I can say with absolute certainty, that the Portland-Astoria route will not continue after this year, and certainly would never exist with Amtrak owned DMUs.
As for a Washington cross-state train, I think Washington really likes the Talgos, and since Seattle-Spokane or Portland-Spokane is about eight hours in length, that'd be one cramped DMU ride.[/quote]
ODOT owns the right of way that those trains use, they should invest in it, for both train service to Astoria, and who knows, make Astoria a port that could relive pressure on Portland.
In Eastern Washington, I have been posting on local news boards that we need to bridge the gap between East and West, and the train is the way to do it. I think once track upgrades are done on the west side, Amtrak and WSDoT get a few Talgo XXIs, and a few more Talgo TPUs. The Talgo TPUs could be used for Eastern Washington Service, and DMUs used on three branch lines that have little or no bus service.
Pullman-Spokane=2 round trips on Northwestern Trailways, state now owns the Palouse River and Coulee City. Upgrade tracks for 90 MPH would be the idea, and use the CRC DMU on that one for Passenger Service.
Wenatchee-Okanagon Valley= 1 Round Trip(monday-Friday) Northwestern Trailways.
Pasco-Walla Walla=Greyhound dropped the route completely. Serves two major Eastern Washington population centers.
As for a Washington cross-state train, I think Washington really likes the Talgos, and since Seattle-Spokane or Portland-Spokane is about eight hours in length, that'd be one cramped DMU ride.[/quote]
ODOT owns the right of way that those trains use, they should invest in it, for both train service to Astoria, and who knows, make Astoria a port that could relive pressure on Portland.
In Eastern Washington, I have been posting on local news boards that we need to bridge the gap between East and West, and the train is the way to do it. I think once track upgrades are done on the west side, Amtrak and WSDoT get a few Talgo XXIs, and a few more Talgo TPUs. The Talgo TPUs could be used for Eastern Washington Service, and DMUs used on three branch lines that have little or no bus service.
Pullman-Spokane=2 round trips on Northwestern Trailways, state now owns the Palouse River and Coulee City. Upgrade tracks for 90 MPH would be the idea, and use the CRC DMU on that one for Passenger Service.
Wenatchee-Okanagon Valley= 1 Round Trip(monday-Friday) Northwestern Trailways.
Pasco-Walla Walla=Greyhound dropped the route completely. Serves two major Eastern Washington population centers.
Bus and Rail fan of the Pacific Northwest