Wikipedia:Featured article candidates/Central Link/archive1


 * The following is an archived discussion of a featured article nomination. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the article's talk page or in Wikipedia talk:Featured article candidates. No further edits should be made to this page.

The article was promoted by Ian Rose via FACBot (talk) 11:21, 8 May 2018.

Central Link

 * Nominator(s):  Sounder Bruce  23:31, 14 March 2018 (UTC)

Joining my two nominations of Seattle train stations, here comes the line that connects them. Central Link (most call it "Link" or "the light rail") runs 20 miles from the city's airport to the central business district and the university campus. It took over forty years between conception and construction, and was nearly derailed by a budget crisis at the turn of the millennium. But it was built and carries 72,000 passengers per day (ranking high among U.S. light rail systems), and will eventually form the backbone of a 110-mile rail network spanning the entire metropolitan area. The article went through a copyedit and GA review recently and I feel it easily meets the FA criteria.  Sounder Bruce  23:31, 14 March 2018 (UTC)
 * Note: This article is part of an ongoing Good topic nomination and was improved as part of WikiCup.  Sounder Bruce  23:31, 14 March 2018 (UTC)

Support Edwininlondon
A fine article. Little to quibble with on prose. Just a few comments: I'll look at the references later.Edwininlondon (talk) 18:24, 24 March 2018 (UTC)
 * will also open in 2023 --> a comma can help here: will also open, in 2023,
 * Rephrased that sentence in a different way.
 * forced the interurban system to shut down --> forced seems a bit strong. Did the Great Depression have something to do with it? See perhaps History of rail transport in the United States
 * The first interurban shutdown was a year before the Black Friday crash, so I don't think it's attributed to that. Reordered that sentence and added a reference.  Sounder Bruce  03:13, 25 March 2018 (UTC)
 * 2016 dollars --> a few instances of these, which ideally are updated to 2018
 * These are generated by an inflation template and will automatically be updated to the newest GDP-based inflation rate when it becomes available.
 * 20 hours per day from Monday to Saturday, from 4:00 am to 1:00 am --> that would be 21 hours
 * Fixed (actual start time is 5 am).
 * 12:00 am is normally ambiguous, less so here. Still, midnight would be better I think
 * Fixed.
 * is reduced to 15 minutes --> is reduced to every 15 minutes
 * Fixed.
 * not sure now if on Tuesday morning the second train comes at 6:06 am or 6:15 am. Is that not early morning for most people?
 * It's what Sound Transit considers to be its "early morning" schedule. Commutes can start rather early here, thanks to the long days during the summer, so it can be on the edge for some people.
 * The record itself --> is itself necessary?
 * Removed.

Nice work. With the caveat that I am not an expert or local, my support. Edwininlondon (talk) 21:12, 27 March 2018 (UTC)
 * Formatting references seems fine. Sources reliable.
 * Spotcheck: 58 59 81 124 all fine
 * 130 seems to have 2 authors and published May 22

Comments Support from Cas Liber
Came here to do an image review but found fewer than three supports. so am reading. comments below...


 * The Central Link project was originally planned to open in 2006 and cost $1.9 billion (equivalent to $2.76 billion in 2016 dollars) - sounds like the actual cost. Might read better as "projected to cost" here

Otherwise looks ok Cas Liber (talk · contribs) 12:15, 10 April 2018 (UTC)
 * Fixed. Thanks for the review.  Sounder Bruce  22:41, 10 April 2018 (UTC)

Image review
All images are licensed appropriately. I support this nomination. Jackdude 101 talk cont 19:13, 11 April 2018 (UTC)

Support from Harry

 * The opening and infobox really ought to mention the country that the line is in.
 * Added.
 * Trains are composed of two or more cars that can carry 194 passengers, including 74 in seats Per car or per train?
 * Per car.
 * Voters approved Central Link in a 1996 ballot measure and construction began in 2003 Is there anything you can add to the lead about the intervening time? Seven years seems like a long delay.
 * Added a bit to that sentence.
 * The route section could really do with a map of the area served and a route diagram for the benefit of readers not familiar with the area. I compared the closest FAs I could find (Great Northern, Piccadilly and Brompton Railway and MTR) and a high-quality GA (Manchester Metrolink) and all three had maps and diagrams.
 * Added this map, which reproduces well enough at thumbnail size.
 * 6.4 miles (10.3 km) of the 20.35-mile (32.75 km) line is at-grade, including grade separated segments did I read that wrong or are you including grade-separated sections in the "at grade" figure?
 * I'm referring to tracks that are "at-grade" (or, rather, at ground level) along freeways with overpasses and underpasses for crossing streets. It's phrased to differentiate this segment from the "at-grade" (on street, with traffic signals and such) segment on MLK Way.
 * requiring valid payment before boarding and lacking a turnstile barrier at stations I'm not sure what that means. From the link to Proof-of-payment I think it means that passengers are required to have a ticket but that this isn't enforced by any sort of barrier at stations, is that right?
 * This is explained in the third sentence, where fare inspectors check valid fares.
 * The interior is 70 percent low-floor What does that mean? I see from the photo there's a raised area at one end but that's not clear from the prose.
 * Added. Not entirely happy with how I phrased this, though, so I might come back and change it.
 * typically operate at 35 miles per hour Is that the speed limit on the line or is there some other operational constraint?
 * Speed limit on the street-running segment, though I can't find a reliable source that spells this out. The reference here uses 35 mph as the average.
 * The passage of Sound Transit 2 in 2008 and Sound Transit 3 What are these?
 * Rewritten to add context. (They're ballot measures that approved taxes and projects)

Seems close to FA standard on the whole. The lack of geographical context from maps etc is the only thing that really holds it back in my opinion; the rest can be fixed with some light copy-editing. HJ Mitchell &#124; Penny for your thoughts? 05:59, 29 April 2018 (UTC)
 * Thanks for the review. I have added the map and modified the prose as requested by your comments.  Sounder Bruce  06:35, 29 April 2018 (UTC)
 * The map is a big improvement. That's exactly what I was looking for. And I'm happy with the rest of your replies, so support. HJ Mitchell &#124; Penny for your thoughts? 07:37, 29 April 2018 (UTC)

Support from Freikorp
Was surprisingly more entertaining than I expected haha. Well done. It would be of interest to know how much the fines are for passengers without a valid ticket, and what some of the 'other factors' were ("due to their cost or other factors"). But I won't hold my support over those minor issues. Don't feel obligated but I'm looking for comments on my current Wikicup featured nomination if you've got the time. Freikorp (talk) 10:28, 4 May 2018 (UTC)
 * Thanks for the support! I've added the citation/fine ($124), but can't really expand on the factors surrounding the failed proposals. I've tried to keep this article down in summary style, so I feel that putting too much detail would overwhelm the history section.  Sounder Bruce  01:11, 5 May 2018 (UTC)

Coord note
Quite a few duplinks so pls review but I won't hold up promotion over them (if you need to install the duplink checker, doco is here). Cheers, Ian Rose (talk) 11:14, 8 May 2018 (UTC)

Ian Rose (talk) 11:21, 8 May 2018 (UTC)
 * The above discussion is preserved as an archive. Please do not modify it. No further edits should be made to this page.