$23M overhaul planned for Seattle’s aging monorail station

Seattle’s aging monorail station at Seattle Center is getting a significant upgrade and facelift.

According to Axios Seattle, the 1962-era station doesn’t meet modern safety or accessibility standards. A $23 million renovation plan for the monorail will address rust and water damage, and include the addition of a new accessible ramp on Thomas Street. $15 million of the project’s funding will come from a federal grant.

Guardrails will be replaced, and the station will be easier to spot, especially at night, with new, improved lighting and less vegetation and debris blocking its entrance. The guardrails have been deemed unsafe due to large gaps that could potentially allow people to fall through.

“If we didn’t do this project, the station wouldn’t exist too much longer,” project manager Robert Leykam told Axios.

Accessibility for those in wheelchairs will also be a target for improvement under the new renovation plan. Additionally, an improved guardrail and gate system will allow more people to queue safely on the platform at one time.

Other improvements planned for the monorail include upgrading the trains’ suspension systems and smoothing the monorail’s guideways to create a smoother ride.

The monorail is approximately one mile long, stretching from Seattle Center to Westlake Center. Ridership on the monorail tops two million trips per year, according to Axios.

The work is scheduled to begin after next summer’s World Cup and is expected to last approximately 15 months.

Follow Frank Sumrall on X. Send news tips here.