Tukwila International Boulevard station

Location

Tukwila International Boulevard station is located on South 154th Street (Southcenter Boulevard) at the intersection of State Route 518 and State Route 99 (International Boulevard) in southern Tukwila. The highway junction is approximately 2 miles (3.2 km) north of Seattle–Tacoma International Airport and serves as its main entrance, also serving a nearby rental car facility and airport parking lots. The station is 1 mile (1.6 km) west of the Westfield Southcenter Mall, a major regional shopping center, and is connected via the RapidRide F Line. To the north of the station area is Tukwila's commercial district, featuring ethnic cuisine, including Indian, Chinese, East African and Mexican food.

The Tukwila International Boulevard station area consists primarily of single-family homes, with some multi-family residential and commercial along International Boulevard and State Route 518. Within a ¹⁄₂ mile (0.80 km) radius of the station is a population of 4,155 residents in 2,332 housing units, of which 95 percent are considered "affordable". The Puget Sound Regional Council describes the area as one dominated by "auto-oriented land uses" leading to "poor pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure that impedes walkability". In 2015, the King County Housing Authority purchased 286 apartments in a building near Tukwila International Boulevard station to preserve their affordable rates for low-income households.

The area surrounding the station is split between the cities of SeaTac and Tukwila by International Boulevard, leading to two comprehensive plans for transit-oriented development near the station. The city of SeaTac adopted a redevelopment proposal in 2006 for 42 acres (17 ha) of land west of International Boulevard, desiring mixed-use development to bring an additional 2,600 people daily to the area by 2020. The city of Tukwila adopted an urban renewal plan for the area in 1998 and a comprehensive plan in 2015, both envisioning improved commercial access and additional residential units in the area around the station and on International Boulevard.

History

The earliest proposal for a light rail station near Tukwila came from the Puget Sound Council of Governments in 1986, as part of a north–south line from Lynnwood to Federal Way. The station would have been located along State Route 518 northwest of the Southcenter Mall, between stations at Seattle–Tacoma International Airport and on Interurban Avenue. A regional transit authority (RTA) was formed in the early 1990s to study a regional light rail system, first proposing a $6.7 billion plan in 1995 with an at-grade light rail line on Pacific Highway (later International Boulevard) with stops at South 144th and 158th streets in Tukwila. The proposal was opposed by the Tukwila City Council and rejected by voters in March 1995, leading to a smaller proposal submitted to voters the following year by the RTA. The second proposal, called "Sound Move", selected a station near South 158th Street in Tukwila and was approved by voters in November 1996.

The RTA (renamed to Sound Transit) began a series of public hearings in late 1997 to determine the routing of the regional light rail line. Tukwila leaders preferred a route serving the Southcenter Mall that would add six to seven minutes of travel time and $150 million in project costs. Ultimately, Sound Transit chose an at-grade line on International Boulevard as their preferred routing in February 1999, which the city argued would interfere with their near-term plans to revamp the street. Ultimately, the board selected a light rail route in November 1999 including International Boulevard through Tukwila and an elevated station at South 154th Street with a park and ride facility.

Several weeks before the November 1999 decision, the city of Tukwila proposed an alternate alignment using State Route 599, Interstate 5, and State Route 518 known as the "Tukwila Freeway Route". The alignment would keep light rail off of International Boulevard and serve a station at South 154th Street, but was criticized by business owners for not serving the city's urban center at Southcenter Mall. Sound Transit determined that the new proposal was announced too late to be examined in the initial environmental impact statement in November 1999, but approved a formal review in May 2000. On February 8, 2001, the Sound Transit Board revised the preferred alternative for the Central Link light rail project by adding the Tukwila Freeway Route to the alignment. Budgetary problems with the Central Link light rail project lead to the shortening of the line in late 2001 by Sound Transit, terminating at the South 154th Street park and ride instead of Seattle–Tacoma International Airport. The new terminus was adopted in November 2001, allowing for construction to begin on the light rail system.

In June 2002, the Tukwila City Council rejected a memorandum of agreement with Sound Transit that would have expedited processing of light rail permits issued by the city. Although the city council supported the Tukwila Freeway Route in 2001, the lack of service to Southcenter drove the rejection despite lobbying from elected officials in other cities. Despite initial fears that the decision would jeopardize federal funding for the light rail project, Sound Transit was granted its application for a $500 million commitment later that month. The city council approved expedited permitting in 2004 after requesting Sound Transit increase the parking capacity at the future South 154th Street station and park and ride to 600 stalls, at an additional cost of $5 million.

