Sound Transit has broken ground on the $3.7bn East Link light rail extension project that will connect Seattle, Mercer Island, Bellevue and Redmond's Overlake area and Microsoft campus.
The 14-mile light rail will provide 24-minute trips from Bellevue to Westlake Station in downtown Seattle.
Contractors have started site preparation just south of downtown Bellevue near East Main Street and Northeast 112th Street, where a tunnel portal will allow trains to transition from the surface to a 1/3-mile-long tunnel before re-emerging at the surface near Northeast Sixth Street.
East Link's 10 stations are expected to open in 2023. By 2030, East Link is likely to carry about 50,000 people daily.
