. Retrieved August 24, 2023.
  32. Lindblom, Mike (January 13, 2023). "Lynnwood or Bellevue: Which city should get light-rail service first?". The Seattle Times. Retrieved April 19, 2023.
  33. Watanabe, Ben (April 16, 2023). "Plan aims to restore 'community' to Community Transit bus service". The Everett Herald. Retrieved April 19, 2023.
  34. Watanabe, Ben (June 27, 2022). "Everett light rail study adds I-5, Evergreen Way options". The Everett Herald. Retrieved April 19, 2023.
  35. "Lynnwood Transit Center Multimodal Accessibility Plan" (PDF). Washington State Department of Transportation. November 2016. p. 24. Retrieved December 20, 2017.
  36. Watanabe, Ben (October 20, 2022). "$2.50 on-demand transit launches in Lynnwood's Alderwood area". The Everett Herald. Retrieved April 19, 2023.
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