Thanks to the state Legislature construction of critical Eastrail projects has been accelerated. The nearly $17 billion package known as “Move Ahead Washington” includes $29 million to fund critical projects for Eastrail, the emerging 42-mile regional trail that will connect South and East King County cities to high-capacity transit.
King County Parks and our amazing partners will now be able to fast-track several projects that literally bridge the gaps between trail sections, and extend the trail further into Renton and Woodinville.
The funds will help:
- Provide connections through Bellevue, including retrofitting the I-90 steel bridge and transforming the iconic Wilburton Trestle into a trail bridge
- Extend the Eastrail further south to Gene Coulon Park in Renton
- Retrofit a trestle over State Route 202, the first step toward connecting downtown Woodinville to Eastrail
A massive thank you to Eastrail Partners – a nonprofit established to mobilize local governments, the private sector, and community-based organization to help complete the trail corridor – who advocated for the funding to be included in the package.
“Eastrail is the rare project that brings together all the important things we care about: health, transportation choices, climate, and equity.”
– Claudia Balducci, King County Council
“Connecting our region from Renton to Woodinville has never been more important, and it is amazing to see this dream of bringing our communities together become a reality.”
– Sarah Perry, King County Council
“Eastrail is all about connecting communities, and this state transportation funding helps shorten the to-do list as we build a safe and accessible trail network for all. Eastrail Partners was honored to work with governmental partners, legislative champions like Representative Slatter, and other nonprofits to advocate for funding for these key projects.”
– Edna Shim, Board President, Eastrail Partners
Eastrail will be the north-south spine of Leafline, a Central Puget Sound regional trail network that will connect King, Pierce, Snohomish, and Kitsap counties. It also will connect to four of the 10 light rail stations that Sound Transit is scheduled to open in 2023 with East Link Extension.
I’m curious as to how you plan to connect Eastrail to, through, and/or around Coulon Park. I live in Kennydale, & have worked with Joe Inslee monitoring Eastrail as a volunteer. There is great interest in this with my neighbors and I.