Bonds

Sound Transit TIFIA Loans

Enacted by Congress to provide credit assistance for qualified regional and national transportation projects, federal loans can increase the financial capacity and enhance the credit of the borrower by offering flexible repayment terms and potentially more favorable interest rates than can be found in traditional capital markets. Sound Transit has been utilizing the U.S. DOT Federal Loan program since 2015 with the first loan closing on their East Link Project.

As of Mid-2023 the portfolio includes 9 loans that support the following projects:

• East Link – 14- mile extension from Seattle's International District to Redmond Technology Station. Loan amount: $1.3 billion

• Northgate Link – 4.3-mile extension from the University of Washington Station at Husky Stadium to Northgate Mall. Loan amount: $615.3 million

• Lynnwood Link – 8.5-mile extension from Northgate to the Lynnwood Transit Center. Loan amount: $657.9 million

• Federal Way Link Extension – 7.5-mile extension from South 200th Street in the City of SeaTac to the Federal Way Transit Center. Loan amount: $629.5 million.

• New Operations and Maintenance Facility, which will support a growing light rail system serving trains to Lynnwood, Bellevue/Overlake and Kent/Des Moines. Loan amount: $87.7 million.

• Downtown Redmond – 3.4-mile extension from Redmond Technology Station to Downtown Redmond. Loan amount: $521 million

• Hilltop Tacoma Link – 2.4-mile extension doubles the length of the original Tacoma link line and extends to Hilltop neighborhood. Loan amount: $93 million

• NE 130th Infill Station – Infill station along the Lynnwood Link extension serving the residential neighborhood between Northgate and Shoreline. Loan amount: $79 million

• South Sounder Parking and Access Improvements at Puyallup, Sumner and Auburn – Over 1,600 new parking spaces at three different Sounder stations and access improvements. Loan amount: $154 million

Sound Transit’s federal loans have been rated at AA+ by both Fitch Ratings, Inc and Standard and Poor’s ahead of the last loan closings in 2023.

News Articles 

U.S. Department of Transportation Announces Loans of Up to $327 million for Improvements to the Sound Transit System in Washington State