(Image: Sound Transit)

Originally planned for a 2023 opening, there is good news above the waters of Lake Washington as Sound Transit is celebrating a key milestone this week: the first electric light rail train has successfully passed across the I-90 bridge connecting Seattle to the Eastside.

The opening of the line — and the Central District’s ready and waiting Judkins Park Station — is on track for 2026:

Late last Monday and into the morning hours of Tuesday, Sept. 8-9, the first Link light rail train crossed the I-90 Homer M. Hadley floating bridge across Lake Washington under its own power. This momentous milestone marked the first time a powered light rail vehicle traversed a floating bridge, anywhere in the world. Crews went on to repeat this landmark trip between Mercer Island and Judkins Park stations several times and at increasing speeds of up to 55 miles per hour.

Construction of the 2 Line connecting from downtown through Judkins Park and across the I-90 bridge has been a much larger technical challenge than expected with the defective track bed having to be rebuilt twice.

When the $4.9 billion project launches, Sound Transit will shift to operating connected 1 Line and 2 Line light rail systems between Seattle and the Eastside.

Meanwhile, officials are scrambling over the latest economic forecasts and predicted budget issues as the next Sound Transit expansions are shaped. CHS reported here on political maneuverings Seattle officials jockey to keep the West Seattle (2032) and Ballard (2039) light rail expansions on schedule.

$5 A MONTH TO HELP KEEP CHS PAYWALL-FREE

Subscribe to CHS to help us hire writers and photographers to cover the neighborhood. CHS is a pay what you can community news site with no required sign-in or paywall. To stay that way, we need you. Become a subscriber to help us cover the neighborhood for $5 a month -- or choose your level of support 🖤