2026 has been a big year for trains in Puget Sound. In January, the Federal Way Link Extension completed its first full month of operation. Simulated service on the 2 Line began in February, providing 4 minute frequencies for the first time between Seattle and Lynnwood. In March, the Crosslake Connection finally connected the 2 Line with Seattle. Link ridership jumped 46% in April thanks to the new service across Lake Washington. In May, the Sound Transit Board confirmed funding for several ST3 Link extensions (at the cost of other extensions). In June, Sound Transit welcomed passengers aboard new Sounder trains and set multiple Link ridership records. The USA vs Belgium World Cup match in early July helped Link surpass 300,000 passengers in one day for the first time ever. Last month, transit agencies in Snohomish, King, and Pierce counties restructured their bus networks to cement Link as the backbone for regional transportation in Puget Sound.

To add to the list, Sound Transit is opening a new Link station and Amtrak is rolling out next-generation trains in September.

News and commentary headlines from the past week.

News:

• RapidRide I Line construction update (Metro Matters).
• Seattle had record-breaking bike traffic this summer. What’s behind the numbers? (KUOW)
• Traffic Safety Package Advances with Change Targeting Historic Districts (The Urbanist).
• We worked through the summer to keep you moving this fall (and beyond!) (SDOT Blog).
• Seattle’s Speed Camera Program Enters New Frontier (The Urbanist).
• What happens when something goes wrong in a rideshare in Washington? (CascadePBS).
• Northwest rail fans eager for Sept. 30 debut of Amtrak’s Airo fleet (KUOW)
• Zahilay Announces More Than $19.5 Million in New Housing Investments (The Urbanist).
• Wilson Seeks to Clean House Ahead of First Budget Rollout (The Urbanist).
• Housing Advocates, Workers Pack City Hall to Support Temporary Fee Break (The Urbanist).
• Host a Trick-or-Streets celebration on your block – Apply by October 20 (SDOT Blog)
• Mayor Katie Wilson announces proposed 2027-2028 budget (Office of the Mayor). Further reporting is expected to be published today.

Commentary:

• Greater Seattle: Councilmember Foster Breaks the MHA Logjam (PubliCola)
• Op-Ed: Seattle Needs More Than a 10-Minute Walk or Roll to a Park (The Urbanist).
• Seattle needs a new ‘process’ (Real Change)

This is an Open Thread.

Not Just Bikes finally has something good to say about Toronto transit. Not 100% good of course. This is the Eglington line that opened in February. Not to be confused with the Finch West line (slow), or the Ontario line (under construction, and we presented as an automated model for Ballard). Here’s Toronto’s current map of subway, light rail, and streetcar services.

This is an open thread.

On August 24, 2026, Kent’s long-awaited Quiet Zone took effect along the BNSF Railway mainline through downtown. This designation, granted by the Federal Railroad Administration in June, no longer requires trains to sound their horn when approaching an at-grade crossing. Over the past 14 years, the City of Kent has worked to meet the necessary requirements to achieve a Quiet Zone. Recent infrastructure upgrades include building raised concrete medians, adding additional signs, and refreshing pavement markings. In a non-Quiet Zone area, all trains are required to sound their horn 15-20 seconds before each street crossing.

News and commentary from the past week.

Transit & streets:

• New Airo Trains Start Rolling on Amtrak Cascades September 30 (The Urbanist).
• Executive Zahilay joins South King County leaders to celebrate new Metro Flex service in Auburn and Federal Way (Metro Matters).
• Faulty Pantograph Blamed for Sound Transit’s Apple Cup Train Stall (The Urbanist).
• RapidRide J Line upgrades take shape in Eastlake, U District, South Lake Union (SDOT Blog).
• Vehicle resident legislation heads toward City Council vote (MyBallard).
• Bellevue Council Faces Decision Point on Parking Reform (The Urbanist).
• Person driving at freeway speeds on I-90 Trail raises serious trail security concerns (Seattle Bike Blog).

Housing:

• Environmental Complaints Against Seattle Growth Plan Thrown Out in State Ruling (The Urbanist).
• Seattle Creates ‘Do Not Solicit’ List to Curb Predatory Real Estate Outreach (South Seattle Emerald).
• Wilson slows homelessness plan including shelter goals in roll-out of 2027 budget proposal (Capitol Hill Seattle Blog).

