On Charlie Hamilton’s regular Amtrak rides from Seattle to Portland, Oregon, and Vancouver, British Columbia, he passes some of the country’s most spectacular vistas: the Puget Sound coast and the Skagit Valley. On clear days, he can even see Mount Rainier. But perhaps the most beautiful sight is not the natural wonders of the Pacific Northwest. It’s the cars and trucks inching along the highway.
“It’s nice to be able to be going along there and going faster than what people on Interstate 5 are doing. We kind of like that bit,” said Hamilton, who leads the train advocacy organization All Aboard Washington.
Indeed, riding the train in the Pacific Northwest can take about as long as driving. The trip between Seattle and Portland takes about 3 hours and 30 minutes by either mode, even though the train makes six stops along the way.
Amtrak plans to begin rolling out 83 new trainsets, dubbed Airo, this fall, starting with eight on the Pacifi... Read more
