Sound Transit 770 Airport Link

Undertaken to create flexibility for future capacity and the 2010 Winter Olympics in nearby Vancouver, BC, the 770 Airport Link is a critical component of Seattle’s Sound Transit network.  Connecting downtown Seattle to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport, the 1.7 mile LRT guideway includes 0.9 miles of elevated trackwork, three long span structures over key highways and roads, a pedestrian bridge and drop-off area, and a signature station at the south terminus.

Hatch Mott MacDonald, previously contracted to design Sound Transit’s 5-mile Tukwila alignment, was selected for the 770 Airport link as a follow-on assignment.  The preliminary and final design of the alignment was the responsibility of HMM and drew expertise from in-house civil, rail alignment, structural, station architecture, geotechnical, survey, landscape architecture, traffic and systems integration sub-groups.  The alignment was optimized to allow for minimum intrusion into the Seattle landscape while maximizing LRT vehicle speed.