Westlake Station (Sound Transit)
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Westlake station is a light rail station that is part of the
Downtown Seattle Transit Tunnel The Downtown Seattle Transit Tunnel (DSTT), also referred to as the Metro Bus Tunnel, is a pair of public transit tunnels in Seattle, Washington, United States. The double-track tunnel and its four stations serve Link light rail trains on th ...
in
Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...
, Washington, United States. The station is located under
Pine Street Pine Street is a major east–west street in Seattle, Washington, United States. It travels parallel to Pike Street between Downtown Seattle and the retail core to Capitol Hill, the Central District, and Madrona. Street description Pine S ...
between 3rd and 6th avenues in Downtown Seattle, near
Westlake Center Westlake Center is a four-story shopping center and 25-story office tower in downtown Seattle, Washington, United States. The southern terminus of the Seattle Center Monorail, it is located across Pine Street from Westlake Park, between 4th and ...
and Westlake Park. It is served by the 1 Line, part of
Sound Transit Sound Transit (ST), officially the Central Puget Sound Regional Transit Authority, is a public transit agency serving the Seattle metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Washington. It operates the Link light rail system in Seattle and Tacoma, ...
's
Link light rail Link light rail is a light rail rapid transit system serving the Seattle metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Washington. It is managed by Sound Transit in partnership with local transit providers, and consists of two non-connected lines: ...
system, and also connected above ground by buses at several stops, the
South Lake Union Streetcar The South Lake Union Streetcar, officially the South Lake Union Line, is a streetcar route in Seattle, Washington, United States, forming part of the Seattle Streetcar system. It travels and connects Downtown Seattle to the South Lake Union n ...
, and the
Seattle Center Monorail The Seattle Center Monorail is an elevated straddle-beam monorail line in Seattle, Washington, United States. The monorail runs along 5th Avenue between Seattle Center and Westlake Center in Downtown Seattle, making no intermediate stops. ...
. Westlake station consists of two underground
side platform A side platform (also known as a marginal platform or a single-face platform) is a platform positioned to the side of one or more railway tracks or guideways at a railway station, tram stop, or transitway. A station having dual side platform ...
s, connected to the surface by entrances and a mezzanine level served by nearby
department store A department store is a retail establishment offering a wide range of consumer goods in different areas of the store, each area ("department") specializing in a product category. In modern major cities, the department store made a dramatic app ...
s. It is situated between
University Street station University Street station is a light rail Metro station, station that is part of the Downtown Seattle Transit Tunnel in Seattle, Washington, United States. The station is located under 3rd Avenue at University Street, near Benaroya Hall, and i ...
to the south, and the former
Convention Place station Convention Place was a bus station in Seattle, Washington, United States. It served as the northern terminus of the Downtown Seattle Transit Tunnel and was used by King County Metro and Sound Transit Express buses. Link light rail, which stops ...
to the north; Convention Place was only served by buses, however, and
Capitol Hill station Capitol Hill station is a light rail station in the Capitol Hill neighborhood of Seattle, Washington, United States. The station is served by Sound Transit's Link light rail system and is located near the intersection of Broadway and East Jo ...
is the next northbound light rail station. The transit tunnel was built in the 1980s by
King County Metro King County Metro, officially the King County Metro Transit Department and often shortened to Metro, is the public transit authority of King County, Washington, which includes the city of Seattle. It is the eighth-largest transit bus agency in t ...
and opened for bus-only service on September 15, 1990. The tunnel was closed from 2005 to 2007 for a major renovation to prepare for light rail service, which began on July 18, 2009. Link light rail trains terminated at Westlake until the opening of the
University Link Extension The University Link tunnel is a light rail tunnel in Seattle, Washington. The twin-bore tunnel carries Link light rail service on the University Link Extension of Central Link (now the 1 Line), running from the Downtown Seattle Transit ...
on March 19, 2016; the tunnel became train-only in March 2019. Trains serve the station twenty hours a day on most days; the headway between light rail trains is six minutes during peak periods, with less frequent service at other times. A second downtown tunnel is planned to be built in 2030, with a transfer at Westlake station for traffic continuing towards
South Lake Union South Lake Union (sometimes SLU) is a neighborhood in Seattle, Washington, so named because it is at the southern tip of Lake Union. The official boundaries of the City of Seattle Urban Center are Denny Way on the south, beyond which is Den ...
and Ballard.


