ODOT briefs Senate panel on Amtrak Cascades expansion, federal funding and Cascadia high‑speed planning

The Oregon Department of Transportation briefed the Senate Interim Committee on Transportation on Jan. 15 on passenger‑rail planning, federal funding pathways and infrastructure projects that could expand Amtrak Cascades service and support regional high‑speed rail planning.

Suzanne Carlson, public transportation division administrator at ODOT, said Amtrak Cascades currently operates six daily round trips between Portland and Seattle (two of which extend to Eugene) and carries about 1,000,000 passengers a year. Carlson described the Federal Railroad Administration’s Corridor Identification and Development Program, created under the 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, as a multi‑stage process to build a pipeline of construction‑ready projects: planning initiation (100% FRA funding), a service development plan (90% FRA/10% local match) and project development (80% FRA/20% local match).

ODOT is working with FRA, Amtrak and Union Pacific (which owns most of the track in Oregon) to complete a service development plan that identifies congestion and freight‑passenger conflicts and packages infrastructure projects in three stages. Carlson said stage 1 projects would enable the addition of one new round trip; stage 2 would allow another; and stage 3 would enable six daily round trips. Two projects initially targeted for federal consideration are a crossover north of Portland (described as the Wheel Bridal crossover in the presentation) to raise speeds in a freight area and a Eugene layover siting project to reduce delays caused by moving trains to freight depots between runs.

Carlson described preliminary conceptual costs: advancing the projects through the stages could total near $1 billion in 2025 dollars; stage 1 conceptual investments were presented at about $490 million to $582 million with an Oregon share estimated at $98 million to $116 million. To begin preliminary engineering and 30% design for the stage‑1 package, Carlson said an estimated $35 million would be needed (with a 20% local match and expected railroad/Amtrak participation of roughly $7 million). She stressed the figures are conceptual and subject to change.

On Cascadia High Speed Rail, Carlson said Washington state is the lead partner in federal corridor work and received a $49.7 million FRA grant with a $5.5 million state match; Oregon is participating via staff coordination and Metro involvement and will continue to work with WSDOT and British Columbia agencies through a multi‑year service development plan that currently runs to 2028.

Committee members pressed ODOT on funding certainty and state match sources. Carlson confirmed the federal corridor program is funded and described the department’s ongoing work to identify match sources, noting some transportation operating funds and the Connect Oregon program as possible contributors. Senators raised competing priorities: one member noted the Legislature faces an immediate shortfall in the current short session and suggested maintenance and preservation may be higher near‑term priorities than new service expansion.

Members also asked whether ridership and long timelines support added service between Portland and Eugene, and they highlighted engineering and safety needs—such as grade separations and double tracking—particularly if higher speeds are contemplated. Carlson said the department’s recent modeling of freight and passenger growth helped identify congestion points and that the program aims to improve both reliability and capacity while benefiting freight operations.

Carlson noted ODOT recently supported restoration of intercity bus service (kicked off Dec. 15) to improve connections to Amtrak routes and to nearby interstate hubs. She closed by offering to return to the committee with updates and by encouraging stakeholders to sign up for project updates on the project website.

The informational session concluded and Chair Gorsek adjourned the meeting.