The Redmond Central Connector is a paved

rail trail A rail trail or railway walk is a shared-use path on a Right of way#Rail right of way, railway right of way. Rail trails are typically constructed after a railway has been abandoned and the track has been removed but may also share the rail corr ...

and

linear park A linear park is a type of park that is significantly longer than it is wide. These linear parks are strips of public land running along canals, rivers, streams, defensive walls, electrical lines, or highways and Esplanade, shorelines. Examples o ...

Redmond, Washington Redmond is a city in King County, Washington, United States, located east of Seattle. The population was 73,256 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Redmond is best known as the home of Microsoft and Nintendo of America. The city h ...

. It is a spur of the

Eastside Rail Corridor The Eastside Rail Corridor, officially Eastrail, is a rail right of way where a rail trail has been under development in the Eastside suburbs of Seattle, Washington. The corridor follows the path of the former Woodinville Subdivision from ...

, connecting the main

Eastrail The Eastside Rail Corridor, officially Eastrail, is a rail right of way where a rail trail has been under development in the Eastside suburbs of Seattle, Washington. The corridor follows the path of the former Woodinville Subdivision from Ren ...

to downtown Redmond. The trail features art made from railroad tracks and signals.

History

The land for the trail was acquired in 2010. Construction proceeded in three phases, beginning in 2013, 2017, and 2022 respectively. The final phase will break ground in 2024, connecting the Central Connector to the

Cross Kirkland Corridor Cross Kirkland Corridor is a rail trail and linear park in the city of Kirkland, Washington, Kirkland, Washington (state), Washington. It is Kirkland's segment of the multi-city Eastside Rail Corridor on the Eastside (King County, Washington), E ...

Route

The trail begins western end of the Puget Power Trail near Overlake Christian Church and

Digipen Institute of Technology DigiPen Institute of Technology is a private for-profit university in Redmond, Washington. It also has campuses in Singapore and Bilbao, Spain. DigiPen offers bachelor's and master's degree programs. History In 1988, DigiPen was founded by ...

. A future extension will connect it to the

and the rest of the

. The trail continues southeast before crossing the

Sammamish River The Sammamish River (also known as Sammamish Slough) flows through north King County, Washington for about , draining Lake Sammamish into Lake Washington. Along its course, the Sammamish River flows through Redmond, Woodinville, Bothell, and ...

on a renovated railroad trestle. After crossing the river, it intersects the

Sammamish River Trail The Sammamish River Trail is a recreational pedestrian and bike path rail trail in King County, Washington that runs along the Sammamish River from Blyth Park in Bothell to Marymoor Park in Redmond as part of the “Locks to Lakes Corridor.� ...

. The trail then continues into downtown Redmond, passing through Redmond Central Connector Park and Downtown Park. It passes

Redmond Town Center Redmond Town Center is a mixed-use development and shopping center in downtown Redmond, Washington. Owned and managed by Fairbourne Properties, Redmond Town Center has more than 110 shops, restaurants, lodging, and entertainment venues in an out ...

before arriving at the future

Downtown Redmond station Downtown Redmond station is a Link light rail station on the north side of Redmond Town Center shopping mall in downtown Redmond, Washington. It is an elevated station located along Cleveland Street ( SR 202) between 164th and 166th avenues. ...

and ending at the Bear Creek Trail.

Sound Transit Sound Transit (ST), officially the Central Puget Sound Regional Transit Authority, is a public transit agency serving the Seattle metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington. It manages the Link light rail system in Se ...

constructed a bridge across Bear Creek and under State Route 520 that connects it to the

East Lake Sammamish Trail The East Lake Sammamish Trail is an recreational rail trail in King County, Washington that runs along Lake Sammamish from Marymoor Park in Redmond, through Sammamish, to Gilman Boulevard in Issaquah. History The trail had initially encoun ...

, a continuation of the rail trail.

References

{{Rail trails in Washington Transportation in King County, Washington Rail trails in Washington (state) Linear parks Parks in Redmond, Washington