Location

Westlake station is located on
Pine Street Pine Street is a major east–west street in Seattle, Washington, United States. It travels parallel to Pike Street between Downtown Seattle and the retail core to Capitol Hill, the Central District, and Madrona. Street description Pine S ...
between 3rd and 6th avenues in Downtown Seattle's
retail Retail is the sale of goods and services to consumers, in contrast to wholesaling, which is sale to business or institutional customers. A retailer purchases goods in large quantities from manufacturers, directly or through a wholesaler, and ...
and office district. The station is at the north end of Downtown Seattle, near the Denny Triangle area, and is within walking distance of the
Pike Place Market Pike Place Market is a public market in Seattle, Washington, United States. It opened on August 17, 1907, and is one of the oldest continuously operated public farmers' markets in the United States. Overlooking the Elliott Bay waterfront on Pug ...
Historic District. According to the
Puget Sound Regional Council The Puget Sound Regional Council (PSRC) is a metropolitan planning organization that develops policies and makes decisions about transportation planning, economic development, and growth management throughout the four-county Seattle metropolitan ...
, the area within of the station has an estimated population of 15,171 people (in 12,995 total housing units, mostly in multifamily buildings) and approximately 91,055 jobs. The station and its entrances are adjacent to the
Westlake Center Westlake Center is a four-story shopping center and 25-story office tower in downtown Seattle, Washington, United States. The southern terminus of the Seattle Center Monorail, it is located across Pine Street from Westlake Park, between 4th and ...
shopping mall, Westlake Park, Pacific Place, the
Nordstrom Nordstrom, Inc. () is an American luxury department store chain headquartered in Seattle, Washington, and founded by John W. Nordstrom and Carl F. Wallin in 1901. The original Wallin & Nordstrom store operated exclusively as a shoe store, a ...
flagship store A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of naval ships, characteristically a flag officer entitled by custom to fly a distinguishing flag. Used more loosely, it is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, typically the fi ...
, and the former regional flagship of
Macy's Macy's (originally R. H. Macy & Co.) is an American chain of high-end department stores founded in 1858 by Rowland Hussey Macy. It became a division of the Cincinnati-based Federated Department Stores in 1994, through which it is affiliated wi ...
(formerly
The Bon Marché The Bon Marché, whose French name translates to "the good market" or "the good deal", was a department store chain launched in Seattle, Washington, United States, in 1890 by Edward Nordhoff. The name was influenced by Le Bon Marché, the note ...
). Pike Place Market is located to the west of the station, while the
Washington State Convention Center The Seattle Convention Center (SCC), formerly the Washington State Convention Center (WSCC), is a convention center in Seattle, Washington (state), Washington, United States. It consists of several exhibition halls and meeting rooms in building ...
is four blocks to the east.
Amazon Amazon most often refers to: * Amazons, a tribe of female warriors in Greek mythology * Amazon rainforest, a rainforest covering most of the Amazon basin * Amazon River, in South America * Amazon (company), an American multinational technolog ...
is headquartered several blocks north of the station in the Denny Triangle area.


