Woodinville's first finished piece of Eastrail is a tunnel under a traffic circle. It was built as part of a road project. The second piece will be a pedestrian and bicycle bridge over SR 202, and it also comes from a road project. The City's own FAQ says the interim gravel trail opens to the public only after that bridge is complete. So the date you can walk the old rail line through downtown depends on a highway construction contract. The design survey that closes November 23 doesn't set it.
The corridor runs 1.9 miles. It follows a former railway north from Wilmot Gateway Park through downtown to the city boundary. The City plans it as a multi-use trail and linear park that will tie Eastrail, the Sammamish River Trail and a future Centennial Trail connection together. Over most of its length the corridor is about 100 feet wide. Wetlands, road crossings and steep grades squeeze some stretches. The tracks are already gone. A 2024 City Council report noted that the abandoned rails had been removed and that the corridor was railbanked in 2023.
The tunnel came with the 133rd Avenue roundabout
The new roundabout where Woodinville-Snohomish Road meets Little Bear Creek Parkway has a pedestrian and bicycle tunnel underneath it. The City's Fall 2026 resident newsletter says the tunnel "currently provides a connection for pedestrians and cyclists between the roundabout and NE 178th Street." It calls the roundabout and tunnel "an important first step and key link towards Woodinville's future Eastrail connection."
The roundabout was still being finished at the end of October. The newsletter said both roads would not fully reopen until the remaining roadway work wrapped up "in the next few weeks." Crews also had artwork left to install in the center, and traffic patterns could keep shifting. The centerpiece is a sculpture called "River." If you take the tunnel this week, follow the posted signs. The City has asked drivers, pedestrians and cyclists to use caution while crews finish.
The SR 202 bridge sets the opening date
The SR 202 Widening and Trestle Replacement project widens the highway from five lanes to eight between NE 175th Street and NE 177th Place. It also replaces the old railroad trestle with a pedestrian bridge. That bridge will carry the Sammamish River Trail across the highway to a paved multi-use connection at the 133rd Avenue NE connector, and from there to the tunnel. Each trail zone between the Sammamish River Trail and 133rd Avenue NE is planned to include pollinator pockets.
The City estimates the project at $22.25 million, including $14.7 million in grants. The contract award was on the City Council's September 29 agenda. Granite Construction has announced that it won the Phase B contract, worth about $16 million. Granite expects work to start in the fourth quarter of 2026 and finish in the fourth quarter of 2027.
Those dates feed straight into the trail schedule. Here is the order the City has laid out:
- Now. The roundabout tunnel connects to NE 178th Street, and roadwork around it is wrapping up.
- Fall 2026 or winter 2027. SR 202 construction is scheduled to begin.
- Early 2027. The City expects to finish a framework plan that lays out alignment options, community assets and how the work could be phased.
- Fall 2027. The trestle project is scheduled for completion. After that, the corridor sections tied to the roundabout and trestle open to the public in an interim state.
- Summer 2028. Preliminary design and environmental review are expected to be done.
- Summer 2029. Final design and permitting are expected to be done.
- The next 10 to 20 years. The City aims to finish the corridor with its final trail surface, recreation areas and amenities.
The interim trail will be gravel, laid temporarily along the old rail bed until each section gets its final surface. That finish hasn't been chosen yet. It could be a mix of gravel and pavement, or fully paved.
Highway construction will reach neighbors before the trail does. Bid documents dated July 28, 2026 say SR 202 is to stay open except during night and weekend closures and as shown in the traffic-control plans. At least one sidewalk is to stay open through most of the work. The same documents note that bridge work may need weekend or one-lane closures on SR 202 and 131st Avenue NE.
Summer survey results: bike connections first, then restrooms
The money is split the same way the schedule is. The City has secured $5 million in federal RAISE funding and $2.1 million in local funds, with about $5.9 million set aside for planning and design. Construction funding is to be pursued later. In other words, the current budget pays for planning the park. It doesn't pay for building it.
That planning began with resident input this summer. The online survey ran from July 8 to August 30 and drew more than 275 complete responses plus 30 partial ones. City staff also talked with nearly 500 people at three events: 120 at the July 8 concert, 140 at the July 18 farmers market and 220 at the August 8 festival.
According to the City's engagement summary, more than half of respondents ranked convenient bicycle access to the regional trail system as their top priority. Connection to nature came second. One respondent wrote:
"Cannot emphasize enough the importance of bike trail connection to the greater region!!!"
The access answers point the same way. More than 65% put bicycle or scooter among their top two ways of reaching the trail. About 45% expected to drive and park, and 5% picked transit. Separated walking and biking paths were the most-requested design feature, followed by natural landscaping and then gathering areas. Restrooms led the amenity list by a wide margin. Pop-up and vendor spaces, parking and playgrounds each drew more than 35% interest. Another respondent asked for "easy, safe access to nearby businesses and restaurants."
The top request was a regional bike connection, and that's the one the SR 202 bridge delivers. Restrooms, gathering areas and vendor spaces belong to the linear park, which is on the ten-to-twenty-year schedule.
The fall survey covers four sections and closes November 23
The Woodinville Eastrail Corridor Fall Survey shows early visual concepts for four sections of the corridor. The City says they aren't final designs. It's the follow-up to the October 27 open house at City Hall, and it closes November 23, 2026.
The concepts build on what summer respondents asked for. They wanted the design rooted in local character: native plants and wildlife, the corridor's rail and lumber history, agriculture, wine culture, Coast Salish history, and Woodinville's standing as a Tree City and Bee City. The City describes the corridor as a community front yard, with access south of the trail to farmland, wineries and tourism destinations. The fall feedback goes into the framework plan due in early 2027. That plan is where alignment and phasing choices get written down.
The paved trail you can ride today, and the links at either end
Until the bridge opens, the paved route through town is the Sammamish River Trail. King County describes it as 10.1 miles from Bothell to Marymoor Park. It passes Wilmot Gateway Park and Woodinville's wineries and breweries. Eastrail already reaches it from the south. Eastrail Partners reported that the Totem Lake to Woodinville segment opened in spring 2022, with a signalized crossing at NE 145th Street and an improved path along 145th that connects to the Sammamish River Trail.
More of the network is scheduled to open around the same time as the SR 202 bridge. King County lists the Wilburton Trestle, which started construction in May 2024, with an expected opening in mid-2027. The connection north will take longer. Snohomish County says its 12-mile Centennial Trail South extension will run along the former railroad corridor from the City of Snohomish south to Woodinville. It isn't open to the public yet. Planning and conceptual design continue through 2027, and construction is expected in phases "over the coming decade and beyond." The County has $2 million for engineering studies and preliminary design and says it needs more money for final design and construction.
Where to see City staff in person this season
After the survey closes, the next chance to talk with the City in person is at Winterfest. The fall newsletter lists these community dates:
- November 13: Arts Alliance Sip & Stroll Art Walk
- December 5, 9:30 a.m.: Celebrate Woodinville Winterfest 5K
- December 5, 3 to 6 p.m.: Celebrate Woodinville Winterfest Holiday Fair & Tree Lighting, with a Community Conversations booth run by the City
- December 13, 6 to 8 p.m.: Woodinville Car Light Parade & Festival
The Winterfest booth comes about twelve days after the survey closes. It also lands inside the fall-to-winter window when SR 202 construction is scheduled to start, a few months before the framework plan is due.
If your Woodinville home sits close to the corridor and you're thinking about selling, Lynette Thomas can show you how to present it with the trail's real schedule in mind. Start with a free home valuation and a personalized marketing plan.
