Project overview

ST3: Our starting point

The Sound Transit 3 (ST3) Plan included representative projects that established the transit mode, approximate route, number of stations and general station locations. These were critical in developing detailed project budgets and schedules and are the starting point for alternatives development.

Early scoping

The project officially kicked off in October 2017. The early scoping period, which included community and online open houses, took place between Feb. 2 and March 5, 2018. Early scoping activities included collecting public feedback and intensive work by the Stakeholder Advisory and Elected Leadership Groups as well as other community members throughout the project corridor. In response to early scoping, the project team developed the first round of alternatives to carry forward into more detailed technical analysis.

Alternatives screening

The alternatives developed following early scoping will be studied, refined and narrowed down through April 2019, when the Sound Transit Board is expected to identify a preferred alternative and other alternatives to study in the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). You can learn more about the alternatives we’re currently studying by navigating to the Welcome page or selecting your neighborhood specific segment tab at the top of the page.

Identifying a preferred alternative

To help reach a preferred alternative, we are engaging the public for your feedback throughout alternatives development. There are a variety of ways you and your community can get involved and be heard, such as participating in neighborhood forums, following us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, and visiting soundtransit.org. You can also track the work and progress of the Stakeholder Advisory and Elected Leadership groups, which provide feedback and make recommendations to the Sound Transit Board as alternatives move through further evaluation and analysis.

After the Sound Transit Board identifies a preferred alternative, which will include route and station options, the project will advance to environmental review and final design. The Board will determine the project to be built after the Final EIS is issued.

Environmental review and preliminary design

Following alternatives development, the project will enter environmental review and preliminary design. During this phase, we will prepare and publish a Draft EIS and hold public hearings to ask for your comments on the draft. The Final EIS will include updates as needed and responses to public and agency comments. The EIS analysis and public and agency comments will inform the Sound Transit Board’s selection of the final project to build. When environmental review is complete and the Board has selected the project to be built, the Federal Transit Administration can then issue a Record of Decision. In addition to completing the Draft and Final EIS, we will conduct preliminary engineering for the preferred alternative and begin to evaluate project delivery options for construction.