Online Open House: Feb 22nd - April 8th,
2023
This online engagement website shares 60% design plans and updates for the public.
The goal of the Stride bus rapid transit (BRT) program is to provide more convenient and efficient ways for you to get to your destination, with frequent service every day throughout the region.
Watch our short video below for an introduction to Stride BRT
We are hosting public meeting drop-in sessions to share the 60% design plans. Come to your city’s meeting to learn more about the design in your city, ask questions and share your thoughts on future construction.
Lake Forest Park
3 - 7 p.m.
Brookside Elementary
Seattle / Shoreline
3 - 7 p.m.
Shoreline Unitarian Universalist Church
Kenmore
4 - 8 p.m.
Kenmore City Hall
Sound Transit’s Stride bus rapid transit will be a fast, frequent, and reliable bus service connecting to light rail and to communities north, east, and south of Lake Washington. Similar to light rail service, Stride is designed for convenient travel with fast arrivals and departures, including off-board fare payment and multiple-door entry and exit. New bus lanes and transit priority improvements will help riders avoid traffic. Our Stride bus fleet will include battery electric buses (BEBs) for a cleaner, more sustainable way to travel in the region. Stride routes will replace existing ST Express service currently operated by transit partners. Route 560 will be replaced by S1: I-405 South, Route 535 will be replaced by S2: I-405 North, and Route 522 will be replaced by S3. Stride buses will connect to Link light rail and provide new ways for you to get to your destination. Our Stride program will also include a new bus maintenance base in Bothell to guarantee a safe, clean and comfortable ride for Sound Transit passengers. The S1, S2, and S3 bus lines together form the Stride program.
The S1 and S2 Stride Lines, formerly known as I-405 bus rapid transit in the project’s planning phase, will connect communities along I-405 and SR 518 from Lynnwood to Burien. S1 runs from Burien to Bellevue and S2 runs from Bellevue to Lynnwood. With buses running as often as every 10 minutes, this new service will connect to Link light rail at Lynnwood, Bellevue and Tukwila, the S3 Stride line in Bothell, and to other transit services provided by Sound Transit, Community Transit and King County Metro. The project includes a new transit center in South Renton and 10 Stride stations, three of which will also add parking, for a total of 1,300 new spaces. The parking at the South Renton Transit Center and at Northeast 44th Street is anticipated to be completed in 2034. The Totem Lake/Kingsgate station in Kirkland is anticipated to be completed in 2035. The S1 and S2 Lines build upon the Washington State Department of Transportation's I-405 Master Plan with roadway improvements for faster travel. We are partnering with WSDOT to design and construct several of the Stride stations along these service lines.
The S3 Stride Line, formerly known as SR 522/NE 145th bus rapid transit, will serve the growing north Lake Washington communities from Shoreline and Seattle to Bothell. The project includes 14 Stride stations. The S3 Line will connect riders to Link light rail at Shoreline South/148th at the west end of the corridor, and at the east end of the corridor to the S2 line in Bothell. S2 and S3 will connect at the SR 522/I-405 Transit Hub with transit service provided by Sound Transit, Community Transit and King County Metro. Stride will add parking in Kenmore and Bothell, anticipated to be complete in 2034, and in Lake Forest Park, anticipated to be complete in 2044.
You can recognize Stride buses by their blue, yellow, and white colors. The Stride branding makes them easy to spot. There will be a fleet of double decker buses on S1 and S2 as well as articulated buses on S3. Stride will also feature a brand new fleet of battery electric buses. See a preview of the bus design below:
If your language is not available, please contact: 1-800-201-4900/ TTY Relay: 711 or email accessibility@soundtransit.org for alternative formats.
Get upcoming project news and public involvement opportunities
Sign up for updatesOur projects reach various milestones—30%, 60% and 90% design—during the design phase that are associated with a general level of design "completeness." The 30% design phase was completed in 2021 and 2022, and we are now at 60% design for the Stride program. At final design, the plans are finalized and made ready for construction.