History


Background and earlier proposals

The Pine Street area of Downtown Seattle was regraded for development from 1903 to 1906, as part of the citywide regrading program. The newly regraded area was part of urban planner
Virgil Bogue Publius Vergilius Maro (; traditional dates 15 October 7021 September 19 BC), usually called Virgil or Vergil ( ) in English, was an ancient Roman poet of the Augustan period. He composed three of the most famous poems in Latin literature: t ...
's 1911
comprehensive plan Comprehensive planning is an ordered process that determines community goals and aspirations in terms of community development. The end product is called a comprehensive plan, also known as a general plan, or master plan. This resulting document e ...
for Seattle, envisioning a
civic center A civic center or civic centre is a prominent land area within a community that is constructed to be its focal point or center. It usually contains one or more dominant public buildings, which may also include a government building. Recently, the ...
to the north and several subway lines converging at the intersection of Pine Street and 3rd Avenue. The subway lines would continue outwards to serve the civic center, Capitol Hill, Downtown (modern-day Pioneer Square), and the waterfront; the stations would also include additional entrances from within
department store A department store is a retail establishment offering a wide range of consumer goods in different areas of the store, each area ("department") specializing in a product category. In modern major cities, the department store made a dramatic app ...
s and other large buildings. The plan was rejected by voters on March 5, 1912, and a 3rd Avenue subway passing through the area was unsuccessfully proposed twice in the 1920s. The regraded area was developed into the city's retailing neighborhood in the 1920s, with the construction of large
department store A department store is a retail establishment offering a wide range of consumer goods in different areas of the store, each area ("department") specializing in a product category. In modern major cities, the department store made a dramatic app ...
s for The Bon Marché,
Frederick & Nelson Frederick & Nelson was a department store chain in the northwestern United States, based in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1891 as a furniture store, it later expanded to sell other types of merchandise. The company was acquired by Marshall Fiel ...
, and Nordstrom on Pine Street between 3rd and 6th avenues. A second major
rapid transit Rapid transit or mass rapid transit (MRT), also known as heavy rail or metro, is a type of high-capacity public transport generally found in urban areas. A rapid transit system that primarily or traditionally runs below the surface may be ...
plan was proposed by the
Forward Thrust The Forward Thrust ballot initiatives were a series of bond propositions put to the voters of King County, Washington in 1968 and 1970, designed by a group called the Forward Thrust Committee. Seven of the twelve propositions in 1968 were success ...
Committee in the 1960s, to be built by 1985, and was put before voters. It called for a subway station on 3rd Avenue between Pine and Pike streets, designed with underground connections to major stores, would be served by two routes continuing north to Ballard (via Lower Queen Anne) and Lake City (via Capitol Hill and the University District). The ballot measure required a supermajority to support bonding to augment $385 million in local funding with $765 million from the
Urban Mass Transportation Administration The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) is an agency within the United States Department of Transportation (DOT) that provides financial and technical assistance to local public transportation systems. The FTA is one of ten modal administration ...
, but failed to reach the 60 percent threshold in 1968; a second attempt in 1970 yielded the same result, ending the planned system. The failure of the Forward Thrust ballot measures led to the creation of Metro Transit in 1972, who were tasked with operating bus service across King County and planning for a regional rapid transit system.


