Bellevue is a city in the Eastside region of King County, Washington, United States, located across Lake Washington from Seattle. It is the third-largest city in the Seattle metropolitan area, and the fifth-largest city in Washington. It has variously been characterized as a satellite city, a suburb, a boomburb, or an edge city. The population was 151,854 at the 2020 census. The city's name is derived from the French term belle vue.
State Route 520 (SR 520) is a state highway and freeway in the Seattle metropolitan area, part of the U.S. state of Washington. It runs 13 miles (21 km) from Seattle in the west to Redmond in the east. The freeway connects Seattle to the Eastside region of King County via the Evergreen Point Floating Bridge on Lake Washington. SR 520 intersects several state highways, including Interstate 5 (I-5) in Seattle, I-405 in Bellevue, and SR 202 in Redmond.
The Downtown Seattle Transit Tunnel (DSTT), also referred to as the Metro Bus Tunnel, is a 1.3-mile-long (2.1 km) pair of public transit tunnels in Seattle, Washington, United States. The double-track tunnel and its four stations serve Link light rail trains on the 1 Line as it travels through Downtown Seattle. It runs west under Pine Street from 9th Avenue to 3rd Avenue, and south under 3rd Avenue to South Jackson Street. 1 Line trains continue north from the tunnel to Northgate station and south through the Rainier Valley past Seattle–Tacoma International Airport to Angle Lake station as part of Sound Transit's light rail network.
Transportation in Seattle is largely focused on the automobile like many other cities in western North America; however, the city is just old enough for its layout to reflect the age when railways and trolleys predominated. These older modes of transportation were made for a relatively well-defined downtown area and strong neighborhoods at the end of several former streetcar lines, now mostly bus lines.
Interstate 405 (I-405) is a north–south auxiliary Interstate Highway serving the Seattle region of Washington, United States. It bypasses Seattle east of Lake Washington, traveling through the Eastside area of King and Snohomish counties, providing an alternate route to I-5. The 30-mile (48 km) freeway serves the cities of Renton, Bellevue, Kirkland, and Bothell. I-405 terminates at I-5 in Tukwila and Lynnwood, and also intersects several major highways, including SR 167, I-90, SR 520, and SR 522.
The 1 Line, formerly Central Link, is a light rail line in Seattle, Washington, United States, and part of Sound Transit's Link light rail system. It serves 19 stations in the cities of Seattle, SeaTac, and Tukwila, traveling nearly 25 miles (40 km) between Northgate and Angle Lake stations. The line connects the University District, Downtown Seattle, the Rainier Valley, and Seattle–Tacoma International Airport. The 1 Line carried over 26 million total passengers in 2023, with an average of nearly 80,000 daily passengers on weekdays. It runs for 20 hours per day on weekdays and Saturdays, with headways of up to six minutes during peak hours, and reduced 18-hour service on Sundays and holidays.
Link light rail is a light rail rapid transit system serving the Seattle metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Washington. It is managed by Sound Transit in partnership with local transit providers, and consists of three non-connected lines: the 1 Line in King County, which travels for 26 miles (42 km) between Seattle and Seattle–Tacoma International Airport; the 2 Line in King County's Eastside region between Bellevue and Redmond; and the T Line in Pierce County, which runs for 4 miles (6.4 km) between Downtown Tacoma and Tacoma Dome Station. In 2023, the system had a ridership of 23.9 million, or about 78,600 per weekday as of the fourth quarter of 2023, primarily on the 1 Line. Trains run at frequencies of 6 to 24 minutes.
Lynnwood Transit Center, also known as Lynnwood TC, is a bus station and future light rail station in Lynnwood, Washington. It is the largest transit hub in southwestern Snohomish County and is served by Community Transit and Sound Transit Express. The transit center also includes a parking garage with 1,670 spaces and bicycle facilities.
The 2 Line, also known as the East Link Extension, is a light rail line serving the Eastside region of the Seattle metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Washington. It is part of Sound Transit's Link light rail system and runs for 6.6 miles (10.6 km) in the cities of Bellevue and Redmond. The initial segment serves eight stations between South Bellevue and Redmond Technology stations and opened on April 27, 2024. The full line is scheduled to open in 2025 and is planned to include 18 miles (29 km) from west to east and serve twelve stations in Downtown Seattle, Mercer Island, Bellevue, and Redmond. The 2 Line will continue through the Downtown Seattle Transit Tunnel and share stations with the 1 Line through to Lynnwood City Center station.
