Light rail from Bellevue to Redmond opens to eager crowds

BELLEVUE, Wash. - People who live or work on King County's Eastside now have a new way to get around, thanks to a new light rail line. The Link 2 Line opened Saturday and is expected to help nearly 6,000 riders get from Redmond to Bellevue in 14 minutes.

Hundreds gathered on Saturday for the grand opening celebration in Bellevue. It’s a celebration that has been eight years in the making.

"You don’t have to deal with traffic if you don’t want to, you don’t have to spend more of your paycheck on gas just to get from one neighborhood to another," said King County Executive Dow Constantine.

The service runs through eight new stations across 6.6 miles of the Eastside. Gov. Jay Inslee, along with several elected leaders and Sound Transit members, spoke at the ribbon-cutting celebration.

"We will no longer have to wait years for a light rail to come to Bellevue, it will come every 10 minutes," Sen. Patty Murray said.

Eager crowds stood in line to be among the first to ride the line, including Rachel and Killian.

"In Europe and Asia, they have rail opening celebrations, we get that so rarely in America, so it’s really cool that it’s happening here," Killian said.

For those who spoke at Saturday’s grand opening, this light rail is leading the community down the right track for years to come.

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The service runs seven days a week. Then in August, the 1 Line will extend into Snohomish County to Lynnwood, according to SoundTransit. They add, in spring 2025, the 2 Line is expected to add two more stations in Redmond.