We anticipate starting construction in 2024/2025 and starting service on some lines as early as 2026/2027.
Included in the 2016 voter-approved Sound Transit 3 measure, the Stride program will provide fast, frequent, and reliable transit service to people living and working along I-405 and SR 522. New Stride connections from Bellevue to Burien, Lynnwood to Bellevue, and Shoreline and Seattle to Bothell build upon Sound Transit’s commitment to equitable, accessible, and affordable transportation. With projected population growth across the Puget Sound, Stride is a 19-hour-a-day service that will meet more people’s transportation needs and connect the region in new and faster ways. There is no need to look at a bus schedule for Stride, since buses come every 10 to 15 minutes. It offers an easy alternative to driving congested roadways, bypassing traffic on I-405 in the Express toll lanes and building Business Access and Transit lanes on SR 522. Stride lines will work with regional partners to provide more service in addition to integrating with Sound Transit Link service. Stride's connections to light rail can take you to a Mariners game or the Sea-Tac Airport and eventually all the way to Everett or Tacoma. S3 stops along the Burke-Gilman Trail, so you can enjoy a scenic walk or bike ride to Stride stations.
In the face of the pandemic and steeply rising cost pressures across the Puget Sound region, the Sound Transit Board of Directors took action in August 2021 to ensure our voter-approved transit expansion program remains affordable.
This critical work addressed an estimated $6.5 billion affordability gap for delivering projects on their previous schedules, due to regional real estate and construction costs driving up future project estimates.
After 17 months of staff and Board discussions and engagement with jurisdictions and stakeholders, the Board adopted a realignment plan on Aug. 5, 2021. Learn more about the Board’s action in our Platform blog post.
Based on current revenue projections and cost estimates, the Board’s adopted plan identifies:
Project costs are being tracked closely as we work with partner jurisdictions and stakeholders to advance Stride projects. The projects’ ultimate timelines will come into greater focus as we advance project design and property acquisition, including examining cost-saving options.
Our path forward will be shaped by determined efforts to secure expanded funding. Close collaboration with partners will be required to deliver projects as rapidly as possible.
Learn more about the realignment process and increased construction cost estimates at soundtransit.org/realignment.
Sound Transit has completed a State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) environmental checklist for our Stride projects: I-405 BRT, SR 522 BRT and Bus Base North operation and maintenance facility. Based on the checklist, technical reports and other information, Sound Transit has determined that the Stride projects do not have a probable significant adverse impact on the environment and issued a Determination of Nonsignificance (DNS) for each project.
Sound Transit continues to track project design for changes to the environmental impacts documented in the SEPA process and the potential need for additional evaluation of impacts and mitigation.
Bus Base North SEPA DNS Addendum (Aug. 2021)
I-405 SEPA DNS (S1 and S2 Line)
SR 522/NE 145th BRT SEPA DNS (S3 Line)
Thank you for your continuous feedback and comments. Your thoughts help us better understand the communities we serve. Since 2018, we’ve met with approximately 80 community organizations, 130 property owners, and thousands of community members at local events. A few common themes we’ve heard from the public are questions and comments around project timeline, future construction schedule, project design and affects, and station design and locations. Summaries of previous public outreach efforts are available on our project websites within the documents section.
As the design continues to advance, we are continuing conversations on individual site plans and answering project-related questions. We contacted individual property owners to begin the property acquisition process between September 2021 and February 2023.
The project team has actively engaged with property owners who may be affected by the project since early in the design process. Property owners in Seattle, Shoreline, on the east side of SR 522 in Lake Forest Park, on the west side of SR 522 in Lake Forest Park, Kenmore, and Bothell were invited in phases to discuss how the project may impact their property specifically and to answer project-related questions between January 2020 and August 2021. In-person property owner meetings were shifted to virtual meetings due to social distancing recommendations for COVID-19. Property owners were notified of other opportunities to engage with the project and project information through mail, email and project updates.
