Washington’s Central Puget Sound Regional Transit Authority’s $3.7-billion, 14-mile East Link extension through Bellevue offers a lesson in diversity. Not only does the 10-station light rail link from Seattle to Redmond include three different contract types out of seven major contracts, but East Link also features two interstate highway crossings, a tunnel and the world’s first light rail built on a floating bridge.
“Most people jump right to our work on the floating bridge,” says Sound Transit’s Mike Bell, senior executive project director. “It is the only place in the world where light rail is on a floating bridge, and there’s lots of engineering and research behind that design. For me, the most interesting thing about this project is the diversity of the work.”