Mountlake Terrace Station
The elevated light rail station was built as part of the Lynnwood Link Extension from 2019 to 2024. It opened on August 30, 2024.
Location
Mountlake Terrace station is located adjacent east of Interstate 5 near its interchange with 236th Street Southwest. It is west of Mountlake Terrace's city center.
History
Community Transit opened a 400-stall park and ride lot at Interstate 5 and 236th Street Southwest on April 12, 1983. It was initially served by Community Transit and King County Metro commuter service, until the latter dropped service to Snohomish County in June 1989. The new lot regularly reached capacity beginning in the 1990s and was supplemented with leased spaces at three nearby churches to provide overflow parking. City officials proposed a garage with integrated housing and retail, but later dropped them from plans. Construction began in late 2007 with the closure of the existing lower lot, which was replaced by spaces leased from local businesses.
The parking garage at Mountlake Terrace Transit Center was dedicated on February 20, 2009, and opened three days later. It includes 32 solar panels on its facade and was built with recycled materials; the garage also has glass art created by local high school students under the direction of artist Jerry Newcomb. Construction of the freeway flyer stop, located in the median of Interstate 5, began two months later and was funded by Sound Transit. It opened on March 20, 2011, and served by Sound Transit Express and Community Transit commuter routes connecting Snohomish County to Downtown Seattle. The median flyer stop was first proposed in a 1996 report by Sound Transit and WSDOT; it would serve buses and could be converted into a light rail station. Both facilities were constructed with eventual use by Link light rail in mind; an extension into Snohomish County on either Interstate 5 or State Route 99 was approved by voters in the 2008 Sound Transit 2 funding package.
Sound Transit approved a route along Interstate 5 for the Lynnwood Link Extension in April 2015, including a station at the Mountlake Terrace Transit Center. An alternative option would have bypassed the city entirely by using State Route 99 or required an east–west section to serve the transit center from the corridor. Light rail construction at the transit center began in September 2019, with the closure of the surface parking lot for construction staging. The light rail platforms were built to the east of the bus bays and were opened as part of the Lynnwood Link Extension, carrying the 1 Line in August 2024 and 2 Line in 2025. The freeway station bays were closed for five months beginning in July 2020 for light rail construction, with commuter routes bypassing Mountlake Terrace replaced by a temporary fare-free shuttle route to downtown.
The main bus loop at the transit center was closed in March 2021 and replaced with a temporary loop to the east of the future light rail station. The new main bus loop opened on March 30, 2024. Light rail service at Mountlake Terrace station began on August 30, 2024.
Transit-oriented development
Beginning in 2018, the former site of the Evergreen Elementary School just south of the station was redeveloped into a three-building complex with 600 apartments and retail spaces. The city government is also planning a "town center" in the area east of the light rail station. A plaza and new pedestrian path through Veterans Memorial Park to the city hall and library is also planned.
Layout and services
Mountlake Terrace station has two entrances to the east of its parking garage and primary bus bays; the entrances are on the north and south sides of 236th Street Southwest and are connected to the elevated platform by stairs, escalators, and elevators. The transit center's bus bays are located adjacent to the parking garage, on 236th Street Southwest, and in the median of Interstate 5. The station has 890 total parking stalls in the garage and an adjacent surface lot.
Services
| Route | Bay(s) | Termini | Via | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 111 | 1 | Brier | Peak-only route | |
| 112 | 1 | Ash Way Park and Ride | Lynnwood, 44th Avenue W, Lynnwood Transit Center | |
| 119 | 1 | Ash Way Park and Ride | Edmonds College, Meadowdale | |
| 130 | 3, 4 | Edmonds Station, Lynnwood Transit Center |
Aurora Village Transit Center | |
| 331 | 1 | Shoreline Community College, Kenmore | Aurora Village Transit Center, Lake Forest Park | Operated by King County Metro |
| 333 | 1 | Shoreline South/148th station | North City, Shoreline, Shoreline Community College | Operated by King County Metro |
| 510 | 6, 7 | Everett Station | Ash Way Park and Ride | Sound Transit Express; peak-only route |
| 515 | 6, 7 | Lynnwood Transit Center | Sound Transit Express; peak-only route | |
| 909 | 1, 3 | Edmonds Station | Edmonds |
References
- ^ "New park-and-ride lot to open". The Seattle Times. March 16, 1983. p. F3.
