U.S. Sen. Patty Murray joined Sound Transit and Port of Seattle officials on Sept. 22 to break ground for a light rail extension directly to Sea-Tac International Airport and major airport roadway improvements.

"Extending light rail service to the airport will give travelers fast and reliable service to and from downtown Seattle," said Murray.

"Sound Transit Link light rail projects are helping connect communities, reduce congestion, increase mobility, and grow our economy. I am proud to have been able to help fund their vision for the future.

"Today's achievement is another example of how working together we can improve our transportation infrastructure and keep Washington State strong and competitive well into the future."

"This really is a fantastic day for the region, the airport and the communities surrounding the airport," King County Councilwoman Julia Patterson, D-SeaTac, declared.

"Since the first planes took off from the Sea-Tac runways in the 40s, the airport and its surrounding communities have grown to be one of the region's largest.... Today's groundbreaking represents the changing face of South King County and the significance of this area to our region's economy."

Patterson, who serves on the Sound Transit board of directors, thanked "the cities of SeaTac and Tukwila for working so closely with Sound Transit to make our goal of running light rail to the airport by 2009 a reality."

Sound Transit Board Chairman and Pierce County Executive John Ladenburg noted, "Our partnership with the Port will deliver fast and reliable mass transit and expanded airport road capacity at the same time. This is exactly what our region needs to fight gridlock."

Plans for the 1.7-mile light rail extension and the road improvements are fully integrated, with construction divided into three major civil construction contracts.

The SeaTac/Airport light rail station will be built adjacent to the existing airport parking garage, with an elevated walkway connecting the station to the fourth level of the garage.

Another elevated walkway will cross International Boulevard, connecting light rail passengers with the SeaTac City Center and a passenger pick-up and drop-off area.

Airport roadway improvements include building a significantly longer return-to-terminal loop that will fulfill the major long-term need for increased airport vehicle capacity.

The existing return to terminal ramps at the north end of the parking garage will be taken out to make room for the light rail station and replaced with a new interchange.

North of the airport, the northbound lanes of the airport expressway will be moved to the east so light rail tracks can be built in the expressway median.

During construction, the Port, which operates the airport, and Sound Transit will work to minimize impacts on airport travelers. But travelers will need to allow more time to drive to and from the airport.

The first construction contract to get underway, which includes the majority of the airport roadway work, was awarded to Mowat Construction.

The most northerly Airport Link segment, which is primarily elevated, will be built by PCL Construction Services, which is currently building the Tukwila segment of the light rail project.

The third contract, for construction of the airport light rail station, will go out for bid this fall.

When light rail trains start running in 2009 they will arrive and depart up to every six minutes during peak hours and every 10 minutes during off-peak hours. Travel time to downtown Seattle will be 34 minutes.

Airport Link will open in December 2009, a few months after light rail starts running between downtown Seattle and Tukwila in summer 2009. Until the Airport Link begins service, free shuttle buses will carry light rail riders between Tukwila and the terminal.

Sound Transit estimates that by 2020 approximately 3,000 riders will use the airport station each day

Sea-Tac, the Pacific Northwest's largest international airport, provides more than 127,000 local jobs and generates $9.6 billion in overall business revenue and $415 million in state and local taxes.

For more information visit www.soundtransit.org/st2.