Sound Transit is contemplating a significant modification to the long-planned West Seattle light rail extension, announcing Tuesday evening that officials are considering eliminating the proposed Avalon Station in an effort to contain rapidly escalating project costs that have reached nearly $8 billion.
Agency leaders indicated that removing the station could reduce project expenses by approximately 15%, primarily through decreased property acquisition costs and reduced construction complexity along the elevated and underground portions of the route.
The announcement came during a public meeting held in West Seattle, where Sound Transit officials explained how the dramatically increasing price tag has compelled them to reconsider earlier design decisions and assumptions about station locations. The West Seattle extension was originally planned to include three new stations serving the neighbourhood: Delridge, Avalon, and Alaska Junction. However, the agency now indicates the middle station at Avalon is under consideration for elimination.
“Our position is to bring light rail to West Seattle. We intend to do that,” stated Brad Owen, executive director in Sound Transit’s Capital Delivery Department, emphasising that whilst the agency remains committed to serving West Seattle with light rail, the specific configuration may need to change to make the project financially viable.
Eliminating the Avalon Way station, officials explained, would create “a lot of other cost-saving opportunities” beyond the direct savings from not building that particular station, including significant reductions in right-of-way acquisition costs. “Potentially we could reduce the property that we have to take,” Owen stated, referring to the dozens of homes and businesses that would need to be acquired and demolished to make room for elevated guideway supports, construction staging areas, and station facilities.
Another factor influencing the recommendation to eliminate Avalon Station involves projected impacts on ridership and system performance. An official noted “the relatively light ridership” forecast models predict for the Avalon station compared to the Delridge and Alaska Junction stations, suggesting the station would serve fewer daily passengers than others along the extension, making it a logical candidate for elimination when cost reductions become necessary.
Sound Transit indicated that removing the station could also enable a more cost-effective design for the extension overall, with engineering benefits extending beyond the immediate Avalon station location. “By eliminating Avalon and looking at this with our design team, we were able to find a little bit more optimized tunnel portal location,” another agency official stated, explaining that removing the middle station allows engineers to redesign the transition between elevated guideway and underground tunnel in ways that reduce construction complexity and expense.
The cost of the West Seattle light rail project has increased dramatically in recent years, far exceeding original estimates when voters approved the Sound Transit 3 package in 2016. The latest estimate places the project cost as high as $7.9 billion, representing an increase from $7.1 billion just last year, and vastly exceeding the initial projections presented to voters nearly a decade ago.
“Billion with a B is just such an astronomical number,” one West Seattle resident commented in September 2024, expressing shock at the escalating costs. She questioned whether the project remains worthwhile given the price increases. “I don’t know. Is it worth that?” she asked, articulating concerns shared by many taxpayers watching costs spiral upward.
Not everyone in the neighbourhood supports seeing the project scaled back, and substantial opposition to building light rail in West Seattle persists despite years of planning and public engagement. Whilst many residents urge Sound Transit to pursue alternatives that keep light rail plans on track even if they require modifications, others remain fundamentally opposed to the project regardless of configuration or cost.
“You come in and say, ‘The majority of people in West Seattle are for the light rail.’ That’s not true,” one meeting attendee stated, challenging Sound Transit’s characterisation of community support and suggesting the agency overstates public backing for the project.
However, transportation advocates argue the agency must continue exploring realistic solutions to deliver the light rail system voters approved nine years ago in 2016, even though cost estimates at that time were dramatically lower than current projections. They contend that abandoning approved transit projects due to cost increases would undermine public trust in the ballot measure process and leave communities without promised transportation improvements.
“People want to see these projects get done,” stated Kirk Hovekotter, the executive director of Transportation Choices Coalition, a Seattle-based advocacy organisation supporting transit expansion. He added, “This project will put more life within reach for West Seattleites,” arguing that light rail access will improve mobility and quality of life for residents who currently face limited transit options.
Sound Transit is encouraging public feedback on the potential Avalon Station elimination as the agency works toward its target opening window of 2032 for the West Seattle extension.
