Stadium station (Sound Transit)

50px Stadium
Link Light Rail station
File:Stadium Station ORCA readers.jpg
Location	501 S Royal Brougham Way Seattle, Washington
Coordinates
Owned by	Sound Transit
Line(s)
Platforms	1 island platform
Tracks	2
Connections	Sound Transit Express, King County Metro, Greyhound Lines
Construction
Structure type	Surface
Parking	Paid parking nearby
Disabled access	Yes
History
Opened	July 18, 2009 (2009-07-18)
Services
Preceding station   Link Light Rail   Following station SODO toward SeaTac/Airport Central Link International District/Chinatown toward University of Washington

Stadium is a light rail station located in Seattle, Washington. It is situated between the SODO and International District/Chinatown stations on the Central Link line, which runs from Seattle–Tacoma International Airport to Downtown Seattle as part of the Link Light Rail system. The station consists of an at-grade island platform at the intersection of the SODO Busway and South Royal Brougham Way in the SoDo neighborhood of Seattle, Washington, adjacent to CenturyLink Field and Safeco Field.

Stadium Station was proposed in 1998 as part of the segment between the Downtown Seattle and Beacon Hill tunnels and subsequently deferred months later. It was reinstated in 2005 and construction of the station was completed in May 2006, several years before Link light rail service began on July 18, 2009. Trains serve the station 20 hours a day every day; the headway between trains is 6 minutes during peak periods, with less frequent service at other times. Stadium Station is also served by several Sound Transit Express and King County Metro buses that stop on the SODO Busway west of the platform, as well as the Seattle Greyhound station east of the platform.

Location

Stadium Station is situated at the intersection of the SODO Busway and Royal Brougham Way, under the ramps of Interstate 90, in the SoDo neighborhood of Seattle. The station is adjacent to a King County Metro employee parking garage, which includes a pedestrian bridge over the platform to the Metro Ryerson Base, and the Seattle Greyhound bus station. The area surrounding Stadium Station contains a mixture of light industrial zoning, primarily home to the manufacturing and warehousing industry employing over 13,000 workers, with some retail uses. CenturyLink Field and Safeco Field are located one block west of the station on the north and south sides of Royal Brougham Way, respectively. The light rail line is paralleled to the east by a mixed-use bicycle trail called the SODO Trail, which connects Stadium Station to SODO Station at South Lander Street. The Seattle Department of Transportation plans to extend the trail further south to Spokane Street, connecting it to a bike trail on the Spokane Street Viaduct, serving West Seattle.

History

Stadium Station was not part of the initial Link Light Rail route approved in 1996, but was created as part of "Route C1" added to Central Link by the Sound Transit Board in 1998. The routing included an at-grade section parallel to the SODO Busway and a tunnel under Beacon Hill, with stations at South Royal Brougham Way, South Lander Street and under Beacon Hill. While "Route C1" was selected as the final Central Link route in 1999, the station at South Royal Brougham Way was deferred, except for the construction of the platform and supports required for an infill station. The Sound Transit Board approved construction of the newly renamed Stadium Station on January 13, 2005, using $3.7 million in surplus funds after bids for the construction of Link Light Rail were lower than budgeted.

Construction of Stadium Station began with the laying of the first rails for Central Link, between Holgate and Lander streets, in August 2005. The station itself was built by Kiewit Pacific in less than a year, with opening ceremonies for Stadium and SODO stations held on May 30, 2006, celebrating the completion of the first two Central Link stations. Light rail testing on the 1.3-mile-long (2.1 km), at-grade SoDo segment began in March 2007, and ended in February 2008. Regular Link service from Seattle to Tukwila began on July 18, 2009, including the use of its pocket track to store extra trains serving a sellout friendly match between the Seattle Sounders and Chelsea at CenturyLink Field.

Station layout

Platform level	Northbound	← Central Link toward Westlake (International District/Chinatown)
	Island platform, doors will open on the left
	Southbound	→ Central Link toward SeaTac/Airport (SODO) →

Stadium Station consists of a single 400-foot-long (120 m), at-grade island platform accessible vian an entrance at its north end, 130 feet (40 m) from South Royal Brougham Way. The platform itself has a width of 30 feet (9.1 m) to accommodate event crowds at CenturyLink Field and Safeco Field. A pocket track located south of the station was built to store extra trains that are deployed after major sporting events.

Services

Stadium Station, as viewed from its southbound SODO Busway stop served by ST Express and King County Metro buses.

Stadium Station is part of Sound Transit's Central Link line, which runs from Seattle–Tacoma International Airport through Rainier Valley to Downtown Seattle. It is the ninth northbound station from SeaTac and fifth southbound station from Westlake, situated between SODO and International District/Chinatown stations. Central Link trains serve Stadium Station 20 hours a day on weekdays and Saturdays, from 5:00 am to 1:00 am, and 18 hours on Sundays, from 6:00 am to 12:00 am; during regular weekday service, trains operate roughly every 6 to 10 minutes during rush hour and midday operation, respectively, with longer headways of 15 minutes in the early morning and 20 minutes at night. During weekends, Central Link trains arrive at Stadium Station every 10 minutes during midday hours and every 15 minutes during mornings and evenings. The station is approximately 29 minutes from SeaTac and 9 minutes from Westlake.

Stadium Station is also served by several bus routes on the SODO Busway, which runs parallel to the Central Link line and through the Downtown Seattle Transit Tunnel, at a pair of bus stops west of the station platform at Royal Brougham Way. Four Sound Transit Express routes stop at the station: Route 590 from Tacoma, Route 592 from Olympia, DuPont, and Lakewood, Route 594 from Lakewood and Tacoma, and Route 595 from Gig Harbor. King County Metro operates four all-day routes through the SODO Busway: Route 41 from Northgate and Downtown, Route 101 from Renton and Tukwila, Route 106 from the Rainier Valley and Renton, and Route 150 from Tukwila and Kent. Metro also runs four peak-direction routes through the SODO Busway: Route 102 from Tukwila and Renton, Routes 177 and 178 from Federal Way, and Route 190 from Star Lake and Redondo Heights. Two night buses to Downtown Seattle and Madison Park are operated as Metro "Night Owl" Route 84.

In addition to regular bus service, Metro also runs the Route 97 Link Shuttle, a shuttle service serving Link stations along surface streets during Link service disruptions.

See also

• List of Link Light Rail stations

External links

• Sound Transit Rider Guide