The station, officially named Tukwila International Boulevard in January 2005, began construction in 2005. A $231.7 million construction contract for the station and 4.22 miles (6.79 km) of elevated guideway towards Rainier Beach station was awarded to PCL Construction in March 2005. Site clearing at the future station, which was previously an airport parking lot operated by Ajax, began the following month. By late November, the first elevated guideway segment was completed and column erection at the station was near completion. Formation of the mezzanine and main structural elements of the station were completed from late 2005 to early 2007. The station and segment through Tukwila were declared substantially complete by PCL Construction in March 2008 and all major work at the station was finished by late June.

The station and its 600-space park and ride opened on July 18, 2009, the first day of Central Link service, and became the line's southern terminus. The following week, shuttle bus service to Seattle–Tacoma International Airport began operating from the station every 10 to 15 minutes to the airport's main terminal. The service was suspended after the opening of SeaTac/Airport station on December 19, 2009, replacing Tukwila as the new southern terminus of the line.

Station layout

Tukwila International Boulevard station consists of two side platforms elevated 51 feet (16 m) above ground level and connected by a mezzanine and a series of escalators, stairs and elevators. Designed by David Hewitt and his Seattle-based architecture firm, the station's architecture includes elements meant to evoke "airplanes and liftoff", including an angular roof that is shaped like the wings of an airplane. At platform level, the station features large glass windows with views of Tukwila, Mount Baker, and the Sea-Tac airport control tower. Below the platform and mezzanine levels is a bus station and kiss and ride area that faces a 600-stall, free park and ride (which includes an auxiliary lot located across Southcenter Boulevard). Since 2013, 62 additional parking spaces have been leased from a nearby garage; in 2016, the main lot began a permit parking trial that reserves spaces for registered carpool vehicles for a monthly fee of $5. The station, like all others on the Link light rail network, has accessibility features required by the federal Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.

Art

Tukwila International Boulevard station also houses four art installations as part of the "STart" program, which allocates a percentage of project construction funds to art projects to be used in stations.

Sculptor Tad Savinar has three works at the station's mezzanine and platform levels. A Drop of Sustenance, suspended above the escalators to the northbound platform, features a large raindrop that represents the "living water" used for sustenance for the region's plants and animals; The Seattle Times called it a "regionally apt pop-art image" and praised its wittiness. A Molecule of the Region on the southbound entry features memories and sayings about Tukwila from residents arranged in a ball-and-stick molecular model. The third work, Voices of Tukwila, features more quotes from residents etched into tiles on the platform.

At ground level is Clark Wiegman's Soundings, an abstract representation of two halves of a hazelnut. One of the halves includes a handle etched with the path of the Duwamish River through Tukwila, carved in an illuminated, blue ribbon. The piece, which also features ambient noise, was inspired by the Chinook Jargon name for Tukwila, k'ap'uxac (translated to "place of hazelnuts").

The station's pictogram depicts a canoe, representing the city's history as a transportation hub at the intersection of three rivers. It was created by Christian French as part of the Stellar Connections series and its points represent nearby destinations, including Tukwila City Hall, Fort Dent Park, Foster High School and several community parks.

Services

Tukwila International Boulevard station is part of Sound Transit's Link light rail line, which runs from Seattle–Tacoma International Airport through the Rainier Valley and Downtown Seattle to the University of Washington. It is the second northbound station from Angle Lake station and fourteenth southbound station from University of Washington station, situated between SeaTac/Airport and Rainier Beach stations. Link trains serve Tukwila International Boulevard 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, Link trains arrive at Tukwila International Boulevard station every 10 minutes during midday hours and every 15 minutes during mornings and evenings. The station is approximately 3 minutes from SeaTac/Airport station and 35 minutes from Westlake station in Downtown Seattle.

Tukwila International Boulevard station is also served by four bus routes, including two RapidRide lines, operated by King County Metro: the RapidRide A Line, which terminates at the station and travels south along State Route 99 through SeaTac, the Highline College area and Federal Way to Federal Way Transit Center; the RapidRide F Line, which passes through the station on its route between Burien, Southcenter Mall and Renton; route 124, which terminates at the station and travels north through Tukwila, Georgetown and SODO to Downtown Seattle; and route 128, which connects the station to West Seattle, White Center and Southcenter. The routes use the plaza-level bus station under the station, which opened on September 19, 2009, and includes three bays, a public restroom, and real-time arrival screens.