West - Seattle Light Rail - Mini Report

From someone who rarely takes mass transit (except in NYC), Seattle's new Light Rail system was a very easy and economic way to get from SeaTac to downtown. I will take this train again!

I have a small train-ride report on my website (http://bit.ly/nKTzNh).

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That's a fun little report, thanks for sharing! I agree that the walk to the "Airport" station is a long one, but once you get past that, it sure beats the old bus route that used to ply this route. Plus the downtown stations with their shared bus/light rail roadways are unique and fun!

That's a fair write-up. Thanks for posting it. The light rail may be clean and comfortable, but it sure takes a long time. As you point out it's 35 minutes from the airport station to Westlake, plus the long walk to the station, plus the sitting around waiting for the train to leave. You can drive downtown in less than 15 minutes. The train route is anything but direct; it curlicues through various neighborhoods like a tossed garden hose. Seattle urban planning at its finest. :)

You also rightly point out that Westlake (and several other intermediate stations) can be sketchy after dark. Keep an eye out for ne'er-do-wells, or take a cab or the nonstop Airporter bus.

With the 'back door route' now shutdown until Halloween the light rail's 35 minutes doesn't look so bad!

For those not in the know: The Hwy 99 Alaskan Way Viaduct is in the process of being replaced with a tolled tunnel. The project will not be completed until 2016 but the southern portion of the viaduct is being torn down this week and a new section to span the gap to the tunnel's southern portal is being completed and connected. The traffic delays from the south are the most impacted and will delay trips due to the need to take surface streets or Interstate 5 into the city's center.

With the Occupy Seattle protests going on, Westlake may be the safest area in town right now... the popo is out in force :)

I have a late-night arrival (11:55 pm or something like that) from LAX into Seatac later this week. I need to be at the university the next morning, and I didn't know about this light-rail system until a few days ago.

But it seems that the last train leaving seatac going north is at 12:10 am, and I will have a checked bag, so there's no way I can use that rail system upon arrival to get me to a hotel close(r) to the university. And the rail system still leaves me about 4 miles short of the university anyways.

So I'm going to stay at an airport hotel and then probably take the rail in the morning, and then take a taxi from the last station (Westlake?) to the university. Will I have a problem hailing a cab? What's the likely cab fare for that ride? The rail station at Seatac looks like a long walk from the Raddison. ?

Or maybe I should just rent a car anyways. Walking to Avis is half the distance from the Raddison to the rail station.

I have a late-night arrival (11:55 pm or something like that) from LAX into Seatac later this week. I need to be at the university the next morning, and I didn't know about this light-rail system until a few days ago.

But it seems that the last train leaving seatac going north is at 12:10 am, and I will have a checked bag, so there's no way I can use that rail system upon arrival to get me to a hotel close(r) to the university. And the rail system still leaves me about 4 miles short of the university anyways.

So I'm going to stay at an airport hotel and then probably take the rail in the morning, and then take a taxi from the last station (Westlake?) to the university. Will I have a problem hailing a cab? What's the likely cab fare for that ride? The rail station at Seatac looks like a long walk from the Raddison. ?

Or maybe I should just rent a car anyways. Walking to Avis is half the distance from the Raddison to the rail station.
A taxi from downtown (Westlake) to the UW will be in the $20 - $25 range.

Not sure how many days your meetings last, but you should be advised that traffic on the airport < > downtown corridor is horrendous, caused by the temporary closure of a key portion SR 99 (the alternative north-south route between the airport and downtown) due to construction. Using the light rail - or any transport from the airport to the UW in the morning - is going to be quite unpleasant, since many of the commuters who normally use SR 99 will be using alternative routes. Reports this morning (second day of this closure) are that times in excess of 1 hour from the airport to downtown (typically 20 min.) are not unusual.

My STRONG recommendation would be either to rent a car on arrival and drive up to the UW area that night, and stay at one of several hotels near the campus (most of which have free parking, so the car is not an impediment) or else just take a cab to one of those hotels (around $50). The car will probably be cheaper if it's just one day, but you can do the math. I would NOT stay at the airport and try to travel in during the morning hours the next day.

http://www.universityinnseattle.com/
http://www.watertownseattle.com/
http://www.silvercloud.com/university/
http://www.hoteldeca.com/

I agree with Gardyloo

Just take a cab or supershuttle to a hotel closer to the University.

If you're willing to take the train from SeaTac to Westlake, you might as well take public transit all the way to the UW. The multitude of express buses to the UW depart from the exact same location as the final stop of the Link Light Rail. You would literally step off the train and step onto the bus. Check the metro website for routes 71, 72, and 73, all of which go directly to the UW.

That being said, it would be more convenient (if $ is not a primary concern) to just stay at the UW that night. Watertown is particularly nice and conveniently located.

That's a fair write-up. Thanks for posting it. The light rail may be clean and comfortable, but it sure takes a long time. As you point out it's 35 minutes from the airport station to Westlake, plus the long walk to the station, plus the sitting around waiting for the train to leave. You can drive downtown in less than 15 minutes.

You can be driven downtown in less than 15 minutes (for a price) but you can't drive it in that amount of time, unless you've managed to park your car curbside and not have it towed. You are either going to have to retrieve your car from the garage or elsewhere, or take the time to rent a car. No one is disputing that it's often quicker to take a taxi, but depending on the time of day even that's not certain when you factor in rush hour traffic or the queue at the taxi stand.

You can be driven downtown in less than 15 minutes (for a price) but you can't drive it in that amount of time, unless you've managed to park your car curbside...

Not to quibble, but if we both started from the Delta baggage carousel, me heading for my car in the central parking garage, you for the light rail, I am virtually certain I would be down the corkscrew, paid off, and departing airport real estate before your train pulled out of the station. Except during rush hours the trains depart every ten or fifteen minutes, so if you just miss one the trip to Seattle CBD can take you almost one hour.