Amtrak On Board for Interstate Bridge Closure

Salem, Oregon -- Rail service, operated under contract by Amtrak, will be available between Vancouver, Washington, and Portland, Oregon for the duration of the 21-day closure of the northbound structure of the Interstate Bridge during its repairs, beginning September 16. Oregon and Washington Departments of Transportation (ODOT and WSDOT) approved the contracted service today as part of the project's Traffic Management Plan (TMP). The train will be offered free of charge to commuters traveling between Vancouver and Portland during the bridge repair project.

From Vancouver, three morning trains will be offered to commuters traveling from the Vancouver Amtrak station located on West 11th Street, south to Portland's Union Station on NW 6th Avenue, at 5:30, 6:45 and 8:00 a.m. Evening trains will leave Portland at 4:00, 5:15 and 6:30 p.m.

Commuters traveling from Portland to Vancouver can catch the train at 6:00 and 7:15 a.m., returning at 4:30 and 5:45 p.m. All train service will be offered Monday through Friday, only.

Amtrak will be using Amfleet cars, accommodating approximately 700 passengers per trip. Trips between the two cities are estimated to last between 20 and 30 minutes.

Parking will be available near the Vancouver Amtrak station and on Fourth Plain Blvd., with shuttle service provided by C-TRAN. In Portland, additional parking near Union Station will also be available along with direct access to Tri-Met's transit mall, downtown.

"I encourage commuters to use this free Amtrak service as a viable alternative to driving, during the project," said Don Wagner, regional manager for the Oregon Department of Transportation. "The strategy of all the agencies is to provide train service and high occupancy vehicle lanes which make it potentially much faster to travel by train, bus or carpool, than driving a single-occupancy vehicle."

"Amtrak is delighted to serve as part of the solution to alleviate commuter gridlock during the temporary construction phase," said Gil Mallery, president of Amtrak West, one of three strategic business units of the National Railroad Passenger Corporation. "In addition to regular intercity passenger service, Amtrak operates several successful commuter rail services in the U.S. under contract to local agencies similar to the temporary arrangement with ODOT and WSDOT." Amtrak service will utilize the Burlington Northern Santa Fe bridge, located west of the Interstate Bridge on the Columbia River. The cost of providing the service is approximately $225,000.

Rail service is one option offered in the TMP for the bridge project. Also included in the plan is free C-TRAN bus service. C-TRAN will offer additional busses on the I-5 corridor and to the Gateway Transit Center and MAX station on I-205. Tri-Met will also offer additional service along I-5 as well as additional MAX trains from Gateway to Portland. Lanes designated for carpool and transit along the I-5 and I-205 corridors are also planned to encourage carpooling.