Sounder Commuter Rail
Encyclopedia
Regional rail
Commuter rail, also called suburban rail, is a passenger rail transport service that primarily operates between a city center, and the middle to outer suburbs beyond 15km and commuter towns or other locations that draw large numbers of commuters—people who travel on a daily basis...
service operated by BNSF on behalf of Sound Transit
Sound Transit
Sound Transit has been the popular name of Washington state's Central Puget Sound Regional Transit Authority since September 19, 1999. It was formed in 1996 by the Snohomish, King, and Pierce County Councils...
. Service operates Monday through Friday during peak hours from Seattle, Washington
Seattle, Washington
Seattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...
, north to Everett
Everett, Washington
Everett is the county seat of and the largest city in Snohomish County, Washington, United States. Named for Everett Colby, son of founder Charles L. Colby, it lies north of Seattle. The city had a total population of 103,019 at the 2010 census, making it the 6th largest in the state and...
and south to Tacoma
Tacoma, Washington
Tacoma is a mid-sized urban port city and the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. The city is on Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, northeast of the state capital, Olympia, and northwest of Mount Rainier National Park. The population was 198,397, according to...
. As of 2011, schedules serve the traditional peak commutes, with most trains running inbound to Seattle in the morning and outbound in the afternoon. Two daily round-trips run the "reverse commute" to and from Tacoma. Additional Sounder trains operate on some Saturdays and Sundays for travel to and from Seahawks
Seattle Seahawks
The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle, Washington. They are currently members of the Western Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team joined the NFL in 1976 as an expansion team...
and Sounders
Seattle Sounders FC
Seattle Sounders FC is an American professional soccer club based in Seattle, Washington. The club competes in Major League Soccer , the top professional soccer league in the United States and Canada. Sounders FC was established in November 2007 as a MLS expansion team, making it the 15th team in...
games at CenturyLink Field and Mariners
Seattle Mariners
The Seattle Mariners are a professional baseball team based in Seattle, Washington. Enfranchised in , the Mariners are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League. Safeco Field has been the Mariners' home ballpark since July...
games at Safeco Field
Safeco Field
Safeco Field is a retractable roof baseball stadium located in Seattle, Washington. The stadium, owned and operated by the Washington-King County Stadium Authority, is the home stadium of the Seattle Mariners of Major League Baseball and has a seating capacity of 47,878 for baseball...
. Both stadiums are a short walk from King Street Station
King Street Station (Seattle)
King Street Station is a train station in Seattle, Washington. Located between South King and South Jackson streets and Second and Fourth Avenue South in the Pioneer Square neighborhood of Seattle, the station is just south of downtown...
.
South Line
The South Line began service with two round trip trains on September 18, 2000 with stops in TacomaTacoma (Sounder station)
The Tacoma Dome Station is a Sounder train station serving the city of Tacoma, Washington. It was built by Sound Transit along Tacoma Municipal Beltline tracks in Downtown Tacoma, completed in 2000. The station is also served by ST Express, Pierce Transit and Greyhound buses, as well as Tacoma...
, Sumner
Sumner (Sounder station)
The Sumner Station is a Sounder commuter rail station serving the city of Sumner, Washington. It was built by Sound Transit along BNSF Railway tracks in Downtown Sumner, being completed in 2000. The station is also served by ST Express and Pierce Transit buses.-External links:*...
and Auburn
Auburn (Sounder station)
The Auburn Station is a Sounder commuter rail station serving the city of Auburn, Washington. It was built by Sound Transit on BNSF Railway tracks in Auburn and completed in 2000. In 2003, the parking garage was completed, making the total available parking spaces to 676. The station is also...
that terminated in Seattle. Puyallup
Puyallup (Sounder station)
The Puyallup Station is a Sounder commuter rail station serving the city of Puyallup, Washington. It was built by Sound Transit along BNSF Railway tracks, completed in 2001. The station is also served by ST Express and Pierce Transit buses.-External links:*...
and Kent
Kent (Sounder station)
The Kent Station is a Sounder commuter rail station serving the city of Kent, Washington. It was built by Sound Transit on BNSF Railway tracks in downtown Kent and completed in 2001. In 2003, the parking garage was completed, making the total available parking spaces to 983. The station is also...
stations were added February 5, 2001; with Tukwila
Tukwila (Sounder station)
The Tukwila Station is a Sounder train station serving the city of Tukwila, Washington. It was built by Sound Transit along BNSF Railway tracks in Tukwila...
being added March 12, 2001. There are currently nine round trips on the South Line, with two operating in the reverse commute direction. This is the maximum number of trains permitted under the current contract with BNSF, whose tracks the trains run on.
In July 2010, Sound Transit reached a new agreement with BNSF, valued at $185 million, which grants Sound Transit permanent access to the South Line corridor, as well as allowing four more daily round trips to begin, starting in 2012 and continuing through 2015.
