Corrosion sidelines Amtrak trains on Cascades route
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An Amtrak train, pulling Talgo cars, pulls out of the King Street Station in Seattle. Photo: Courtesy of Amtrak
If you're planning to take the train between Portland, Seattle, and B.C., you'll get where you're headed — but more likely it will be by bus.
Why it matters: Amtrak sidelined its Horizon car fleet Wednesday due to corrosion issues, highlighting the challenges posed by aging infrastructure and the impact on reliable passenger rail service.
Driving the news: Amtrak canceled trains — but not service — on several routes, including Amtrak Cascades, opting to use buses to get people from one place to the next, Amtrak spokesperson Kelly Just told Axios.
State of play: Horizon cars are used in all but one train serving the Cascades, according to Just. That's the train that runs the 503 and 508 bookend daily trips from Seattle to Eugene and back.
- That train, which uses Talgo cars instead of Horizon cars, is still running its regular route, Just said.
By the numbers: Amtrak's Cascades route has been booming recently, with nearly 950,000 passengers using the service last year, a 41% bump from 2023, per the Bellingham Herald.
What they're saying: Affected guests were being notified of the switch to bus service, Just said.
- "We apologize for the inconvenience, but this was something that was necessary for us to do," Just said. "It's not the train experience you were hoping for, but we will get you there."
Zoom in: Amtrak offers six daily round trips between Seattle and Portland and two between Portland and Vancouver, B.C.
- Amtrak will continue honoring bike reservations on the bus because "traveling with a bike is important in the Northwest," Just said.
- Passengers who booked business class will be downgraded to coach and given a refund.
Zoom out: Amtrak was forced to sideline Horizon cars on a number of other routes nationally, including the Downeaster in New England, the Hiawatha between Milwaukee and Chicago, and the Borealis, which runs between Minneapolis/St. Paul and Chicago.
- Some trains on those routes will operate with fewer cars; passengers on other routes will have to use "substitute transportation until a long-term plan is developed," Amtrak spokesperson Marc Magliari told Axios.
What's next: Amtrak did not provide a timeline for repairs to the Horizon cars but told Axios that all impacted cars will have to be sent to the East Coast for repairs.
- The substitution of buses for most routes will last at least through Sunday, officials said.