International District/Chinatown station is a light rail station that is part of the Downtown Seattle Transit Tunnel in Seattle, Washington, United States. The station is located at the tunnel's south end, at 5th Avenue South and South Jackson Street in the Chinatown-International District neighborhood, and is served by the 1 Line of Sound Transit's Link light rail system. The station is located adjacent to Sound Transit headquarters at Union Station, as well as intermodal connections to Amtrak and Sounder commuter rail at King Street Station and the First Hill Streetcar.
Downtown Bellevue is the central business district of Bellevue, Washington, United States. It is bounded by I-405 to the east, NE 12th Street to the north, 100th Ave NE to the west, and Main Street to the south, and covers an area of around 400 acres (160 ha). It is the second largest city center in Washington state, with more than 50,000 employees and 12,000 residents. Geographically centered near the heart of the Puget Sound region, downtown Bellevue is a regional growth center offering over 9 million square feet (840,000 m2) of Class A office space, various major retail and entertainment locations, more than 2,500 hotel rooms and almost 10,000 housing units.
Westlake station is a light rail station that is part of the Downtown Seattle Transit Tunnel in Seattle, Washington, United States. The station is located under Pine Street between 3rd and 6th avenues in Downtown Seattle, near Westlake Center and Westlake Park. It is served by the 1 Line, part of Sound Transit's Link light rail system, and also connected above ground by buses at several stops, the South Lake Union Streetcar, and the Seattle Center Monorail.
Downtown Redmond station is a future Link light rail station on the north side of Redmond Town Center shopping mall in downtown Redmond, Washington. It will be elevated located along Cleveland Street between 164th and 166th avenues.
South Bellevue station is an elevated light rail station located in Bellevue, Washington, United States, an eastern suburb of Seattle. It opened on April 27, 2024, as the western terminus of the 2 Line of Sound Transit's Link light rail system. The station has a park and ride garage with 1,500 stalls and bus service from King County Metro and Sound Transit Express.
Bellevue Transit Center (BTC) is a bus station and light rail station in Bellevue, Washington, a suburb of Seattle. It is the main transit hub for the Eastside of King County, serving 20 routes from King County Metro and Sound Transit Express. The transit center is the western terminus of the RapidRide B Line, which runs east to Redmond.
Wilburton station is an elevated Link light rail station in Bellevue, Washington, United States. It is served by the 2 Line, part of Sound Transit's Link light rail system, and opened in April 2024 as part of the line's starter segment. The station serves the area immediately east of Downtown Bellevue, including Lake Bellevue and the Overlake Hospital Medical Center.
Redmond Technology station, formerly Overlake Transit Center, is a bus and light rail station in Redmond, Washington, United States. The bus station opened in 2002 adjacent to State Route 520 on the headquarters campus of Microsoft. It was served by Sound Transit Express and King County Metro, as well as Microsoft's private shuttle buses. The light rail station is the eastern terminus of the 2 Line, part of Sound Transit's Link light rail system, and opened on April 27, 2024.
Overlake Village station is a light rail station in Redmond, Washington, United States. It is at-grade station on the 2 Line, part of Sound Transit's Link light rail system. The station serves the Overlake neighborhood and its existing park and ride. Construction began on the station in 2017 and it opened on April 27, 2024.
Sound Transit 3, abbreviated as ST3, was a ballot measure during the November 2016 elections in Seattle, Washington, proposing an expansion of the regional public transit system. The measure was proposed by Sound Transit, which was established by a similar initiative passed in 1996 and expanded by the Sound Transit 2 vote in 2008, who have operated regional transit systems in the Seattle metropolitan area since 1999. On November 8, 2016, Sound Transit 3 was approved by over 54 percent of voters in the Puget Sound region; voters in Pierce County rejected the measure, but the measure passed in King and Snohomish counties, and had an overall majority.
