Sound Transit’s Crosslake Connection: Rail, Retrofit, and Innovation

Sound Transit’s Crosslake Connection represents one of the most technically ambitious rail transit projects ever delivered in North America. Forming the central segment of the Link Light Rail 2 Line, the project converted the I‑90 corridor—including the iconic Homer M. Hadley Floating Bridge—from reversible highway lanes to exclusive light rail service. As Sound Transit’s prime engineering consultant, WSP led the final design of this unprecedented crossing, delivering the world’s first light rail system to operate on a floating bridge. Crossing the floating bridge required the development of a patented “Track Bridge” system at the expansion joints to accommodate the floating bridge’s continuous movements and non‑invasive track attachment solutions to protect the bridge pontoons.

Beyond the floating bridge, the Crosslake Connection project encompassed extensive seismic and gravity retrofits of existing highway structures repurposed for rail, along with the design and delivery of Judkins Park and Mercer Island Stations, each with unique structural and architectural challenges. The project demanded close coordination with Sound Transit and WSDOT to integrate new rail infrastructure into existing highway right-of-way. This presentation will explore the engineering innovations and collaborative problem‑solving that transformed an existing highway corridor into a resilient, high‑capacity rail connection.

Speakers

Matthew Barber, PE

Matthew Barber is a bridge engineer working in the greater Seattle area. He started his career 22 years ago in the New York office of Parsons Brinckerhoff (now WSP) before coming to the Northwest in 2011 to support a WSDOT design build project. On the Seattle to South Bellevue segment of East Link (currently referred to as the Crosslake Connection), he started as the Miscellaneous Structures Lead during the Final Design, before serving as the Design Lead During Construction for the duration of the construction. When not thinking about transportation infrastructure, Matthew enjoys gardening, cycling, kayaking, cooking pasta with wife, and volunteering at the snack bar of his children’s swim meets.

Jake Douglass, PE

Jake Douglass is a bridge engineer in WSP’s Seattle office. Prior to joining WSP, he lived and worked on the East Coast, designing and inspecting bridges and waterfront structures. Jake joined the design team for the Seattle to South Bellevue segment of East Link in 2016 during the latter stages of final design and later became the Deputy Design Lead During Construction. Outside of work, Jake enjoys hiking, watching soccer, and touring the city’s playgrounds with his two young children.

Dinner Meeting Cost:

Students: $40

SEAW Member: $65

ASCE Member: $65

Non-Member: $75

Registration closes at 12pmPT on April 27, 2026.

Calling all SEAW Seattle Chapter members! This is your chance to vote for your favorite finalists for the 2026 SEAW Seattle Structural Engineering Awards!

Join us for the kickoff of the 2026 SEAW YMG Happy Hour Series at LMN’s The Shop! This Happy Hour is in collaboration with the AIA YAF and will feature a presentation by LMN on The Shop followed by networking between architect and engineers.

Regular South Central monthly chapter meeting at Snipes Mountain Restaurant and Taphouse in Sunnyside, WA. Gather at 6:00pm to order dinner (buy your own). Business meeting 6:30-7pm, followed by presentation from 7-8pm.

Presentation topic to come.

WAsafe Building Safety Evaluations (ATC 20/45 Plus)

The Structural Engineers Association of Washington is offering an in-person, full-day training on post-disaster building safety evaluation procedures and WAsafe, Washington State's program for post-disaster volunteer responders.

This training is a must for engineers, architects, building inspectors, plans examiners, and other construction industry professionals who are committed to using their unique professional skills to assist following a catastrophic event. Participants will learn how to properly assess buildings for safe occupancy following a major earthquake, flood, or wind event. The training incorporates material from internationally recognized standards: ATC-20 (Post-Earthquake Safety Evaluation of Buildings) and ATC–45 (Safety Evaluation of Buildings after Windstorms and Floods), The class also covers response to landslides, fires, and other hazards, with an emphasis on hazards in Washington state. Real events and examples will be used.

Students will also be introduced to the statewide process for volunteer emergency worker enrollment and responder dispatch through the WAsafe program. Taking this course is one of the requirements for those who wish to enroll in the WAsafe registry as a Building Safety Evaluator, or for those whose enrollments are expiring and want to renew. 

This class is eligible for professional continuing education credits: 7.5 PDHs (engineers), 7.5 LUs/HSW (architects), or 0.75 CEUs (building department professionals). 

This class is being presented in conjunction with the Snohomish County Public Utility District, in the Auditorium at the PUD's Electric Building Headquarters in Everett. 

Instructors: Erik Bishop, PE, SE, and Paul Brallier, PE, SE, have each taught building safety evaluation classes for more than 20 years. They apply their international experience in evaluating earthquake-damaged buildings in Chile, Mexico, Japan, and Turkey to their teaching.

ATC Field Manuals can be ordered during registration. Although they are optional for the training, the Field Manuals are intended to be carried for reference by building safety evaluators working in the field. As a minimum, we recommend those who intend to do field work have at least the ATC 20-1 Postearthquake safety evaluation of buildings.

The May meeting of the DPRC is CANCELED.  To be added to the DPRC email group, email John Riley 

Come join Seattle Chapter SEAW for a site tour of the Ash Grove Cement Plant. After the tour, there will be an optional Happy Hour at Ghostfish Brewing Company.

Join the SEAW YMG and ASCE YMF for a guided educational tour of T-Mobile Park! Come to this walking tour to learn about the home of the Seattle Mariners and walk through normally restricted areas such as the Owners’ Suite, Rooftop Boardwalk, and Mariners Hall of Fame. The tour will partly be guided by an engineer from MKA, the structural engineer on the project, who will share technical insights on one of Seattle’s premier stadiums. After the tour, join us for a social hour near the stadium.

Come join us for our May Social on May 28th at Uprise Brewing. Thank you to our venders, Budinger, Redbuilt, Simpson, and Woodworks.

SEAW SW Chapter will be hosting our Tacoma Rainiers Social in a luxury suite at Cheney stadium.  Come root on the Rainiers as they face the Las Vegas Aviators starting at 7:05pm.  Gates open at 5:30pm, the suite opens 1 hour before game time, and a full dinner and drinks will be provided. Sponsors will have the opportunity to support raffle prizes throughout the evening.  This has quickly become a fun tradition for the SW Chapter as we wrap up the year.  Invite your coworkers, families, and friends!  There will be limited space so please sign up early!  We’ll see you there!

Please email info@seaw.org if you would like more details about the meeting.

This train-the-trainer class is aimed at those WAsafe BSE enrollees who have already taken the full WAsafe BSE class and would like to take the next step to become a WAsafe instructor.  The class will review the PowerPoint presentation for the WAsafe Building Safety Evaluation (ATC 20/45 Plus) curriculum, including the speaker notes.  Participants will learn the key points to cover when presenting the WAsafe curriculum and will receive copies of the PowerPoint presentation.

Note: To attend this training, you must be enrolled as a WAsafe BSE. During the registration process, you will be asked to enter details about your WAsafe BSE enrollment (Organization, BSE Type). 

Registration is "free." (There's no fee to register for the class). Registration closes on May 22nd. 

Agenda and link to our online meeting will be emailed. To be added to the DPRC email group, email John Riley