Why connect Seattle and the Eastside with light rail?
East Link and Central Link will connect the region’s population and employment centers of Seattle, Bellevue and Redmond to each other and to Sea-Tac International Airport. The Eastside is a major economic engine in the Central Puget Sound area and is home to global leaders in technology, manufacturing, retail and finance. The Cities of Bellevue, Redmond, Issaquah and Kirkland all support light rail as the preferred mode of high capacity transit across I-90. The East King County population is expected to increase about 30 percent and employment to double by the year 2030. Moreover, in Bellevue, 70 percent of all future residential growth will occur in the city’s downtown. The Puget Sound Regional Council’s Vision 2020’s and subsequently Vision 2030’s strategy of directing this growth into centers connected by high capacity transit and light rail will keep the region moving and economically viable.
