King County Metro to soon start upgrade work on Atlantic Base Yard Facility
King County Metro will soon start upgrading work on the Atlantic Base Yard Facility to improve the overhead wires for its trolley buses and complete additional infrastructure improvements. Most of the work will occur during normal business hours with intermittent nighttime work taking place when needed. This work is expected to be completed by 2028.
Longtime home to trolley fleet
In 2016, King County Metro contracted engineers to assess and monitor the conditions of its facilities. From these assessments, a Transit Facilities Conditions Needs Report identified capital improvements needed at the Atlantic Base parking lot. The report recommended removing and replacing concrete panels in the bus parking areas of the Atlantic Base Site trolley yard in coordination with utility replacement projects.
Project delivers improved concrete lot, utilities, trolley wires
This project will replace all concrete paving and underground infrastructure, including storm drainage, sanitary sewer, industrial waste and buried power lines, as well as rehabilitating underground storage tanks while they’re exposed. The existing overhead catenary system will also be upgraded to support the agency’s expanding electric trolley fleet during the renovation.
Once complete, the agency says this project will provide the proper infrastructure necessary to support the storage of its growing fleet, and replacement, maintenance and upkeep of the bus yard infrastructure.
The project is estimated to cost $45 million and will be built by Granite Construction in multiple phases to ensure that operation of bus service operating from King County Metro’s Atlantic Base remains uninterrupted.
What to expect during construction
Crews will take the following steps to limit noise:
- Construction equipment will be equipped with no pure tone back up alarms.
- Use approved bed liners in trucks.
- Avoid excessive tailgate banging.
- Provide a complaint number to track any reported issues.
Nighttime work and its impact
Businesses near and with direct line of sight of Airport Way and South Royal Brougham are expected to hear occasional noise from crews using excavation equipment, drill rigs and generators during intermittent work in the evening and overnight.