Shoreline Council Supports I-5 Light Rail Option

The Shoreline City Council unanimously endorsed the I-5 alignment for Sound Transit's North Corridor Light Rail line instead of the Aurora Ave./Highway 99 option Monday night.

The Council's recommendation will be forwarded to the Sound Transit board as it moves through the environmental review process. A final decison on a route will be decided in 2014. The North Corridor line will likely be completed by 2023.

Shoreline's Council approved the I-5 route by a 5-0 vote with Councilmembers Keith McGlashan, Doris McConnell, Will Hall, McGlashan, Terry Scott and Chris Roberts. Councilmembers Shari Winstead and Chris Eggen were absent.

Lynnwood and Mountlake Terrace had already supported the I-5 option, which estimated to be up to $700 million  less costly in terms of capital costs. Seattle has not endorsed an option yet.

Sound Transit held three public meetings in October to get feedback from citizens in Shoreline, Lynnwood and Seattle and sponsored an agency scoping meeting. 

Three guiding principles were considered at the meetings: system performance, local opportunities and impacts and maximizing funds.

Based on Shoreline city staff's analysis, the I-5 option was considered a better option than the Highway 99 option when it came to travel time, ridership, cost (such as right-of-way acquisition and construction), social equity (the fact that bus rapid transit will be available on the Aurora Corridor in 2013 already was considered. Light rail on I-5 would offer two north-south corridors), economic development and noise and visual impacts. The two options were comparable when it came to accessibility, and land uses and redevelopment.

Councilmember Roberts said Shoreline has time now to create a vision for its neighborhoods along the I-5 line and determine what kind of development is wanted there.

"This is a really exciting time for the city of Shoreline," he said. "There’s a lot of potential on I-5 that we need to consider and move forward on."

Deputy mayor Will Hall offered a reminder that "all we're doing is expressing an opinion. Ultimately, it's the Sound Transit Board's decision. This is just one step in a process that started a year ago, taking public input."