Letter: Want better Cascades passenger train service?

Submitted by Breck Lebegue MD MPH, WA Physicians for Social Responsibility.

Amtrak Cascades service in Washington just received a boost of positive new energy with House passage of ESHB 1837. Senator Nobles co-sponsored a companion bill in the Senate that did not advance, so the House bill now needs to also pass the Senate for us to enjoy faster, more frequent, reliable train service between Vancouver, B.C., Seattle, and Portland by 2035. The bill expects trains to be on time a minimum of 88% of the time, much better than a 50% on-time average over the past 10 years. Trains would run 14 roundtrips between Seattle and Portland, taking only 2-hours 45-minutes each way–a much more relaxed, healthy, and climate-conscious way to travel, than driving on busy freeways or flying from crowded airports.

Cascades has a total of 12 stops in Washington, including Tacoma and Olympia-Lacey. No Cascades stop at the future DuPont Sounder station is planned. Pierce County residents may contact Sen. Nobles office to express their opinion on ESHB 1837 and ask Senate Transportation Chair Marco Liias to hold a hearing to advance the bill.