By TJ Martinell, thelens.com; December 23, 2019
As the state continues to explore the idea of a bullet train line from Seattle north to British Columbia and south to Portland, it is now beginning to look at reviving passenger rail service from Spokane to Auburn through Stampede Pass. A consulting group plans to report back to the legislature next year regarding infrastructure costs, ridership demand and what type of service could be provided. However, some members of the Joint Transportation Committee (JTC) at their Dec. 17 meeting expressed reservations as to whether that would be feasible.
The Stampede Pass corridor is a 230-mile single rail line from Pasco in eastern Washington to Auburn in central Puget Sound that is currently owned and operated by Burlington Northern Sante Fe (BNSF) Rail. A passenger train service used to operate on the line but has been defunct for 90 years. Currently, there is rail service from Seattle to Spokane and south from Vancouver, Washington to Pasco along the Empire Builder lines.
Click here to read the full article.