Amtrak Cascades Archives - Northwest Public Broadcasting

Pandemic-Curtailed Amtrak Service To Be Partially Restored Next Month For Northwest Routes

By Tom Banse April 20, 2021

Amtrak will restore a bunch of curtailed service in the Pacific Northwest on May 24, 2021. CREDIT: pxhere.com

In another sign of the rebound in travel, Amtrak and the state transportation departments of Oregon and Washington announced plans to restore a good chunk of the passenger train service that was curtailed due to low ridership in the pandemic. Read More

‘I Knew I Needed To Go Out,’ Says Blood Donor Marking 3rd Anniversary Of Deadly I-5 Amtrak Crash

By Tom Banse December 18, 2020

Donor Kaitlan Vasquez giving blood in Olympia on the third anniversary of the Amtrak 501 train wreck in December 2017. CREDIT: Tom Banse/N3

Three years ago on December 18, a speeding Amtrak Cascades train bound for Portland derailed near DuPont, Washington, and tumbled onto Interstate 5. The crash killed three passengers and injured scores of others. An Olympia woman marked the anniversary Friday by going back to her local blood donation center to achieve a related, but happier milestone. Read More

Study Estimates High Costs, Low Ridership If Washington Boosted East-West Train Service

By Tom Banse June 24, 2020

The rail corridor studied stretches from Seattle to Spokane with six intermediate stops including Ellensburg, Yakima and Pasco.

The Washington Legislature commissioned the $250,000 study last year to see if it would be feasible to restart passenger service on the Stampede Pass line. The route crosses the Cascade Mountains from Seattle to Ellensburg, then stretches onward through the Yakima Valley to Pasco and Spokane. Read More

Plans To Beef Up Amtrak Cascades Service Still Delayed Two Years After Fatal I-5 Derailment

By Tom Banse December 29, 2019

A holiday wish of many Pacific Northwest rail fans is more roundtrips on the Amtrak Cascades schedule with greater speed and reliability. But in order to beef up train service between Seattle and Portland, a bypass route south of Tacoma needs to be reopened. There is still no fixed date to return Amtrak trains to those tracks where a deadly derailment happened just over Read More

There’s Another Multimillion Dollar Jury Settlement Against Amtrak Following 2017 I-5 Derailment

By Tom Banse November 13, 2019

Cars from an Amtrak train lie spilled onto Interstate 5 below alongside smashed vehicles as some train cars remain on the tracks in DuPont, Washington. CREDIT: ELAINE THOMPSON/AP

An eight-member federal court jury on Wednesday ordered Amtrak to pay Madeleine Garza of Maple Valley, Washington, $4.5 million for pain, suffering and possible future disabilities. Garza received spinal injuries and broke her pelvis during the derailment of the speeding Amtrak Cascades train, which was traveling from Seattle to Portland. Read More

Amtrak Concedes Negligence In Deadly 2017 Derailment Over I-5 Near Tacoma

By Tom Banse September 3, 2019

Amtrak train derailment onto Interstate 5 - Picture 2

The crash on Dec. 18, 2017, killed three passengers and injured 65 others, including people on board the speeding train and motorists on adjacent Interstate 5. Amtrak asserted the only question the jury would need to wrestle with is "what is fair and reasonable compensation." Read More

‘Titanic-Like Complacency’: NTSB Official Criticizes Oversight Before 2017 Washington Amtrak Crash

By NWPB News June 25, 2019

The National Transportation Safety Board published its final report Monday on a deadly Amtrak derailment in Washington in 2017, with the agency’s vice chairman blasting what he described as a “Titanic-like complacency” among those charged with ensuring train operations were safe. Read More

183 Amtrak Passengers On The Move After 36 Hours Stranded In Oregon Amid Heavy Snow

By NPR News February 26, 2019

Amtrak apologized Tuesday and promised compensation after 183 passengers were stranded on a train for 36 hours amid heavy snow and fallen trees in Oregon. CREDIT: Bloomberg via Getty Images

A 36-hour ordeal that saw 183 Amtrak passengers languishing on a stalled train in Oakridge, Ore., appeared to be coming to an end Tuesday morning, after a rescue train began pulling them toward Eugene located about 45 miles away, officials said. Read More

Survivors Still Healing, Seeking Accountability One Year After Deadly Amtrak Derailment Over I-5

By Tom Banse December 14, 2018

It's been almost one year since an Amtrak Cascades train derailed near DuPont, Washington. The crash killed three passengers and injured more than 60, including drivers on adjacent Interstate 5. One year later, some of the seriously injured are still healing. The courts are just beginning to deal with the lawsuits stemming from the crash. Read More