- ^ "Metro to start new rush hour bus route". The Seattle Times. April 20, 1983. p. F2.
- ^ Bergsman, Jerry (September 21, 1988). "Metro buses won't be traveling to Snohomish County after April". The Seattle Times. p. H5.
- ^ Bergsman, Jerry (June 9, 1989). "Some bus commuters to say goodbye to Metro". The Seattle Times. p. B3.
- ^ Thompson, June 18, 2003. "Officials hope commuter project will jump-start Mountlake Terrace". The Seattle Times. p. H13.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ Pesznecker, Scott (December 31, 2007). "Mountlake Terrace parking a hot commodity". The Everett Herald. Retrieved November 29, 2022.
- ^ "Agency Welcomes 880 New Parking Spaces at Mountlake Terrace Transit Center" (Press release). Community Transit. February 20, 2009. Retrieved July 20, 2016.
- ^ Brown, Charles E. (February 23, 2009). "Bumper to Bumper: License-plate placement". The Seattle Times. p. B1.
- ^ Halpert, Oscar (February 20, 2009). "MLT Transit Center given rousing welcome". The Enterprise. Retrieved September 2, 2024.
- ^ "Sound Transit to start work on I-5 station at Terrace". The Everett Herald. May 14, 2009. p. B3. Retrieved December 25, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Sound Transit dedicates Mountlake Terrace Freeway Station" (Press release). Sound Transit. March 17, 2011. Retrieved July 20, 2016.
- ^ "Puget Sound HOV Pre-Design Studies" (PDF). Washington State Department of Transportation. 1996. p. 18. Retrieved July 28, 2018.
- ^ Pesznecker, Scott (June 21, 2007). "Mountlake Terrace bus trip to get easier". The Everett Herald. Retrieved November 29, 2022.
- ^ Haglund, Noah (November 27, 2016). "Here's the plan for light rail to Lynnwood, Mountlake Terrace". The Everett Herald. Retrieved November 29, 2022.
- ^ Lindblom, Mike (April 23, 2015). "4 North End light-rail stations get Sound Transit's green light". The Seattle Times. Retrieved June 13, 2015.
- ^ Lindblom, Mike (August 28, 2024). "Why is light rail to Lynnwood opening next to I-5 and not on Aurora?". The Seattle Times. Retrieved September 3, 2024.
- ^ Haglund, Noah (September 21, 2019). "Part of MLT Transit Center will close for light-rail work". The Everett Herald. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
- ^ "Mountlake Terrace Transit Center Freeway Station to Close until Late November, Effective July 6" (Press release). Community Transit. June 9, 2020. Retrieved August 17, 2020.
- ^ Distelhorst, Luke (April 1, 2021). "New bus loop at the Mountlake Terrace Transit Center". Community Transit Blog. Community Transit. Retrieved February 28, 2022.
- ^ "Changes to Bus Service Start March 30". Community Transit. March 2024. Archived from the original on April 8, 2024. Retrieved May 7, 2024.
- ^ Deshais, Nicholas; Lindblom, Mike (August 30, 2024). "New light rail stations draw big crowds for first trips". The Seattle Times. Retrieved August 30, 2024.
- ^ Haglund, Noah (May 29, 2018). "Work starting on buildings along I-5 in Mountlake Terrace". The Everett Herald. Retrieved May 29, 2018.
- ^ "City council Sept. 26 set to approve updated Town Center Plan". MLT News. September 24, 2019. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
- ^ Watanabe, Ben (January 29, 2023). "Paved path, plaza coming to Mountlake Terrace near light rail". The Everett Herald. Retrieved December 28, 2023.
- ^ Lindblom, Mike (August 25, 2024). "Lynnwood light rail is opening. Here's what you'll find at 4 new stations". The Seattle Times. Retrieved August 29, 2024.
- ^ "Mountlake Terrace Station". Sound Transit. Retrieved September 15, 2024.
