Central Link Light Rail: Tukwila Station to Stadium Station

Yesterday was the Microsoft Company Meeting, at Safeco Field in Seattle. I decided that this was a perfect opportunity to try the new Central Link Light Rail from the Tukwila Station near home to the Stadium Station near Safeco Field.

Craig dropped me off at Tukwila Station around 9:20 AM, and I went up the first set of escalators to the ticketing level. No signage indicated where I should tap my ORCA card, andI noticed that the train was already in the station, so I went up another escalator to the boarding platform and got on the train. Looking around, I didn’t see any place to tap my ORCA card, so I asked one of the ride assistant. He said I needed to go back down to the ticketing level and find one of the tap boxes. “But don’t worry,” he told me, “the train wouldn’t leave for another 5 minutes.” So, back down to the ticketing level I went, found the tap box, tapped my ORCA card, and headed back up to the train. I found a seat in the front car of the train (facing forward). The seats, although appearing to be padded, actually contained little padding. And the seat itself was very short, leaving about 4-6 inches of my thigh with no support. Certainly not luxury seating.

At 9:26, we pulled out of the station. I think my car had maybe 5-10 people in it – certainly not a very full car. As we left the station, I noticed that (at least on the elevated section of the ride) the ride was definitely a train ride, swaying back and forth and the clickity-clack of the wheels. I also discovered that, although I was in the front car, the center section had two swivel floors to make the car more flexible. I sat back of the second swivel and noticed the sway a lot more there than I did going home when I sat between the two swivels. I wonder if the sway was the same or greater in the back of the last car.

Our first station was dutifully announced to a recorded female voice that also told us which side the doors would open on. As we pulled away from our first stop (Rainier Valley Station), we stopped at the stop light. And the next stop light. And the next stop light. It surprised me that we did not have the right of way at any of the surface/street level intersections.

We continued at surface level through the Mt. Baker Station and then continued underground to the Beacon Hill Station, which was in the tunnel. The tunnel, although similar to the bus and train tunnel at the end of the light rail run, seemed more confining with its darker interior. Also, although I expected to lose cell service in the tunnel, it still was a bit disconcerting and made the tunnel even more claustrophobic. After this station, we continued to Sodo Station and finally got to Stadium Station around 9:56. This time, I looked around to see where the ORCA tap boxes were located one, tapped my card, and headed the couple of blocks I had to walk to get to Safeco Field and the Company Meeting.

All in all, I enjoyed my first excursion on the Central Link Light Rail. I could have taken the Metro 150 bus from the Tukwila Park & Ride to the bus stop next to the Stadium Station, and done it in 22 minutes instead of 30, but the bus is definitely not as shiny and new. And, in the middle of the day, a 10-minute wait for the next rain is certainly better than a 30-minute wait if I miss the bus.