Bus tunnel

Metro Transit began planning a bus-based transit system through downtown Seattle in the 1970s, including a
transit mall A transit mall is a street, or set of streets, in a city or town along which automobile traffic is prohibited or greatly restricted and only public transit vehicles, bicycles, and pedestrians are permitted. Transit malls are instituted by communi ...
, tunnel, or bus terminal in the Westlake area. Metro approved construction of a downtown bus tunnel in 1983, selecting Pine Street and 4th Avenue as the site of one of the stations. The station would be integrated with a planned shopping mall on Pine Street, with underground walkways connecting to nearby department stores. The Pine Street segment of the tunnel would be dug
cut-and-cover A tunnel is an underground passageway, dug through surrounding soil, earth or rock, and enclosed except for the entrance and exit, commonly at each end. A pipeline is not a tunnel, though some recent tunnels have used immersed tube cons ...
and require a long-term closure of the street between 4th Avenue and 9th Avenue. SCI Contractors of Calgary was awarded the $74.5 million contract for the Pine Street segment, including the construction of Westlake and Convention Place stations, in February 1987. On April 27, 1987, Pine Street was closed to non-bus traffic, and construction of Westlake station's 400
piling A deep foundation is a type of foundation that transfers building loads to the earth farther down from the surface than a shallow foundation does to a subsurface layer or a range of depths. A pile or piling is a vertical structural elemen ...
s and outer walls began. Excavation of the tunnel on Pine Street was completed in late August, allowing for concrete pouring to begin. Pine Street was briefly re-opened for the
Christmas shopping The economics of Christmas are significant because Christmas is typically a high-volume selling season for goods suppliers around the world. Sales increase dramatically as people purchase gifts, decorations, and supplies to celebrate. In the ...
season, from November 2 to January 4, at the request of downtown merchants; the excavated tunnel was
backfill This page is a glossary of archaeology, the study of the human past from material remains. A B C D E F ...
ed and given a temporary surface for automobile traffic. A pair of
tunnel boring machine A tunnel boring machine (TBM), also known as a "mole", is a machine used to excavate tunnels with a circular cross section through a variety of soil and rock strata. They may also be used for microtunneling. They can be designed to bore thro ...
s arrived at Westlake station in the spring of 1988 after completing the 3rd Avenue segment of the bus tunnel; the machines were partially salvaged, leaving the outer shells in place to form part of the tunnel walls. Pine Street was re-opened to traffic on November 1, 1988, coinciding with the opening of Westlake Center and Westlake Park. Excavation and concrete pouring in Westlake station were completed in December 1988, leaving major work on the mezzanine level left to finish. Westlake station, along with
Pioneer Square station Pioneer Square station is a light rail station that is part of the Downtown Seattle Transit Tunnel in Seattle, Washington, United States. The station is located under 3rd Avenue at James Street, between University Street and International D ...
, was at the center of a controversy during its construction due to the use of
granite Granite () is a coarse-grained ( phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies under ...
from
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...
, then under a Metro boycott against
Apartheid Apartheid (, especially South African English: , ; , "aparthood") was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. Apartheid was ...
rule. After the granite's origins were discovered, the materials were returned and Metro's executive director resigned as a result of the incident. Metro also had to return shipments of
terra cotta Terracotta, terra cotta, or terra-cotta (; ; ), in its material sense as an earthenware substrate, is a clay-based unglazed or glazed ceramic where the fired body is porous. In applied art, craft, construction, and architecture, terracotta ...
tiles that were delivered warped, in the wrong size, and in the wrong color; the planned terra cotta ceiling for the station was instead replaced with a
travertine Travertine ( ) is a form of terrestrial limestone deposited around mineral springs, especially hot springs. It often has a fibrous or concentric appearance and exists in white, tan, cream-colored, and even rusty varieties. It is formed by a p ...
limestone. During construction in early 1989, approximately 20 workers were sickened by fumes and foul air inside the station. Air quality tests conducted in the tunnel could not identify the cause of the bad air, leading Metro to install scrubbers to help control diesel exhaust from equipment. The Westlake station mezzanine was opened on August 11, 1989, as part of a public preview of the tunnel. The station's design was praised by local politicians and visitors, with Seattle City Councilman
George Benson George Washington Benson (born March 22, 1943) is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He began his professional career at the age of 19 as a jazz guitarist. A former child prodigy, Benson first came to prominence in the 1960s, play ...
noting that it had "an element of class that is new to Seattle". The mezzanine remained open for several weeks, allowing for access between the basement levels of downtown retailers, but closed until November for additional construction. Additional
fire sprinklers A fire sprinkler or sprinkler head is the component of a fire sprinkler system that discharges water when the effects of a fire have been detected, such as when a predetermined temperature has been exceeded. Fire sprinklers are extensively used ...
were installed in Westlake station to accommodate parties and receptions, as the station's mezzanine became sought as an events venue. Tunnel construction was completed in June 1990, and bus service began on September 15, 1990. Between 1990 and 2004, all service in the tunnel was operated by custom-built
dual-mode bus A dual-mode bus is a bus that can run independently on power from two different sources, typically electricity from overhead lines like a trolleybus or from batteries like a hybrid bus, alternated with conventional fossil fuel (generally diesel ...
es, which operated on diesel fuel outside the tunnel and electrically as
trolleybus A trolleybus (also known as trolley bus, trolley coach, trackless trolley, trackless tramin the 1910s and 1920sJoyce, J.; King, J. S.; and Newman, A. G. (1986). ''British Trolleybus Systems'', pp. 9, 12. London: Ian Allan Publishing. .or trol ...
es (via
overhead wire An overhead line or overhead wire is an electrical cable that is used to transmit electrical energy to electric locomotives, trolleybuses or trams. It is known variously as: * Overhead catenary * Overhead contact system (OCS) * Overhead equipm ...
s) inside the tunnel.


