Seattle Needs More Railcars

Seattle’s transit agency, Sound Transit, is running short on passenger space on its light rail vehicles, according to an article by Mike Lindblom in The Seattle Times. “More railcars are needed to provide the service quality promised to voters in 2008 and 2016 regional transit-tax measures.”

As Lindblom explains, “Sound Transit ordered 152 Siemens S70 vehicles in 2016-17, mainly to stock its Lynnwood, Bellevue, Redmond and Federal Way extensions, scheduled to open in 2024-26.” But “Those aren’t considered enough anymore, because slow conditions on the Seattle-SeaTac line are hamstringing train frequency, and therefore the route’s capacity to carry travelers.”

“Transit staff say that Siemens USA, which built the Seattle-Bellevue area’s newest railcar fleet, has only a short window in which managers can get parts from today’s tight supply chain, and assemble more Sound Transit railcars at its Sacramento, Calif., factory by 2027. Costs should range between $60 million and $100 million, says agency CEO Julie Timm.” If the agency orders 10 additional rail cars, they would add enough capacity to “provide a complete four-car train nearly all the time, instead of mixing in shorter three-car trains,” creating more space for wheelchairs and bikes as well as people.