In March 2021, the project reached the 30% design milestone and the project team held an online open house and virtual town halls to share the latest design information. Based on feedback from property owners, the route alignment in Lake Forest Park was shifted to the west of SR 522 to minimize the number of property owners that would require relocation.
The project team continues to answer project-related questions from property owners and neighborhood groups and meet with them on request as design refinements progress.
The project team has actively engaged with property owners who may be affected by the project since early in the design process. Property owners were offered meetings if they were affected by the project. Due to the pandemic, property owner engagement meetings were shifted to virtual meetings. The project went through Civil Certification with Sound Transit Board of Directors in June of 2022.
Sound Transit has refined the design of the Stride program to minimize the number of property owners that would require relocation, and the great majority of the properties impacted as part of the program involve only partial acquisitions and temporary construction easements. However, in a small number of cases, a project impact is so great to a particular property that an owner/tenant may be displaced in the process. Should that occur, displaced individuals or businesses are entitled to relocation assistance and payments provided by the Uniform Relocation Assistance and Real Property Acquisitions Policies Act of 1970 (Uniform Act).
Sound Transit will fully inform any person who qualifies as a displaced person of their rights and entitlements to relocation assistance and payments provided by the Uniform Act. Relocation Assistance Advisory Services are available to any displaced person or business. A displaced person or business will be assigned a Relocation Agent from Sound Transit who will be available to discuss the relocation procedures and answer questions.
View this graphic to learn about the steps of the property acquisition process. Sound Transit’s Acquisition and Relocation Handbook provides more information about the relocation process and support.
To reach the 60% design milestone, we’ve continued conversations with jurisidictions and communities along the corridor to ensure the project meets jurisdictional code requirements and the needs of residents and riders. We will continue to work with jurisdictions and property owners to refine designs. In each section, you can find design updates and roll plots as they are available.
Throughout the Stride program, there are new changes in design including:
Part of our Stride program is being designed and constructed by our local partner agencies and cities. The Washington State Department of Transportation, the Cities of Bothell, Shoreline, Kirkland, and Renton as well as the University of Washington Bothell are some key partners who are constructing Stride elements. Our partners contribute to the success of the Stride bus rapid transit program.
Bus Base North will add a new bus maintenance and operations building and a parking structure for buses and other vehicles. 30% design is complete and 60% design is underway.
Design includes:
Rendering of the Bus Base North facility
The Bus Base North facility will ensure Stride buses receive regular cleaning and maintenance
Below you will find city-by-city design updates.
The S1 line will include one station in Burien at the Burien Transit Center (Southwest 148th Street and First Avenue South).
Design refinements include:
Rendering of a Stride station at the Burien Transit Center
The Tukwila International Boulevard Station (SR 518 and Tukwila International Boulevard) will serve Tukwila and SeaTac. In partnership with WSDOT, the S1 line will include a new freeway Stride station on SR 518. Riders will be able to connect to existing light rail service via a new pedestrian bridge. This will provide an easy transfer for Stride BRT riders looking to travel to the airport or Seattle.
Design refinements include:
The Tukwila Boulevard Station will have Stride station pairs
The S1 line will include two stations in Renton: Northeast 44th Station (I-405 and NE 44th Street) and South Renton Transit Center (Rainer Avenue South and South Grady Way). The NE 44th Stride station will be delivered as a part of the WSDOT Renton to Bellevue project.
Design refinements include:
The Renton Park & Ride will feature two Stride islands.
The S1 and S2 line will include a Stride station at the Bellevue Transit Center on Northeast 6th Street and 110th Avenue Northeast. Riders will be able to connect to local and express buses, King County Metro RapidRide and Link light rail at the Bellevue downtown station. The north and south Stride lines, S1 and S2, will connect at this station.
Design refinements include:
The Bellevue Transit Center will have a new Stride station
The S1 Line connects communities from Bellevue to Burien
The S2 line segment will include two stations in Kirkland: Totem Lake/Kingsgate Station (I-405 and Northeast 128th Street) and the Northeast 85th Station (I-405 and Northeast 85th Street). In conjunction with WSDOT, we’re building the Northeast 85th Street Station.
