Federal Way Downtown | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Sound Transit Express bus leaving the transit center in 2006 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| General information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Location | 31621 23rd Avenue South Federal Way,Washington United States | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Coordinates | 47°18′59″N122°18′13″W / 47.31639°N 122.30361°W /47.31639; -122.30361 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Train operators | Sound Transit (planned) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bus stands | 9 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bus operators | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Construction | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Parking | Parking garage | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bicycle facilities | Bicycle lockers andracks | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Accessible | Yes | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| History | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Opened | February 11, 2006 (2006-02-11) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rebuilt | 2020–2025 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Previous names | Federal Way Transit Center | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Services | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Federal Way Downtown station is a futurelight rail station at the site of theFederal Way Transit Center, abus station inFederal Way, Washington, United States. The bus station opened in 2006 and has 1,190 parking spaces available in itsparking garage and surface lots. It is served byKing County Metro,Pierce Transit, andSound Transit Express buses and is the southern terminus of theRapidRide A Line.[1][2] The transit center is located adjacent toThe Commons at Federal Way shopping mall andInterstate 5, connected via a direct access ramp to itshigh-occupancy vehicle lanes.
A similar park-and-ride lot, on the south side of South 320th Street and east of the shopping mall, opened on November 5, 1979, using land donated by a local businessman.[3]
The bus bays were moved south to the new light rail station in March 2025. Light rail service is scheduled to begin on December 6, 2025.
As part of the expansion ofLink light rail bySound Transit, the transit center is planned to be the southern terminus of theFederal Way Link Extension, which would extend light rail south from its current terminus atAngle Lake station to Federal Way. A voter-approved plan passed in 2008 proposed funding to design, but not construct, a light rail station and other bus and parking improvements at the transit center. In 2016, theSound Transit 3 plan approved a 2024 completion date for light rail to Federal Way Transit Center, as well as a light rail extension from Federal Way toTacoma to be opened by 2030.[4]
The light rail station consists of an elevated platform along 23rd Avenue South approximately two blocks south of the current transit center. A second garage with 400 parking stalls was originally planned to be built, along withtransit-oriented development on the site of a former shopping center.[5] Demolition of several vacated retail buildings at the site began in April 2020.[6] A series of 35 murals by local artists were installed on the construction site's fences, but were damaged in an act of vandalism in August 2020.[7] Sound Transit officials called the incident racially motivated, as the murals were primarily celebrating the area's Pacific Islander, Black, and Asian communities.[8]
The new bus loop, directly under the light rail platform, opened on March 30, 2025; the old transit center was then closed for demolition.[9] As of 2024[update], there are 7,000 daily boardings at Federal Way Transit Center. Testing of light rail trains at Federal Way Downtown station began in early 2025.[10][11] Light rail service is scheduled to begin on December 6, 2025.[12]
The station will include permanent glass artwork designed by Catherine Widgery while the garage is covered in an art screen designed by Christine Nguyen.[13] A proposal by sculptorDonald Lipski to install a three-story piece with acircus elephant balancing on a tall tree trunk with aheron on its head was rejected by the Federal Way city council.[14][15]
Media related toFederal Way Transit Center at Wikimedia Commons
Sound Transit rail stations | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| |||
|