Light rail

In the early 1990s, a regional
transit authority A transit district or transit authority is a government agency or a public-benefit corporation created for the purpose of providing public transportation within a specific region. A transit district may operate bus, rail or other types of tra ...
(RTA) was formed to plan and construct a light rail system for the Seattle area. After an unsuccessful attempt in 1995, regional voters passed a $3.9 billion plan to build light rail under the RTA in 1996. The downtown transit tunnel had already been planned for eventual light rail use and was built with tracks that would be incorporated into the initial system. The RTA, later renamed
Sound Transit Sound Transit (ST), officially the Central Puget Sound Regional Transit Authority, is a public transit agency serving the Seattle metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Washington. It operates the Link light rail system in Seattle and Tacoma, ...
, approved the tunnel as part of the route of its initial light rail line in 1999, with plans to eventually add new surface entrances to serve the Washington State Convention Center in lieu of a Convention Place light rail station. Ownership of the tunnel, including its stations, was transferred to Sound Transit in 2000 but returned two years later to King County Metro under a joint-operations agreement. The downtown transit tunnel was closed on September 23, 2005, for an $82.7 million renovation to accommodate light rail vehicles. The two-year renovation included the installation of new rails, a lowered roadbed at stations for level boarding, new signalling systems and emergency ventilation. As part of the renovation, a short cut-and-cover "stub tunnel" was built under Pine Street between Westlake station and
Interstate 5 Interstate 5 (I-5) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the West Coast of the United States, running largely parallel to the Pacific coast of the contiguous U.S. from Mexico to Canada. It travels through the states of Californi ...
, forming a turnback area for trains and part of the light rail system's planned northern extension. The tunnel reopened on September 24, 2007, with new signage, lighting, and street improvements; Westlake station was host to a public open house for the planned light rail system, featuring a light rail vehicle on display at the station prior to the re-opening of the tunnel.
Link light rail Link light rail is a light rail rapid transit system serving the Seattle metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Washington. It is managed by Sound Transit in partnership with local transit providers, and consists of two non-connected lines: ...
service began on July 18, 2009, running from Westlake station to
Tukwila International Boulevard station Tukwila International Boulevard station is a light rail station in Tukwila, Washington, United States. It is located between SeaTac/Airport and Rainier Beach stations on the 1 Line from Seattle–Tacoma International Airport to Downt ...
. A tunneled extension of the light rail system, from Westlake to stations at Capitol Hill and
University of Washington The University of Washington (UW, simply Washington, or informally U-Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1861, Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast; it was established in Seattl ...
, was excavated from 2011 to 2012. The northern extension opened on March 19, 2016, moving the line's northern terminus to University of Washington station. Bus service within the downtown transit tunnel ceased on March 23, 2019, due to the expansion of the
Washington State Convention Center The Seattle Convention Center (SCC), formerly the Washington State Convention Center (WSCC), is a convention center in Seattle, Washington (state), Washington, United States. It consists of several exhibition halls and meeting rooms in building ...
at the former site of Convention Place station. Westlake station became exclusively served by light rail trains, which were planned to increase in frequency when the Northgate extension opens in 2021. The Metro Customer Shop at Westlake station was also closed on March 6, 2019, ahead of the planned handover of tunnel operations to Sound Transit, and is planned to be replaced by another kiosk. Sound Transit assumed full ownership of the tunnel in 2022.


Future

As part of the
Sound Transit 3 Sound Transit 3, abbreviated as ST3, was a ballot measure during the November 2016 elections in Seattle, Washington, proposing an expansion of the regional public transit system. The measure was proposed by Sound Transit, which was established ...
program, approved by voters in 2016, Westlake station is planned to become a transfer station for a new light rail line serving
South Lake Union South Lake Union (sometimes SLU) is a neighborhood in Seattle, Washington, so named because it is at the southern tip of Lake Union. The official boundaries of the City of Seattle Urban Center are Denny Way on the south, beyond which is Den ...
, Lower Queen Anne, and Ballard, to open in 2036. The new line would continue south through a new downtown light rail tunnel to
International District/Chinatown station International District/Chinatown station is a light rail station that is part of the Downtown Seattle Transit Tunnel in Seattle, Washington, United States. The station is located at the tunnel's south end, at 5th Avenue South and South Jackso ...
, merging with the current line.