Design refinements include:
The S2 line segment will include one station in Lynnwood at the Lynnwood City Center Station (200th Street Southwest and 48th Avenue West). This Stride station will be adjacent to the future Lynwood Link light rail station, which is currently under construction and will begin service in 2024. This will be the terminus of the S2 Line.
Design refinements include:
Rendering of a Stride station at the future Lynnwood Transit Center
The S2 Line connect communities from Bellevue to Lynnwood
The S3 line segment along Northeast 145th Street includes BRT stations at the Shoreline South/148th light rail station and on Northeast 145th Street at 15th Avenue Northeast and 30th Avenue Northeast. There will also be roadway widening for bus lanes and new sidewalks westbound between 8th Avenue Northeast and 6th Avenue Northeast, and in both directions between approximately 12th Avenue Northeast and 17th Avenue Northeast. Sidewalk upgrades are also associated with the station located at 30th Avenue Northeast.
Design refinements include:
Rendering of the Shoreline/Seattle 15th Avenue NE westbound platform
The S3 line segment in Lake Forest Park includes BRT stations on 522 at Northeast 153rd Street, Northeast 165th Street and at Ballinger Way Northeast. The project also includes roadway widening for a bus lane and new sidewalks northbound on SR 522 between just south of Northeast 147th Street and 41st Avenue Northeast.
Design refinements to reduce impacts to property owners include:Other design refinements include:
Rendering of the westbound Lake Forest Park Town Center station
The S3 line segment in Kenmore includes three BRT stations on SR 522 at 61st Avenue Northeast, 68th Avenue Northeast, and 73rd Avenue Northeast. This section of the corridor has existing bus lanes so no roadway widening is included as part of this project.
Design refinements include:
Rendering of the 61st Ave NE westbound Stride station
The S3 line segment in Bothell will include five stations at 98th Avenue Northeast and Northeast 182nd Street, Northeast 185th Street and 104th Avenue Northeast, UW Bothell/Cascadia College-Beardslee Boulevard, Beardslee Boulevard and Northeast 195th Street, and the SR 522/I-405 Transit Hub. The Transit Hub, connecting S2 and S3, is being designed by Sound Transit and WSDOT that includes a safe and accessible pedestrian connection to the University of Washington Bothell/Cascadia College (UWB/CC) campus and the Sammamish River and North Creek Trails.
See the partner agency project section for more information on the Brickyard and Canyon Park station and design improvements.
Design refinements include:
Rendering of the Bothell NE 185th Street & 104th Avenue NE eastbound platform
The S3 Line connects communities from Shoreline to Bothell
Stride will connect cities surrounding Lake Washington to the regional Sound Transit Link light rail system and to other transit services provided by King County Metro and Community Transit. To prepare for Stride service in the region, Sound Transit is partnering with cities and transit agency parners to improve infrastructure and transit connections.
Travelers on I-405 between Renton and Bellevue experience one of the state’s worst commutes. The I-405 Renton to Bellevue Widening and Express Toll Lanes project includes multimodal transportation and safety improvements to offer more reliable travel choices and keep drivers, transit riders and freight moving.
The Renton to Bellevue project will add new capacity to create a two-lane Express Toll Lane (ETL) system between SR 167 in Renton and Northeast 6th Street in Bellevue. In general, the project will add one new lane in each direction and combine the existing HOV lane with the new lane to create a dual ETL system.
The new ETLs will connect to the existing express toll lane system between Bellevue and Lynnwood, as well as the SR 167 HOT lanes via the I-405/SR 167 Interchange Direct Connector, to create a 40-mile ETL system. This project is designed to improve speeds and trip reliability for all travelers and support the new I-405 Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) line between Lynnwood and Tukwila included in the voter-approved Sound Transit 3 package.
To learn more, please visit the project website.
