Committee hears bill and Amtrak briefing setting measurable targets for Amtrak Cascades service

Engrossed Substitute House Bill 18-37 would set measurable, time‑bound targets for the Amtrak Cascades corridor and direct WSDOT to prioritize those goals in project development: 14 round trips per day between Seattle and Portland, five round trips between Seattle and Vancouver, B.C., minimum trip reliability of 88 percent on‑time performance, and shorter travel-time targets (for example, a 2 hour 45 minute Seattle–Portland target) to be met by 2035, with annual reporting to the legislature, according to staff and sponsor remarks and testimony on April 1.

Representative Julia Reed, prime sponsor, told the committee the intent is to give WSDOT measurable goals to guide planning and investments and to spur urgency in the state’s service-development planning. “You cannot manage what you cannot measure,” Reed said, arguing that specific targets will produce clearer decision points and trade-off analysis as the department develops a long-range service plan.

Amtrak briefing and equipment withdrawal: the committee also held a work session with Amtrak representatives who described a…