Station layout

Westlake station is situated below Pine Street between 4th and 6th avenues in Downtown Seattle. The station consists of two
side platform A side platform (also known as a marginal platform or a single-face platform) is a platform positioned to the side of one or more railway tracks or guideways at a railway station, tram stop, or transitway. A station having dual side platform ...
s, a mezzanine level, and entrances from the surface; all three levels are connected by a series of seven elevators, sixteen escalators, and stairs. The mezzanine spans the length of the station, unlike other downtown tunnel stations, and includes separate entrances to the basement level of nearby department stores, including Nordstrom,
Nordstrom Rack Nordstrom Rack is an American off-price department store chain founded in 1973. It is a sister brand to the luxury department store chain Nordstrom. As of 2021, Nordstrom Rack operates 352 stores in 41 U.S. states and three Canadian provinces ...
, and the Westlake Center. Two additional entrance from the mezzanine led to the now-closed Macy's and Coldwater Creek. The mezzanine also has
ticket vending machine A ticket machine, also known as a ticket vending machine (TVM), is a vending machine that produces paper or electronic tickets, or recharges a stored-value card or smart card or the user's mobile wallet, typically on a smartphone. For instanc ...
s that issue
ORCA card The ORCA card (standing for One Regional Card for All) is a contactless, stored-value smart card system for public transit in the Puget Sound region of Washington, United States. The card is valid on most transit systems in the Seattle metropo ...
s, and was formerly home to the
King County Metro King County Metro, officially the King County Metro Transit Department and often shortened to Metro, is the public transit authority of King County, Washington, which includes the city of Seattle. It is the eighth-largest transit bus agency in t ...
Customer Shop, which was located at the west end of the station. The non-retail entrances to Westlake station are located on both sides of Pine Street between 3rd and 4th avenues, and on the north side of Pine Street between 5th and 6th avenues. There is also a direct elevator from the mezzanine level to the
Seattle Center Monorail The Seattle Center Monorail is an elevated straddle-beam monorail line in Seattle, Washington, United States. The monorail runs along 5th Avenue between Seattle Center and Westlake Center in Downtown Seattle, making no intermediate stops. ...
terminus at Westlake Center. The platform level at Westlake station is below street level, while the mezzanine is below street level.


Art and architecture

Westlake station was designed by Brent Carlson of TRA Architects to "give the impression" of a retail center's liveliness, and features heavy use of granite materials and
Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the Unite ...
design elements. The station is also adorned with
public art Public art is art in any media whose form, function and meaning are created for the general public through a public process. It is a specific art genre with its own professional and critical discourse. Public art is visually and physically acce ...
work as part of the tunnel's $1.5 million art program, under the direction of lead artist Jack Mackie and program director Vicki Scuri. The south station wall has a collection of 1,264 handmade terra cotta tiles carved in the shapes of leaves, vines, and flowers; the tiles, designed by Mackie, are arranged from the mezzanine level downwards, as if forming the roots of Westlake Park above. Between the mezzanine and platform, Scuri's 40
ceramic A ceramic is any of the various hard, brittle, heat-resistant and corrosion-resistant materials made by shaping and then firing an inorganic, nonmetallic material, such as clay, at a high temperature. Common examples are earthenware, porcelain ...
tiles feature geometric patterns found in clothing and other garments. The station's stairways and surface entrances are inscribed with quotes from University of Washington professor Caroline Ober, artist
