The Highline area will receive three new light rail stations, funds for Burien's transit center, a rebuilt Tukwila commuter station and expanded express bus service as a result of the passage of Sound Transit's Proposition One on the Nov. 4 ballet.

"This is a vote of generosity for the next generation," declared King County Chairwoman Julia Patterson.

Patterson noted that a similar mass transit proposition was turned down by voters in 1968. She said the project, if approved, would have been completed in 1985 with the bonds paid off by last year.

"The next generation won't have that story to tell," Patterson added. "Their story will be that their parents invested in their future."

Patterson, a SeaTac resident, serves on the Sound Transit board.

As a result of the first phase of the Sound Transit project, previously approved by voters, the Tukwila light rail station at South 154th Street and Tukwila International Boulevard will open this summer with the Sea-Tac Airport/SeaTac city center station station at South 176th Street and International Boulevard set to open in a year from now. The SeaTac station will feature a "kiss 'n ride" lot.

Sounder comuter train service will provide up to nine round trips per weekday by next year, according to Patterson.

With the recent passage of Prop. 1, light rail stations will be added at South 200th Street and International Boulevard in SeaTac, near Highline Community College in Des Moines, and South 272nd Street in Redondo/Star Lake.

The 200th station will be the first one built with the Highline College station expected within nine years, Patterson said.

The exact location of the Des Moines station has not been determined, according to Patterson. It may be near the Des Moines-Kent Road intersection on Pacific Highway South or further south on the highway, closer to the college. Highline is located at South 240th Street.

Tukwila's Sounder commuter train station will also be rebuilt as a result of the vote. Patterson expects a 65 percent increase in Sounder service with more round trips and longer trains.

Service expansion will depend on revenue flow and cooperation from Burlington Northern Railroad, which owns the track, she noted.

Burien will also benefit with additional funding to build the park 'n ride lot at the city's transit center. Riders will be able to access both South Transit and Metro routes.

"This is really, really important to Burien," Patterson added. "It boosts their dream of transit-oriented development."

Proposition One also provides funds to increase express bus service by up to 25 percent, Patterson reported.

Expanded express bus routes will include Routes 560 from Burien to Seattle, 565 from Federal Way to Rention and 574 from Tacoma to the airport.

Patterson also said officials will determine potential new routes for express bus service.

Development funds were also set aside to prepare for a future vote to connect light rail to Tacoma, according to Patterson. Sound Transit will buy right-of-way land, prepare a plan and complete early engineering.

"We will be ready to roll to Tacoma," Patterson declared.

Patterson admitted she is surprised Proposition One passed so handily in the midst of an economic downturn.

"People realized we need alternatives to roads," Patterson said. "The people concluded the the benefits are worth the cost.

"If we don't have alternmatives, our road systems will fail. We have to maintain our transportation systems for the livabilitry of the region."

She also admits that Sound Transit board members didn't consider the potential employment boost of the construction project.

But Patterson estimated Sound Transit expansion will create thousands of new jobs and be a stimulus to the local community.

Also the expansion will help transit-oriented developments planned by Highline cities around the new stations, she said.

"Maybe they will be delayed somewhat by the economy, but the potential is there," Patterson concluded.