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    1. Rail

    Sound Transit kicks off construction of Hilltop Tacoma Link Extension

    Nov. 20, 2018
    Sound Transit/Peter Rogoff
    A Nov. 19 groundbreaking ceremony for Sound Transit's Hilltop Tacoma Link Extension.
    A Nov. 19 groundbreaking ceremony for Sound Transit's Hilltop Tacoma Link Extension.

    Sound Transit and its partners celebrated a 2.4-mile Link extension from the Theatre District in downtown Tacoma to the Stadium District and Hilltop neighborhoods with a groundbreaking ceremony on Nov. 19.

    The Hilltop Tacoma Link Extension includes relocating the Theatre District station and building six new stations along the new line. Service on the new extension is scheduled to begin in 2022. A future voter-approved extension of Tacoma Link will extend this neighborhood-scale service to Tacoma Community College by 2039.

    “Extending Tacoma Link to the Hilltop District will connect additional neighborhoods with employment centers like downtown Tacoma and the Medical Mile,” said Federal Transit Administration (FTA) Acting Administrator K. Jane Williams. “The administration’s commitment to this project recognizes the strong financial support of the city of Tacoma and the local community allowing for a balanced federal share.”

    The project was designed by HDR and Walsh Construction Company II, LLC, will build the extension, as well as new platform stations. The $217 million project expands the existing Tacoma Link rail line up Stadium Way, 1st Street, Division Avenue and down Martin Luther King Jr. Way to South 19th Street. The project is funded through a partnership between Sound Transit, the city of Tacoma, a $75 million federal Small Starts grant and a $15 million federal TIGER grant.

    About the Author

    Mischa Wanek-Libman | Editor in Chief

    Mischa Wanek-Libman serves as editor in chief of Mass Transit magazine. She is responsible for developing and maintaining the magazine’s editorial direction and is based in the western suburbs of Chicago.

    Wanek-Libman has spent more than 20 years covering transportation issues including construction projects and engineering challenges for various commuter railroads and transit agencies. She has been recognized for editorial excellence through her individual work, as well as for collaborative content. 

    She is an active member of the American Public Transportation Association's Marketing and Communications Committee and serves as a Board Observer on the National Railroad Construction and Maintenance Association (NRC) Board of Directors.  

    She is a graduate of Drake University, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism and Mass Communication with a major in magazine journalism and a minor in business management.

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