Mark Tobey Mark George Tobey (December 11, 1890 – April 24, 1976) was an American painter. His densely structured compositions, inspired by Asian calligraphy, resemble Abstract expressionism, although the motives for his compositions differ philosophi ...
, and retailer
Silas Munro Silas or Silvanus (; Koine Greek, Greek: Σίλας/Σιλουανός; fl. 1st century AD) was a leading member of the Early Christian community, who according to the New Testament accompanied Paul the Apostle on his second missionary journey. ...
. On the corner of Pine Street and 5th Avenue is a granite
street clock A street is a public thoroughfare in a built environment. It is a public parcel of land adjoining buildings in an urban context, on which people may freely assemble, interact, and move about. A street can be as simple as a level patch of dirt, ...
shaped like a
question mark The question mark (also known as interrogation point, query, or eroteme in journalism) is a punctuation mark that indicates an interrogative clause or phrase in many languages. History In the fifth century, Syriac Bible manuscripts used que ...
, designed by artist Bill Whipple. The platform level houses three ,
porcelain enamel Vitreous enamel, also called porcelain enamel, is a material made by fusing powdered glass to a substrate by firing, usually between . The powder melts, flows, and then hardens to a smooth, durable vitreous coating. The word comes from the Latin ...
mural A mural is any piece of graphic artwork that is painted or applied directly to a wall, ceiling or other permanent substrate. Mural techniques include fresco, mosaic, graffiti and marouflage. Word mural in art The word ''mural'' is a Spani ...
s by Seattle artists Fay Jones, Gene Gentry McMahon, and Roger Shimomura. Jones's mural is an interpretation of Seattle's place as a
port city A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Ha ...
, using bright colors to "bring sunshine underground"; McMahon's mural depicts the "glamour" of shopping, with "larger than life" figures against the Seattle skyline and a beach; and Shimomura's mural is a collage of American pop culture figures, including the likes of
Marilyn Monroe Marilyn Monroe (; born Norma Jeane Mortenson; 1 June 1926 4 August 1962) was an American actress. Famous for playing comedic " blonde bombshell" characters, she became one of the most popular sex symbols of the 1950s and early 1960s, as wel ...
, Alice in Wonderland, and Donald Duck, intermixed with imagery from
East Asian culture The East Asian cultural sphere, also known as the Sinosphere, the Sinic world, the Sinitic world, the Chinese cultural sphere, the Chinese character sphere encompasses multiple countries in East Asia and Southeast Asia that were historically ...
s, including a
samurai were the hereditary military nobility and officer caste of medieval and early-modern Japan from the late 12th century until their abolition in 1876. They were the well-paid retainers of the '' daimyo'' (the great feudal landholders). They h ...
and
geisha {{Culture of Japan, Traditions, Geisha {{nihongo, Geisha, 芸者 ({{IPAc-en, ˈ, ɡ, eɪ, ʃ, ə; {{IPA-ja, ɡeːɕa, lang), also known as {{nihongo, , 芸子, geiko (in Kyoto and Kanazawa) or {{nihongo, , 芸妓, geigi, are a class of female J ...
, in a celebration of the city's cultural diversity. The station's
pictogram A pictogram, also called a pictogramme, pictograph, or simply picto, and in computer usage an icon, is a graphic symbol that conveys its meaning through its pictorial resemblance to a physical object. Pictographs are often used in writing and ...
, a
tiara A tiara (from la, tiara, from grc, τιάρα) is a jeweled head ornament. Its origins date back to ancient Greece and Rome. In the late 18th century, the tiara came into fashion in Europe as a prestigious piece of jewelry to be worn by women ...
, represents the neighborhood's playful nature. It was created in 2009 by Christian French as part of the ''Stellar Connections'' series and its points represent nearby destinations, including Pike Place Market,
Victor Steinbrueck Park Victor Steinbrueck Park is a 0.8 acre (3,000 m²) park in Downtown Seattle, Washington (state), Washington, United States, located just northwest of Pike Place Market overlooking Elliott Bay. Named for the Seattle-based architect Victor Steinbrue ...
, the Paramount Theatre, and the Washington State Convention Center.


