New Transit Station Opens Sunday

Northend bus commuters can expect more frequent and rapid service after Sound Transit opens the Mountlake Terrace Freeway Station this Sunday.

On Thursday at noon, a ceremony honoring the project's completion will be held on the fourth floor of the Mountlake Terrace Transit Center Garage.

The new station, located in the I-5 median at 235th Street Southwest, provides direct-access bays for buses heading north and south. Passengers can wait for the buses on weather-protected platforms with benches and art-enhanced glass walls that minimize freeway noise.

A covered pedestrian bridge crosses above the northbound lanes of I-5 and connects the freeway station with the third floor of the existing Mountlake Terrace Transit Center garage.

Sound Transit Express buses will stop at the station seven days a week. Previously, commuters couldn't catch a bus from the Mountlake Terrace Transit Center to downtown Seattle on the weekends.

Since buses won't have to exit the freeway to pick up and drop off commuters, Sound Transit can also run more frequent service at peak travel times.

The station will serve six regional routes, including ST Express Route 511 (Ash Way-Seattle), ST Express Route 512 (Everett-Ash Way-Seattle), ST Express Route 513 (Eastmont-Seattle), Community Transit Route 413 (Swamp Creek-Seattle), Community Transit Route 414 (McCollum Park –Seattle), and Community Transit Route 415 (North Lynnwood-Seattle).

In addition, a handful of northend bus routes will stop at the station. Those include Community Transit Route 111 (Brier-Mountlake Terrace), Community Transit Route 130 (Aurora Village-Lynnwood), Community Transit Route 810 (McCollum Park-University District), Community Transit Route 871 (Edmonds Park & Ride-University District), and Metro Route 347 (Mountlake Terrace-Northgate).

The freeway station cost $35.4 million. Funding sources included $22.6 million from Sound Transit, a $5 million Regional Mobility grant from Washington state, and $7.7 million in federal funding.

 More information about the Mountlake Terrace Freeway Station is available at www.soundtransit.org/mountlaketerrace.