Kent, WA
Stop on the proposed 17,000-mile maglev network. Next stop: Tacoma, WA (13.2 mi).
About Kent
Kent is a ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Greater London to the north-west.
Source: Wikipedia summary (full article). Population and facts as published there.
Cost breakdown (proposal-scale estimates — see math)
| Item | Basis | Estimate |
|---|---|---|
| Terminal construction | Large-city terminal (range $2–4B) | $3B |
| Land acquisition | Regional factor 1.5× on $200M base | $300M |
| Track: Kent → Tacoma | 13.2 mi × $500M/mi | $6.6B |
| Annual operations (share) | Staffing, power, maintenance | $60M/yr |
| Stop total (excl. annual ops) | $9.9B |
Best terminal location (proposed)
the Kent Station district (Sounder/Amtrak). Kent Station already combines Sounder commuter rail, Amtrak Cascades and a major bus transit center in a walkable downtown. The rail corridor through the Kent Valley is the region's freight spine with room for a parallel guideway. It serves south King County's dense, diverse commuter base and the valley's warehouse job cluster.
Before / after
Aerial mock-up (illustrative, not an engineering rendering). Left: the proposed site today. Right: with the maglev terminal.
- Federal Way — large suburb midway with a growing downtown and transit center.
- Fife — small city at the Puyallup River crossing on the corridor.
- Milton/Edgewood — hillside communities overlooking the Tacoma approach.