March 6, 2009
Construction began on a 3.2-mile (5.1-kilometer) light rail tunnel in Seattle. This structure is a key connection within Sound Transit’s Link light rail system serving that metropolitan area. The two-bore tunnel is specifically part of the University Link of the 1 Line of that system and carries trains running between the Downtown Seattle Transit Tunnel and — via Capitol Hill station — University of Washington station.
The groundbreaking ceremony for the University Link Tunnel was held at the future site of University of Washington station. Those who took part in turning the first shovels of dirt for this project included Patty Murray, the senior U.S. senator from Washington; Mark Emmert, president of the University of Washington; and Greg Nickels, mayor of Seattle and chair of the Sound Transit board.
“University Link is a key to the future for this region’s world-class light rail system,” Nickels said at this event. “The project we kick off today will put thousands to work and deliver many thousands of commuters where they need to go to work, play and learn.”
A total of three tunnel-boring machines were used during the course of this project. Two of these machines were manufactured by the German company Herrenknecht AG and named “Balto” and “Togo” after two renowned Alaskan huskies who raced in a historic 1925 dog sled relay in the then-U.S. territory of Alaska. (The Washington Huskies are the intercollegiate athletic teams representing the University of Washington.) The machines named after those dogs were used for the section of the tunnel between University of Washington and Capitol Hill stations.
The third tunnel-boring machine was manufactured by the Japanese corporation Hitachi Zosen and named “Brenda.” This machine was used to help complete the portion of the University Link Tunnel between Capitol Hill station and Downtown Seattle Transit Tunnel.
The University Link Tunnel was officially opened on March 19, 2016. (The accompanying photo of the part of this tunnel at Capitol Hill station was taken in 2015.)
Photo Credit: Sound Transit Special Collection (licensed at Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license at https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en)
For more information on the University Link Tunnel, please check out https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/University_Link_tunnel
Transportation History 
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