Sound Transit says Ballard rail could open by 2042, or as late as 2060. Here's what Seattle's Council controls

Sound Transit told Ballard residents last week that it is still committed to bringing light rail to the neighborhood. The earliest possible opening is 2042, and the full line could take until 2060 if the agency has to rely on existing revenue, My Ballard reported on Oct. 23.

According to My Ballard, the forum was held Monday, Oct. 19, at the National Nordic Museum. Mayor Katie Wilson and Councilmember Dan Strauss, who sits on the Sound Transit board, both attended. The outlet put the Ballard line's price at about $10 billion, against an agency-wide funding gap of $34.5 billion. Voters who approved the 2016 Sound Transit 3 taxes were promised Ballard service by 2035, My Ballard noted.

The site reported these numbers for a 2042 opening:

• about $1 billion to buy land by 2030
• $7 billion to $9 billion for construction by 2033
• $300 million in the updated plan to finish design

In May, the agency said it could not yet afford the Smith Cove, Interbay and Market Street stations.

The leader of the advocacy group Save Ballard Rail told the site, "We see a roadmap, but a roadmap isn't a plan."

What our records add

Sound Transit is a regional agency with its own board and taxes. Seattle's City Council does not fund or build the line. Its role is approving where the city wants lines and stations, issuing permits through city departments, and planning the land around stations. Here is where that work stands in our records.

Station-area planning in Ballard. Strauss (District 6) filed OPCD-003 for Tuesday's Select Budget Committee. It would add $200,000 in 2027 for planning in the Ballard Regional Center, per the planning packet. Central Staff explains the gap: the city is writing plans for each of its seven regional centers, and funding from the 2022-2025 budgets is fully committed. The mayor's 2027-2028 budget adds no new money for that work. Four of the plans are expected in 2027, but Ballard's is not due until 2028. Eddie Lin and Alexis Mercedes Rinck are co-sponsors.

Another light rail item on the list. Strauss also filed a request (OPCD-004S, with Debora Juarez and Rinck) for the planning office to scope a feasibility study on putting a lid over Interstate 5 at Sound Transit's Pinehurst station in North Seattle. The scope would cover cost, public outreach, real estate and whether a lid could be built, and it would be due June 30, 2027.

The Council's last formal light rail approval. In July 2025 the Council adopted Resolution 32172 8-0 at its July 15, 2025 meeting. It approved the alignment and stations for the West Seattle Link Extension. The resolution's background section notes that Ballard Link remains part of the ST3 plan. It also cites a February 2025 executive order to speed up permitting for both extensions.

The most recent briefing. Sound Transit gave the Council an expansion program update at the Feb. 23 Council Briefing.

A small Ballard item, too. Strauss's SCL-001 would pay $40,000 a year so City Light can lease the former Market Street Substation site, 2826 Market St., to a community group for a garden. The City Light packet explains why the General Fund has to cover it: City Light can't let ratepayer property be used for free.

What's next

• Tuesday, Oct. 27: the Ballard planning, I-5 lid and Market Street items come up at the Select Budget Committee (OPCD item, City Light item).
• Nov. 4: the chair's balancing package shows which items survive. Strauss chairs the committee.
• Sound Transit's board, not the Council, decides the line's schedule and funding plan. My Ballard reported that Save Ballard Rail wants the agency to take a funding plan to the Legislature.