Light rail parking garages too big, too small or just right?

Published 3:20 pm Tuesday, December 2, 2025

When light rail service starts Saturday, Dec. 6, to Kent, Des Moines and Federal Way, Sound Transit will soon discover if its 2,831 parking spots at the three new stations are too many, not enough or just the right amount.

Drivers will find 502 parking spaces at Kent Des Moines Station; 1,105 at Star Lake (Kent) Station; and 1,224 at the Federal Way Downtown Station along the $2.5 billion, 7.8-mile light rail extension from Angle Lake in SeaTac.

Many people will reach the stations by car, others by bus, bicycle or walking.

“We’re looking forward to providing more transit service to South King County and making it easy to use no matter how you get to Link light rail,” said Sound Transit spokesperson David Jackson in a Nov. 24 email.

Sound Transit staff estimates the new Federal Way Link will draw an average of about 25,000 daily riders along the extension that will connect to Seattle and Lynnwood and eventually to Bellevue. Riders will come from the three cities where the stations sit and draw from Fife, Milton, Tacoma and Auburn, according to Jackson.

Drivers from those cities are most likely among those who now park at Angle Lake Station, 2702 S. 200th St., which has a parking capacity of 1,160 spots and is 98% full during the average weekday, Jackson said.

When it comes to projected usage of the parking garages at the three new stops, however, Sound Transit doesn’t have any numbers.

“No projections on use,” Jackson said.

And what about the impact to parking at Angle Lake Station with three new parking garages? Might there be fewer vehicles going there?

“Remains to be seen,” Jackson said.

Jackson said Sound Transit staff looked at several factors to determine the capacity of each parking garage.

“Parking is constructed based on area land use, existing parking use and auto, transit and pedestrian trips,” Jackson said.

Sound Transit determined parking capacity for the Kent Des Moines, Star Lake and Federal Way stations nearly 10 years ago. The Kent City Council, during several planning meetings with Sound Transit in 2017 and 2018, pushed for more parking spaces for the garage along Pacific Highway South across from Highline College.

“We looked at street capacity and how congested are the roadways surrounding the station,” said then-Sound Transit project manager Sandra Fann to the council during a 2017 meeting, according to a Kent Reporter article. “As you know, the Kent-Des Moines Road is a very congested roadway and so is SR 99 (Pacific Highway South). You don’t want to put too many parking spaces in one location unless the roadways can accommodate that. … It does not mean more spaces cannot be built.”

The council also voiced concerns about not enough parking due to how the Angle Lake Station filled up each morning.

Chelsea Levy, then-Sound Transit government and community relations officer, told the council that many questions about parking loomed.

“Parking is a challenge for all of the transit agencies,” Levy said in a previous Kent Reporter article. “There is so much demand for transit in our region. Providing access is a key thing of what we are focusing on. The region cannot afford for us to build a parking stall for every single person who wants to drive to the station, so we are looking for ways to provide access for bus connections and increased development around the stations to allow people to walk and bike to the stations.”

When the council and Sound Transit reached a contract agreement, the parking garage capacity at Kent Des Moines Station remained at 500 spots.

Back to current projections, the agency has no estimate about how much the three new stations might reduce commuter traffic along Interstate 5.

“Remains to be seen,” Jackson said.

Station restrooms

Restrooms are available in the parking garages at Kent Des Moines and Star Lake and at the station at Federal Way Downtown, Jackson said.

“They are an important amenity for longer trips,” he said. “Access will be controlled by security.”

The Kent City Council lobbied Sound Transit to include restrooms at the two parking garages in the city.

Free parking, for now

Drivers won’t be charged for parking at any of the light rail station garages, but that could change.

“Initially,” Jackson said about the free parking. “Longer term, Sound Transit is studying paid parking at our facilities.”

That study began in 2024 when the agency looked at charging $2 a day for a permit to reserve a spot, especially at station parking lots that fill to capacity.

“Pre-pandemic we had a program to reserve spots,” Jackson said. “It will come back at some point. At some stations currently we have reserved spots for carpools, Angle Lake being one of them.”

The agency is looking for an additional revenue source. It is currently funded by a portion of local sales tax, property tax (within its service area), motor vehicle excise tax (within its service area), rental car tax, fare revenue and federal grants and loans.

Train times

Trains will run every 8 to 15 minutes, 5 a.m. to midnight, seven days a week. Service starts around 11 a.m. on opening day, Dec. 6.

Rides from Federal Way are scheduled to take 16 minutes to Sea-Tac Airport, 56 minutes to Westlake Station in downtown Seattle, 62 minutes to the University of Washington and about 82 minutes to Lynnwood.

Train prices

Adult one-way fares on Link are $3. Day passes automatically cap at $6. Youth 18 and under ride free. Reduced fares are available for seniors (65 and older pay $1), riders with lower incomes, and riders with disabilities.

Sound Transit has fare ambassadors out on platforms and trains to answer questions.

Ways to pay

• The Transit GO Ticket app is a great way to get anywhere you want to go in the Seattle area. according to Sound Transit. From paying for tickets on the go using cash or credit card; to being a safe, contactless way to pay your transit fare, the Transit GO Ticket has all the features you need right in the palm of your hand.

• The ORCA card is the easiest way to pay your transit fares in the Puget Sound region, according to Sound Transit. After loading your ORCA card with E-purse (electronic purse) funds, and/or a monthly pass, you’re ready to ride. The ORCA card will automatically track paid fares and transfers, so you don’t have to. Go to myorca.com.

• Ticket machines. You can buy a one-way ticket or an all day/round trip ticket for Link light rail at all Link light rail stations. You can pay with cash or a credit/debit card.

For more information, go to www.soundtransit.org/ride-with-us/how-to-pay.

• Kent Des Moines Station: West of I-5 at South 236th Street on the border of Kent and Des Moines, it is an elevated station that serves Highline College, includes a 500 space parking garage, and features transit oriented development opportunities including a 233 unit affordable housing project from Mercy Housing Northwest set to break ground this winter.

• Star Lake Station (Kent): At South 272nd Street and 26th Avenue South, just west of I-5, Star Lake station will serve as a key interchange for Link, Sound Transit bus Express, King County Metro, and park-and-ride commuters. The elevated station features a new bike and pedestrian access path to the station plaza, connects to the existing freeway station, and will add 1,100 parking spaces in a new garage that replaced surface parking.

• Federal Way Downtown: At the Federal Way Transit Center, 31911 23rd Ave. S., this elevated station serves one of the busiest transit centers in the region from the heart of Downtown Federal Way. The station features 400 new parking spaces in addition to existing garages, public restrooms, and a rebuilt street grid with pedestrian and bicycle improvements and opportunities for affordable housing and sustainable transit-oriented development.

• For more information: Go online to soundtransit.org/southkinglink.