Services

Westlake is one of five stations in the Downtown Seattle Transit Tunnel, which is served by the 1 Line. Light rail trains run from Northgate to the
University of Washington The University of Washington (UW, simply Washington, or informally U-Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1861, Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast; it was established in Seattl ...
, Downtown Seattle, the Rainier Valley, and
Seattle–Tacoma International Airport Seattle–Tacoma International Airport , branded as SEA Airport and also referred to as Sea–Tac (), is the primary commercial airport serving the Seattle metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Washington. It is in the city of SeaTac, which ...
, using the downtown transit tunnel between Westlake and International District/Chinatown stations. Westlake is the thirteenth northbound station from Angle Lake, the line's southern terminus, and fifth southbound station from Northgate, the northern terminus. The station is located between Capitol Hill and
University Street A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, the ...
stations. The 1 Line operates for twenty hours a day on weekdays and Saturdays, from 5:00 am to 1:00 am, and eighteen hours on Sundays, from 6:00 am to 12:00 am. During regular weekday service, trains operate roughly every eight to ten minutes during and between
peak period A rush hour (American English, British English) or peak hour (Australian English) is a part of the day during which traffic congestion on roads and crowding on public transport is at its highest. Normally, this happens twice every weekday: on ...
s, respectively, with longer headways of fifteen minutes in the early morning and twenty minutes at night. During weekends, trains on the 1 Line arrive every ten minutes during daytime hours and every fifteen minutes during early mornings and evenings. The station is approximately 38 minutes from SeaTac/Airport station and 13 minutes from Northgate station. In 2019, an average of 12,680 passengers boarded Link trains at Westlake station on weekdays; it is the busiest station in the Link light rail system. In addition to light rail, Westlake station is in close proximity to several other regional and local transit services. The Seattle Center Monorail, serving the
Seattle Center Seattle Center is an arts, educational, tourism and entertainment center in Seattle, Washington, United States. Spanning an area of 74 acres (30 ha), it was originally built for the 1962 World's Fair. Its landmark feature is the tall Space Needle ...
and
Space Needle The Space Needle is an observation tower in Seattle, Washington, United States. Considered to be an icon of the city, it has been designated a Seattle landmark. Located in the Lower Queen Anne neighborhood, it was built in the Seattle Center ...
, terminates at a station located on the third floor of the
Westlake Center Westlake Center is a four-story shopping center and 25-story office tower in downtown Seattle, Washington, United States. The southern terminus of the Seattle Center Monorail, it is located across Pine Street from Westlake Park, between 4th and ...
shopping mall, connected directly to the tunnel station via an elevator and stairway. The
South Lake Union Streetcar The South Lake Union Streetcar, officially the South Lake Union Line, is a streetcar route in Seattle, Washington, United States, forming part of the Seattle Streetcar system. It travels and connects Downtown Seattle to the South Lake Union n ...
terminates one block north of the station at McGraw Square, continuing to the South Lake Union neighborhood. Westlake station is also adjacent to several surface bus stops, served by King County Metro, Sound Transit Express, and
Community Transit Community Transit (CT) is the public transit authority of Snohomish County, Washington, United States, excluding the city of Everett, in the Seattle metropolitan area. It operates local bus, paratransit and vanpool service within Snohomish C ...
routes. Bus stops on Pine and Pike streets serve local routes headed east to Capitol Hill, Montlake, and Madison Park. Bus stops on 3rd Avenue serve
RapidRide RapidRide is a network of limited-stop bus routes with some bus rapid transit features in King County, Washington, operated by King County Metro. The network consists of six routes totaling 64 miles that carried riders on approximately 64,860 tr ...
routes and local routes heading north to Ballard, Fremont, and South Lake Union, and south towards
West Seattle West Seattle is a conglomeration of neighborhoods in Seattle, Washington, United States. It comprises two of the thirteen districts, Delridge and Southwest, and encompasses all of Seattle west of the Duwamish River. It was incorporated as an i ...
, the Rainier Valley, and
SoDo Sodo ( am, ሶዶ) or Wolaita Sodo ( am, ወላይታ ሶዶ) or ( Wolaytatto: ''Wolayta Sodo Ambbaa'') is a city in south-central Ethiopia. The administrative center of the Wolaita Zone. It has a latitude and longitude of with an elevation bet ...
. Bus stops on 2nd Avenue, 4th Avenue, 5th Avenue, Olive Way, and Stewart Street serve regional express routes to
Snohomish County Snohomish County () is a county located in the U.S. state of Washington. With a population of 827,957 as of the 2020 census, it is the third-most populous county in Washington, after nearby King and Pierce counties, and the 75th-most populous ...
, the Eastside, southern King County, and Pierce County. From 2009 to 2019, several bus routes also ran in the tunnel alongside Link light rail. The final set of bus routes in the tunnel were divided into three bays by their outbound direction: Bay A was served by three routes (routes 41, 74, and 255) heading north toward Northgate and the University District and east towards Kirkland; Bay C was served by three routes (routes 101, 102, and 150) heading south through the SODO Busway toward
Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...
and Renton; and Bay D was served by one route (Sound Transit Express route 550) heading east via Interstate 90 to
Bellevue Bellevue means "beautiful view" in French. It may refer to: Placenames Australia * Bellevue, Western Australia * Bellevue Hill, New South Wales * Bellevue, Queensland * Bellevue, Glebe, an historic house in Sydney, New South Wales Canada ...
. Bay A was located on the northbound platform, while Bays C and D shared the southbound platform. The bus routes were relocated in March 2019 to new stops around the Westlake station area on various streets. King County Metro runs a
special route In road transportation in the United States, a special route is a road in a numbered highway system that diverts a specific segment of related traffic away from another road. They are featured in many highway systems; most are found in the In ...
, the Route 97 Link Shuttle, between all Link light rail stations during service disruptions, stopping at Pine Street and 5th Avenue to serve Westlake station.


References


External links


Sound Transit Rider Guide
{{Authority control 1990 establishments in Washington (state) Downtown Seattle Link light rail stations in Seattle Railway stations located underground in Seattle Railway stations in the United States opened in 2009