Rendering of the Northeast 44th Street Interchange as part of the Renton to Bellevue project
The I-405, Brickyard to SR 527 Improvement Project lies primarily in Bothell on I-405, starting just south of the SR 522 interchange and ending at the SR 527 interchange. The communities in this vicinity will see major improvements in added express toll lane capacity, direct access to state highways and improved connections to regional transit service at both the UW Bothell Station (SR 522) and Canyon Park Park- and-Ride (SR 527), integrating corridor investments with Sound Transit’s planned opening of the S2 Line. The Brickyard station in Bothell will be a new transit-only inline Stride station facility to support the Stride S2 line, improving connections to the existing park and ride.
The project will enhance 4.5 miles of the corridor with a focus on both the main project expansion and overall operational improvements. The project will build one new express toll lane in each direction between south of SR 522 and SR 527 (extending the existing dual express toll lane system), widen I-405 through the SR 522 interchange and build direct access ramps to the express toll lanes at SR 522, and build a partial direct access interchange at SR 527 to and from the south connecting to the Canyon Park Park-and-Ride. The project will include additional local roadway improvements, fish barrier corrections, noise walls, and new stormwater facilities.
To learn more, please visit the project website.
Map of the Brickyard to SR 527 Improvement Project
The proposed I-405, Northeast 85th Street Interchange and Inline Station Project is located within the City of Kirkland along Interstate 405 (I-405). In partnership with the City of Kirkland, the project will replace the existing two-level cloverleaf interchange at Northeast 85th Street with a three-level interchange and construct local improvements along Northeast 85th Street and its intersection with 114th Avenue Northeast/ Kirkland Way.
To learn more, please visit the project website.
The City of Shoreline is designing improvements for the SR 523 (N/NE 145th Street) and I-5 interchange including NE 145th Street between 5th Avenue NE and the on- and off-ramps on the west side of I-5. The project will replace the signalized intersections on either side of I-5 with roundabouts and update lane configurations on the bridge over I-5.
The 145th Street and I-5 Interchange Project will improve safety and multimodal access along the 145th Street corridor and help connect to the future Sound Transit Shoreline South/148th Light Rail Station, planned to open in 2024. The interchange improvements will alleviate traffic congestion and enhance transportation mobility, reliability, and safety for all users, including pedestrians, bicyclists, transit, and freight.
To learn more, please visit the project website.
Your feedback is very important to us as we move towards construction.
During construction, Sound Transit works with the contractor to make sure the neighbors and businesses are aware of upcoming work
In the upcoming design phase: the project team will:
If you have questions, please reach out to the project team by email at brt@soundtransit.org, or by phone at 206-370-5533. We encourage you to subscribe to our email list to stay tuned for future updates.
Sign up for updatesJoin us at our public meetings to receive more updates and provide feedback.
We are hosting public meeting drop-in sessions to share the 60% design plans. Come to your city’s meeting to learn more about the design in your city, ask questions and share your thoughts on future construction.
Lake Forest Park
3 - 7 p.m.
Brookside Elementary
Seattle / Shoreline
3 - 7 p.m.
Shoreline Unitarian Universalist Church
Kenmore
4 - 8 p.m.
Kenmore City Hall
Want to learn more about Stride? The Stride documents webpage for S1, S2, and S3 has everything from our SEPA analysis, detailed project maps, to Community Engagement Guides. The documents page is a resource for the public to find detailed Stride information.
Sound Transit is committed to being a good neighbor during construction. We will work to manage impacts on surrounding communities by:
Sound Transit may request code variances from cities and agency partners to complete work outside of typical construction hours to progress the overall project.
Sound Transit Community Outreach
Phone:
206-553-3412
Email:brt@soundtransit.org
Web:soundtransit.org/i405brt
Accessibility Inquiries:
Phone:
800-201-4900, TTY Relay
711
Email:
main@soundtransit.org
Monday - Friday, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
General Rider Inquiries:
Phone:
888-889-6368, TTY Relay
711
Email:
main@soundtransit.org
Monday - Friday, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Call or text Security 24/7: 206-398-5268
