BELLEVUE, Wash. — Repairs are needed at Sound Transit’s South Bellevue Station, before it has opened to the public, due to broken and defective platform tiles.
Sound Transit officials “determined that all the platform tile and supporting mortar bed needs to be replaced on the platform and mezzanine areas at the South Bellevue Station,” according to a Sept. 14 System Expansion Committee meeting motion.
The tiles that were installed at the station were not meant to be used outdoors, Sound Transit officials said on Wednesday. The agency also noted that problems with cracking and tenting tiles were caused by improper installation of expansion joints.
Sound Transit discovers broken tiles needing repair at South Bellevue Station
“All of this could pose safety issues for our passengers, and the tiles need to be replaced,” Sound Transit stated. “We’re glad to have discovered the issue in time to fix it before service begins.”
Shimmick-Parsons Joint Venture (SPJV) constructed the South Bellevue Station, which was completed in August 2022.
SPJV has “refused to complete these repairs despite a demand to do so,” Sound Transit stated.
Tonya Sandman, the director of Employee Experience for SPJV, said in an email that the company could not comment.
"This matter is a disputed issue between the joint venture and Sound Transit. As such, we are not able to comment until the matter is resolved," Sandman wrote.
Construction and repairs of the South Bellevue Station are set to begin next week with a finishing date of at least January 2024. The station is part of the East Link Extension, a $3.8 billion project spanning 14 miles with 10 new stations from the Microsoft Campus in Redmond to Judkins Park.
Repairs must be finished quickly or else the delay could impact the start of service on the East Link Starter Line, according to Sound Transit.
The Sound Transit Board of Directors voted in August to move forward with the East Link light rail Starter Line, which will begin service in March 2024. The line will run from South Bellevue Station to Redmond Technology Station.
According to Sound Transit, the $43 million to implement the East Link Starter Line exists within the overall East Link Extension budget, which is $3.68 billion. The board projects the cost to operate and maintain the starter line after opening to be $34 million, which would be included in the proposed 2024 agency budget.
Sound Transit is working to recover the cost of the repairs from SPJV, according to Sound Transit.
Project officials for the East Link Extension project on Sept. 14 authorized a $3 million contract with Balfour Beatty Construction to repair the broken tiles at the South Bellevue station. The contractor was hired in February this year to finish various follow-on construction work of the East Link’s 10 stations.
