High-speed rail project connecting Portland to Seattle, Vancouver B.C. makes headway

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — A high-speed rail that would link Portland to the Pacific Northwest’s other major cities is one step closer to becoming a reality.

On Wednesday, a group of Washington lawmakers informed residents that the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Railroad Administration doled out $49.7 million for the Cascade High-Speed Rail project.

Sen. Maria Cantwell’s Office said the award will help officials continue developing the proposal, which would offer train service from the Rose City to destinations like Seattle and Vancouver B.C. — at a speed of up to 250 mph.

Cantwell was one of 13 Pacific Northwest lawmakers who asked U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg to allocate additional funding toward the project in September.

The letter asserted that the “Cascadia corridor” including Washington, Oregon and British Columbia is expected to welcome four million new residents by 2050. Officials argued that a high-speed rail is essential to accommodating this growth.

The region has already seen an increase in train travel, with Cantwell’s office noting a 40% increase in ridership along the Amtrak Cascades route from 2023 to 2024.

“The proposed high-speed rail corridor could transport people between Seattle and Portland in less than an hour, creating critical additional capacity,” the lawmakers, including Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden and Rep. Earl Blumenauer, wrote. “Planning for this growth now, rather than reacting to it later, will set our region and country on the best path to compete in the 21st Century and beyond.”

All 10 of Washington’s Democratic Congress members wrote a similar letter to Buttigieg in September 2023. They estimated the high-speed rail would garner $355 million in economic growth for the region.

According to Cantwell’s office, project leaders can now complete step two of the Corridor Identification and Development program. This planning phase includes “route planning, identification of capital projects, and community outreach.”