The average weekday ridership in 2010 on the South Line was 8,300, down 7% from 2009 due to continued low employment in Downtown Seattle. Ridership is expected to increase in 2011 and 2012 as the economy begins to recover, and service to South Tacoma and Lakewood begins in 2012.
North Line
The 35 miles (56.3 km) Everett to Seattle line started with a Seahawks Game train on December 21, 2003. Regular service started on the 22nd with one morning train to Seattle and one evening train back. A second round trip train was added on June 6, 2005 to help increased ridership, a third was added in September 2007, and there are now four. There are currently three stops along the North Line: Edmonds, MukilteoMukilteo (Sounder station)
Mukilteo, Washington is a station stop for Sound Transit's Sounder North line.Sound Transit has located a stop in Mukilteo, Washington, USA, in coordination with the larger Mukilteo Multi-modal Terminal Project being led by the Washington State Department of Transportation , which includes a...
and Everett. On May 31, 2008 the Mukilteo station opened and trains started stopping at the station.
In September 2008, an additional train was added to the line, bringing the total number to four round trips in the peak direction. Additionally, Sound Transit partners with Amtrak Cascades
Amtrak Cascades
The Amtrak Cascades is a passenger train route operated by Amtrak in partnership with the states of Washington and Oregon in the Pacific Northwest of the United States and the province of British Columbia in Canada...
to allow Sounder riders to use the two trains per day that Amtrak Cascades operates to Bellingham, WA and Vancouver, BC through the RailPlus program. This allows commuters to use the Sounder fare structure between Everett and Seattle. The program is only available to riders that use monthly passes. The Amtrak Cascades trains do not stop at Mukilteo.
Weekday ridership on the North Line was roughly 1,100 in 2010.
Future Planning
Sound Transit is extending service south to South Tacoma and Lakewood stations, with regular service expected to extend to those stations in 2012. The stations are already completed, but this project depends on connecting Tacoma's Freighthouse Square station with the "Lakeview Subdivision" - the common name for the line that these two new stations serve. Construction on this project is currently underway.Amtrak Cascades
Amtrak Cascades
The Amtrak Cascades is a passenger train route operated by Amtrak in partnership with the states of Washington and Oregon in the Pacific Northwest of the United States and the province of British Columbia in Canada...
will also benefit from this project, as it is an integral part in the Point Defiance Bypass route currently planned by WSDOT.
Construction is underway on Tacoma Rail's "L Street" Yard, where the trains layover during the night, to make room for the additional Sounder trainset that will be needed to accommodate the extra trip.
Due to the passage of 2008's regional Proposition 1, platform length extensions, up to four additional South Line round trips, and potential stations at Ballard and Broad Street on the North Line are in planning.
Edmonds Station
Edmonds (Amtrak station)
The Edmonds Station is a passenger train station in Edmonds, Washington.It is a station stop for Amtrak's Empire Builder and Cascades trains, as well as for Sound Transit's Sounder Commuter Rail on the north line....
relocation includes a new east platform with larger passenger loading area and weather protected passenger shelter. The parking area will be updated, improved lighting will cover the platforms and parking, secure bike storage will be available and public art is ready for installation. The project will also construct a transit center at the north end of the station to accommodate Community Transit bus service with two passenger shelters and three bus bays. Once a second mainline has been added by the railway in the future, a new west platform will be constructed and the north portion of the east platform will be completed. This project is currently underway and expected to complete in early 2011.
Fleet
| Model | Manufactured | Road Numbers | Number In Fleet | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Locomotives | |||||
| EMD F59PHI | 1999–2001 | 901 - 911 | 11 | ||
| MotivePower MP40PH-3C | 2012 | N/A | 3 | On order for 2012 | |
| Cab Cars | |||||
| Bombardier BiLevel Bombardier BiLevel Coach Bombardier BiLevel coaches are bilevel passenger cars designed to carry up to 360 passengers for regional railways. These carriages are easily identifiable; they are double-decked and are shaped like elongated octagons.-History:... Cab Car |
1999–2001 | 101 - 118 | 18 | 104, 106-108 leased to Metrolink Metrolink (Southern California) Metrolink is a commuter rail system serving Los Angeles and the surrounding area of Southern California; it currently consists of six lines and 55 stations using of track.... |
|
| Coaches | |||||
| Bombardier BiLevel Coach Bombardier BiLevel Coach Bombardier BiLevel coaches are bilevel passenger cars designed to carry up to 360 passengers for regional railways. These carriages are easily identifiable; they are double-decked and are shaped like elongated octagons.-History:... |
1999–2001 | 201 - 240 | 40 | 210, 213, 231, 232, 237-240 leased to Metrolink Metrolink (Southern California) Metrolink is a commuter rail system serving Los Angeles and the surrounding area of Southern California; it currently consists of six lines and 55 stations using of track.... |
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