Miscellaneous:

• In 2025, there were many fewer reported crimes in Seattle’s central business district, but increases in surrounding neighborhoods (The Seattle Times, $). Note: Seattle Times’ analysis does not consider per-capita rates.
• Seattle Youth Mentorship Program brings young people’s voices to the forefront on transportation equity issues (SDOT Blog).
• Op-Ed: Building Toward a Greener, Housing-Abundant Seattle (The Urbanist).
• Greater Seattle: Third Places (PubliCola)

This is an Open Thread.

The downtown tunnel will close early at 11 pm September 15-17 for planned maintenance. This is only in the evenings and won’t affect daytime service. The last Link trains through the tunnel each direction will be:

• 10:30 pm to Lynnwood: 2 Line westbound/northbound at Judkins Park.
• 10:38 pm to Federal Way: 1 Line southbound at Capitol Hill.
• 10:44 pm to Redmond: 2 Line westbound/northbound at Capitol Hill.

Or looking at the entire train runs:

• 2 Line westbound/northbound: Downtown Redmond at 9:04, Judkins Park at 9:40, Capitol Hill at 9:53, and on to Lynnwood.
• 1 Line northbound: Federal Way at 9:45, SODO at 10:30, Capitol Hill at 10:44, and on to Lynnwood.
• 1 Line southbound: Lynnwood at 10:10, Capitol Hill at 10:38, SODO at 10:51, and on to Federal Way.
• 2 Line southbound/eastbound: Lynnwood at 10:16, Capitol Hill at 10:44, Judkins Park at 10:57, and on to Redmond.

1 Line shuttle buses will run every 10-15 minutes between Capitol Hill and SODO stations. 2 Line shuttle buses will run every 10-15 minutes between Capitol Hill and Judkins Park stations. An earlier announcement said the shuttle buses would start earlier at 9pm, but Monday’s announcement doesn’t mention this,. so they may or may not start that early.

Check Sound Transit’s service alerts for the latest updates. A multilingual translation like is available at 800-823-9230 for passengers with limited English proficiency.

The reason for this is to extend Link’s after-hours maintenance period this month to make the system more resilient. I’m eager for Link to get more reliable someday so I’m glad for this maintenance.

J-Man Explores rides the Red and Green Vine BRT lines in Vancouver, Washington, after taking MAX and an interstate C-Tran route from Portland. He argues they aren’t BRT but they are frequent. He also takes a walking tour of the upcoming Purple line corridor, which is expected to open next year, in downtown Vancouver and new urban villages.

This is an open thread.

Yesterday, a coalition of transit advocates launched “Hop On Board!”, the official campaign urging Seattle voters to pass the renewal and expansion of the Seattle Transit Measure this November. Speakers at the event included Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson, Councilmember Alexis Mercedes Rinck, ATU 587 President Greg Woodfill, Nondrivers Alliance founder Anna Zivarts, Transit Riders Union General Manager Lam Ho, and Transportation Choices Coalition‘s Executive Director Kirk Hovenkotter and Policy Director Katy Ricchiuto.

The Transportation Choices Coalition is leading local advocates pushing for expansion of the transit measure, which proposes to increase the current 0.15% sales tax for transit to 0.3%, the maximum allowed under recently adopted state law. If approved by voters, the measure would take effect in April 2027.

On Wednesday, SDOT announced four new speed cameras will be installed across Seattle in 2027. These four cameras are the first of 10 cameras that will be installed by March 2029, per Mayor Wilson’s Vision Zero executive order. The selected locations were chosen as they are some of the most dangerous sections of Seattle’s road network. Speed cameras cannot replace full road redesigns, but they are an effective temporary measure until a concrete redesign is implemented. The four cameras will be installed at:

• Rainier Ave S (northbound between S Holgate St and S Jackson St)
• E Marginal Way S (between S Fidalgo St and Diagonal Ave S)
• Rainier Ave S (between S Norfolk St and 51st Ave S)
• Sand Point Way NE (between NE 74th St and Matthews Ave NE)

These broad sections will be narrowed down to the exact camera locations over the next few months. Signs warning drivers of the cameras will be installed 30 days before the cameras are turned on. Once the cameras are enabled, they will only issue warnings for the first 30 days.