Amtrak to restore all North Cascades routes, with shorter trains and fewer seats

Amtrak announced Sunday it is restoring all routes that are part of its North Cascades route between Seattle and Vancouver, including stops in Bellingham.

The company announced March 26 that it had removed almost all of its passenger train cars in the Northwest from service and was honoring purchased tickets with bus service instead. The decision came after Amtrak said employees discovered corrosion in several Horizon rail cars that needed to be removed from service for safety reasons.

“We discovered corrosion in several Horizon rail cars and, while working with the manufacturer, decided to remove the equipment from service after learning of additional areas of concern from intensive inspections of multiple cars,” Amtrak representatives said when announcing the initial service shutdown.

Last week the company announced a limited return to service after replacement cars were in place.

While all routes have been restored, replacement trains are running with a limited number of cars and fewer available seats, according to an Amtrak spokesperson.

“We encourage customers to book in advance,” said Public Relations Specialist Kelly Just in a news release issued Sunday.

Service disruptions come as Amtrak is rebuilding its fleet with modern e cars and enjoying a surge in ridership both in the Northwest and across the nation.

Ridership rose 41% last year on its route between Portland and Vancouver, B.C. The Amtrak Cascades route carried 941,727 passengers in 2024, Amtrak said in a statement at its website. In its December service update, the Washington State Department of Transportation reported ridership of 739,000 passengers from January through September 2024, a 36% increase over the same period in 2023.