SEATTLE — The Pierce County Council has passed a resolution calling on Amtrak, the Washington State Department of Transportation, Sound Transit, and other agencies not to reopen the ill-fated Point Defiance Bypass line to passenger service until the full menu of recommendations from the National Transportation Safety Board is put in place. WSDOT and Amtrak […]
Zone & Region: Pacific Northwest
Seattle cancels streetcar contract NEWSWIRE
SEATTLE — The Seattle Department of Transportation said Monday it is cancelling a contract to buy new streetcars for the proposed Center City Connector line, but it still plans to go ahead with construction of the line through downtown. In an announcement on its website, SDOT said it had informed manufacturer CAF USA that it […]
UP says broken rail caused Portland derailment NEWSWIRE
PORTLAND — Union Pacific has identified a broken rail as the cause of a Saturday derailment that damaged a heavily-used bridge that is the only public route into an industrial area, KPTV-12 reports. Two locomotives and three cars derailed in the Saturday incident, hitting supports for the North Going Street bridge. [See “Union Pacific derailment […]
Sound Transit seeks public opinion on commuter train improvements NEWSWIRE
A Sounder commuter train arrives in Lakewood, Wash., in June 2018. Sound Transit is considering improvements for its service to Lakewood including additional trains or extending the line further south. TRAINS: David Lassen SEATTLE — Sound Transit is planning a series of community “drop-in sessions” to consider how it might spend almost a billion dollars […]
Union Pacific derailment damages busy Portland bridge NEWSWIRE
PORTLAND, Ore. — A busy bridge into a Portland industrial area could be backed up for weeks or even months as a result of a Union Pacific derailment on Saturday. Four of the six lanes of the North Going Street bridge have been shut down after two locomotives and three tank cars derailed in a […]
BNSF bridge project in Idaho gets favorable Coast Guard ruling
SANDPOINT, Idaho — The U.S. Coast Guard has issued a favorable ruling for BNSF Railway’s efforts to build a second set of bridges on its main line near Sandpoint, a plan which has been fought by some local residents. The Coast Guard — which has jurisdiction because the bridge is over a navigable waterway — […]
Cascades crash civil trial begins in Washington state NEWSWIRE
SEATTLE — In what’s believed to be the first suit stemming from the December 2017 derailment of an Amtrak Cascades passenger train to go to trial, three of those injured in the wreck are seeking damages in federal court in Tacoma, Wash. The trial, which began Tuesday, Sept. 3, and is tentatively scheduled for eight […]
Sound Transit breaks ground on latest light rail extension NEWSWIRE
LYNNWOOD, Wash. — Sound Transit broke ground Tuesday on its latest light rail extension, an 8.5-mile, four-stop extension north to the Snohomish County community of Lynnwood. When it opens in 2024, the extension promises riders the ability to travel from Lynnwood to downtown Seattle in 28 minutes, and will see trains every 4 to 6 […]
SP 4449 running on the Oregon Pacific this week NEWSWIRE
PORTLAND, Ore. – One of the most famous 4-8-4 locomotives in America is fired up for a series of short trips on the Oregon Pacific Railroad this week. Southern Pacific “Daylight” No. 4449 will lead a series of brief excursions on Aug. 28 from its home at the Oregon Rail Heritage Center in Portland to […]
Feds give Washington state nearly $40 million to replace Talgo equipment NEWSWIRE
A view of the wreckage of derailed Amtrak Cascades Train 501 on Dec. 18, 2017. The passenger cars in the picture were made by Talgo. Steve Carter SEATTLE — The Washington State Department of Transportation has been awarded a $37.5 million Federal Railroad Administration grant to replace three state-owned Talgo 6 trainsets used on Amtrak […]
Steam locomotive to return to the Pacific Northwest from Arizona NEWSWIRE
SEATTLE — A steam locomotive that worked for years in the Pacific Northwest is headed home after a vacation in Arizona. Former Northern Pacific No. 1762 and Spokane, Portland & Seattle No. 539, a 2-8-2 Mikado built in 1917, has been acquired by the Port of Kalama, located along the Columbia River near Longview Wash. […]
Seattle streetcar’ Center City Connector is ‘on’ again NEWSWIRE
SEATTLE — Seattle’s financially-troubled on-again, off-again Center City Connector streetcar project appears to be on again. The Seattle Department of Transportation has asked the City Council for $9 million for additional design and engineering work on the mile-long line through downtown that would link two operating streetcar lines. Mayor Jenny Durkan suspended work on the […]
