City

How to deal with the major Light Rail disruptions coming up

Sound Transit is fixing sinking tracks downtown, so you’ll need to plan ahead.

By Gabe Guarente
, August 8, 2023
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Light Rail work will hamper travel for ~80,000 daily passengers over the next month.

Photo via Seattle Department of Transportation

Transit riders may have a sinking feeling right now. Sound Transit announced that Light Rail delays and closures are on the horizon due to tracks that have literally descended three-inches into the ground across Royal Brougham Way South. Ruh roh.

While the problem is fixable, addressing it alongside the system’s other scheduled construction projects means that you’ll need to make adjustments.

Here’s what’s going on over the next month.

  • This Saturday + Sunday : There’s a shutdown across five downtown stations. Shuttles at the SODO and Capitol Hill stations will go to Stadium, Chinatown-International District, Pioneer Square, University Street, and Westlake.
  • From Monday, Aug. 14-Sunday, Aug. 20 : North and southbound trains will end at Pioneer Square, requiring passengers to transfer to the opposite platform.
  • From Monday, Aug. 21-Sunday, Sept. 17 : Work at Othello and Rainier Beach will slow the whole line to 12 minutes between trains instead of 10.
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Gabe Guarente
Gabe is based in Seattle (originally from New Jersey), and has previously been a food writer at Eater, a sports reporter, and a YA graphic novelist. You’ll probably find him scouting out the latest restaurant in town on the weekends, or strolling around the streets of White Center with his feisty pup, Armando.