A new light rail base, the Operations and Maintenance Facility East, has been constructed in Bellevue, Washington. Sound Transit, the company that constructed the new facility will open it soon. The facility is a key component of upcoming Link extensions to Northgate, Lynnwood, Federal Way, and Redmond. Described as a state-of-the-facility, the unit was constructed to accommodate the maintenance, storage, deployment, and service of 96 light rail vehicles. The facility is going to employ around 260 staff who will work at the site around the clock 365 days a year. The Operations and Maintenance Facility East have already begun storing new Series 2 light rail vehicles from Siemens while the existing Operations and Maintenance Facility in Seattle is near full capacity.
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New light rail vehicles will continue arriving through until 2024. Construction of the Operations and Maintenance Facility East was partially funded with a loan from the Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act, under the U.S. Department of Transportation. It was also funded by a Full Funding Grant Agreement (FFGA) under the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) Capital Investment Grant Program. The facility was designed by Hensel Phelps Construction Co. It used nearly 600,000 hours of union labor and the contractor worked with the city of Bellevue on the Master Development Plan entitlements that included planning for the site’s surplus property.
“With our partners, we have created a state-of-the-art facility that will not only make light rail expansions possible but provide many good jobs and help activate the Spring District with residential and commercial development,” said Claudia Balducci, Sound Transit Board member, and King County Council chair. “The completion of this Operations and Maintenance Facility drives home that Link light rail will soon serve the Eastside,” said Dow Constantine, Sound Transit Board vice-chair and King County executive. “This critical element of our system will make it possible to connect the entire Puget Sound region with healthy, high-capacity transportation for generations to come.”
