Submitted by Breck Lebegue, Rail Can’t Wait Coalition.
Amtrak Cascades from Seattle to Portland must slow to 30 mph to safely cross a 100-year-old sharp curve and bridge across the Nisqually River in south Pierce County—even by the new trains we get in 2026. That’s why most people either drive I 5 or fly. But car convenience means greater pollution. WSDOT Service Development Plan does not include a new gentler curve or rail bridge to allow train speeds up to 110 mph. To find out what you can do to get faster trains, you are invited to a briefing on how to achieve faster, frequent, and reliable intercity Cascades.
WHAT: Advocate Insider Briefing – Amtrak Cascades, hosted by Rail Can’t Wait Campaign, a coalition of advocates for mode shift of passengers and freight, from planes and lanes to trains.
WHEN: Wednesday, July 31st, 6:00p – 7:00p PT
WHERE: Zoom (virtual)
RSVP: Sign Up Here 👈
WHY: Cascades was on time only 47% in 2022, and 55% in 2024. Today’s slow, unreliable passenger service is unacceptable — we need ambitious plans to deliver faster, frequent, reliable service. Faster passenger rail is a transportation-pollution solution, but your advocacy is needed!
TOPICS: The briefing will cover Washington State’s newly revised plans for Amtrak Cascades and why they’re inadequate to meet our challenges. We will share our analysis and our top priorities to improve the Amtrak Cascades. You can ask questions and make comments. We’ll offer specific ways individuals and organizations can advocate for better Cascades service.
RSVP Join us July 31 @ 6:00 pm and share this invite with interested people in your network!
Hosted by Rail Can’t Wait Campaign
Solutionary Rail www.solutionaryrail.org
Climate Rail Alliance www.climaterailalliance.org
350 Seattle www.350seattle.org/aviation-team/
Washington Physicians for Social Responsibility www.wpsr.org/transportation
Rail travel has been neglected for decades. The land corridors are already allocated. It’s past time for the government to step up and enforce stricter safety measures, maintenance and staffing to run the trains on time and safely. Highways are overcrowded and deadly. Commuters on the east coast use the time on trains to work or read instead of driving. I’m sure the West Coast will embrace rail commutes or travel too.
Correct! Rail is right on! Let’s save fuel /trees !
As a retired worker from Amtrak (Tacoma and Centralia stations) and a writer via The Suburban Times – https://thesubtimes.com/2024/07/16/be-aware-and-be-prepared-even-if-its-just-local/ it is not really good to compare the travel time lengths. Driving south from Tacoma to Olympia is often just a guess on time. The same is true on the return.
Got that right!
While I agree with your stance on rail in the US and locally, your opening two sentences lost me. I can’t conclude that a train between Seattle and Portland needing to slow for a few miles on the trip is why people choose to drive instead. Convenience matters more, especially for the first and last miles of any trip. Parking at stations and knowing how to get around at one’s destination matter more I think. I suggest that aspect should also be part of the initiative and message to improve that mode of travel. I’ve enjoyed the trip a few times, after working out the logistics on either end.
Make sure you include “Locked to the Rails” when you design this Bullet, as you well know we live in a earthquake zone, this train would have to be built with a very special roll cage for sure, and huge parachutes in the rear car to help in this braking event. And why 125mph? America does terrible track maintenance from all the wreaks that happen, rotting ties, to worn out rails, and cars that are pulled along with the passengers, the other is response time after a wreak, if it wasn’t for local fire department & first responders, local police & private citizens that jumbled up mess at Dupont would have been worse. Go the same speed that the freeway allows, that way when this machine has to stop it can!!
https://www.amtrakcascades.com/about#:~:text=Amtrak%20Cascades%20is%20funded%20primarily,states%20of%20Washington%20and%20Oregon.
Even from their own website, Amtrak reveals that rail travel does not support itself through ticket sales, much like Sound Transit doesn’t. Taking the train is slow compared to flying and less convenient than driving since you can’t just leave when you want and from your own home.
High speed trains will never make it on the freight tracks and the cost to build is prohibitive! All you need to do is look and see how over budget the high speed train in CA has been so far.
https://calmatters.org/economy/2023/03/california-high-speed-rail/
I’m guessing logical corridors and priorities for build-out align with existing inter-state motorized rights of way. The costs seem prohibitive, and the luxury of China’s blank canvas and central authority will not attend our transportation future kindly. But Japan has managed, and eventually must we.
Notwithstanding, politics of established segment interests and national debt, it seems clear that economic “growth/progress” at trend over the next century will require government commitments at scale to advance human prosperity with environmental balance beyond existing spokes, hubs and mode restrictions. New jurisdictional authority and cooperation toward agreed purpose lies ahead. It’s high time we got on with imagining the cost and consequence of our regional and national transportation destinations. Underlying all infrastructure and mobility concerns will remain political and social dynamic of where private and public interests intersect or conflict, together with established markets, traditions and agency.
Puget Sound Regional Council, Southwest Washington Regional Transportation Council? What Dot.GOV shall preside? USDOT? That’s about right. This horizon lies beyond Lakewood, Seattle, Portland, your garage, my carport and bicycle. Beyond Flint, Chicago and I-495. And it’s important. We all need to get on board.
There’s a 55mph curve on Interstate 5 in between Kelso and Centralia in the Napavine area…that must be why people fly or take the train. See how ill informed this guy sounds? 😂🤦♂️. One 30mph curve for .10 of a mile on the tracks will not discourage train travel just like a 55mph curve on an otherwise 70mph freeway won’t discourage car travel. Just like a 40mph airplane taxing speed on a runway won’t discourage air travel.
Preach.
Thank you for being the voice of logic.