Amtrak announced today that it will double its train service between Seattle and Canada by adding a second daily route to Vancouver, BC. Right now you can only take a morning train to get there, but when the service expansion begins a week from today, an evening option will also be available.
This comes just in time for next year’s winter Olympics in Vancouver; and while it is only a pilot program for now (beginning August 19 and running through March of next year), Amtrak officials are hopeful that the service will become permanent.
I drove up to Canada a few weeks ago, waited in line at customs for two hours, had my trunk searched on the way back, and wished the whole time that I could have taken a more convenient method of travel. People in Europe and Japan are still laughing at the fact that it takes over four hours to go from Seattle to Vancouver. But hey, it’s a start.
I’m sure that people in Europe and Japan are laughing about that. Not the healthcare debate, gun control, the obesity epidemic, the poor performance of american schools, or any of the other ridiculousness in the us.
Nope, they’re laughing at how a train between two third-tier cities takes four hours!
It sure is a start, and it’s about time. They’d been working on this for quite some time, I understand. One of the issues was about staffing customs at Pacific Central in Vancouver at night. The train station closes at 12:30 AM and the custom officials don’t work there late at night.
Also, should an entry problem arise with a visitor, there was no place to hold him/her until morning when a return trip was possible.
Glad they’ve worked it out. Earlier this year it looked like a no-go. I couldn’t be happier that there’s a day and a night option now…for the time being.
People in Europe and Japan have little to do and much time on their hands.
It’s only 3 hours to Vancouver if you avoid peak hours.
Yeah, there a few high speed international routes in the EU, but given any two randomly selected medium sized cities in the same distance ballpark (100-150 miles), I’d bet most don’t have high speed connections.
And Japan really doesn’t count. Tiny island, relatively speaking, and no worries about border crossings. Not a valid comparison.
It sounds like it might not start up until the 21st.
For rail geeks:
http://seattletransitblog.com/2009/08/12…
1 — Agree with everything other than Vancouver being a 3rd tier city. At worst, it’s a 2nd tier city.
Now if only they’d install some NEXUS readers at the “pre-clearance” area in Canada.
Heh heh…”BC Buds.”
I know I’m the weirdo on this topic (neither a railfan nor a gearhead) but I don’t care if the train takes an hour more than driving: It’s a nice ride, you can have a snack or cocktail, the route is nice, and there is usually someone interesting to talk to.
Plus, you don’t have to worry about parking the car when you get to the city you are visiting. What’s not to like about that?
Give me the train any day.
This makes me so happy! Evenings to Vancouver! Mornings back to Seattle! Avec bicycles! Sigh.
Yeah, but good luck getting back without your passport.
Then again, fuck that. They have legal weed and free healthcare and a light rail system that has more than one segment and dollar coins they actually use.
Just be happy you didn’t cross through customs coming back into the US with your car covered with evil, Vancouverian, socialist, nazi, rationalized healthcare death-panel buckets of tree sap. And with pollen stuck on top of that. Gasp!
It was almost worth the half hour wait to watch the discussion between border guards over what to do about this car covered with possible invasive species goo.
And by the way, the trees in Kitsilano can lay down a mighty layer of sap in three days during the summer. Be warned.
They do not have “legal weed”, nor “free healthcare.” However they have things closer to both than the US will have in my lifetime.
No one’s mentioned the many buses that run up to Vancouver. Better schedule than the trains, cheaper, and expedited customs checkthroughs, though you get the 3rd degree coming back into the US.
The train to Vancouver rocks. Most of the trip is along the sound, you can walk down to the bistro car, and the border crossing is a breeze. The light rail station is across the street.
The trip takes four hours because it gets pretty slow once you get into Canada. Go ahead and drive if 20-40 minutes is that important to you. If you are just visiting Portland or Vancouver and you don’t need to go to the boonies, I think you are stupid to ever take your car.
@11 – bus+bike or train+bike = has got to be the best way (convenient and fun) to get around any metro area, period. I only wish I had learned about this option many many years ago.
I have always taken the train to Seattle and back to Vancouver it is relaxing and yes you can have get a cocktail and sit in your seat or sit in the dining car. Driving in nice if you have a car because you can stop on the way but the train is great. Only objection is that JUST because of the Olympics we are getting many things fixed and done that we should have anyway. It just pisses me off to think if it was not for the Olympics here in Vancouver we would not have new busses, rapid transit or streets fixed up. Now a second train which I have always said was needed for years. The only reason people do not use it more often is because of the ridiculous hours the train leaves for Seattle or Vancouver. If traveling to Seattle and south you are dumped in Seattle at 10 PM with no time to connect with any south bound trains till the next day. If going to Vancouver you have to be at the station at 7 in the morning. It was never convenient but now just because of the Olympics it will be. It should have been done long ago. Oh I forgot to mention, if you come to Vancouver by train during the Olympics we will do our darnedest to make sure we have shoveled the homeless of the sidewalks so as to give the illusion we are a beautiful progressive city that has humanly helped everyone, instead of the giant mediocre uncaring, uptight, glorified fishing village we actually still are. Do I sound bitter HA! Well I can still find pockets of interesting places in Vancouver like my home neighborhood, Strathcona, which is right next to the train station but soon will be cordoned off by a billion dollar security system to protect the precious Olympics and stop me from moving around freely within this city. So take the train down to see how we get to have stuff only because the Olympics and create the illusion that Vancouver is all good.
We need sleeper trains so we can mellow out on the return trip.
Seattle to Vancouver BC is one of the most beautiful rail routes I’ve ever seen. Plus there’s beer!
If you can get to Edmonds in the AM, it’s a better way to go northbound- you can get there much later, and it’s a way nicer station than the King Street Station.