Amtrak Cancels 2 Lines from Seattle to Vancouver

[deborahjo]

I have Amtrak booked in September and was going to print off our tickets last night. To my shock there was a red warning sign on the Cascade Trains #510 and #517. These have been cancelled starting May 12, 2015 due to bridge work.

 

We are on Line #510 to Vancouver. I called Amtrak. After being on hold for over 15 minutes an agent told be that they are hoping the bridge work should be done by late august. Late August. Are you kidding me. She said that if it comes down to it they would notify me 2 weeks prior to see what changes could be made. We leave on the 7:05 am train to Vancouver on September 2nd to catch our cruise ship. This just makes me really nervous.

 

She said that while these lines are closed they are offering bus transportation for those already booked. Oh by the way instead of the 4 hour train ride it now becomes a 6 hour bus ride. Will not work for us.

 

I will be on pins and needles for a while.

Edited May 11, 2015 by deborahjo

[brentp]

Ouch, . . . one more thing to check out.

 

Update - they are still booking tickets, however, I did find this in the Service Announcements section which adds confusion, for it indicates the cancellation is for May 12th. It doesn't say until further notice.

 

Amtrak Cascades Trains 510 and 517 Canceled: Bus Service Provided

Effective Tuesday, May 12, 2015

 

Due to bridge work being performed by BNSF Railway, Trains 510 and 517 will be canceled on May 12, 2015. Passengers will be provided bus service at all stations on the route.

 

Thank you for traveling aboard Amtrak Cascades. We appreciate your patronage and apologize for any inconvenience. For reservations, train status information or to plan a trip, visit AmtrakCascades.com, use the free Amtrak mobile apps or call 1-800-USA-RAIL (1-800-872-7245).

Edited May 11, 2015 by brentp

[deborahjo]

The agent said they HOPE it should be done within 3 months. I just don't see how they can charge the same thing for a train ride and a bus ride. One is 2 hours longer.

 

I don't believe I said "until further notice" anywhere in my post. Actually my post reads exactly as you posted.

Edited May 11, 2015 by deborahjo

[LEtue]

brentp was just adding to your information - not disagreeing.

 

The information from Amtrak really isn't clear when the work starts or ends at all - is it :confused:

 

You may want to look at other transfer options and I believe the rates on Bolt Bus start at $29 pp.

 

Good luck! It will be a shame to miss the train between Seattle and Vancouver :(

[brentp]

The agent said they HOPE it should be done within 3 months. I just don't see how they can charge the same thing for a train ride and a bus ride. One is 2 hours longer.

 

I don't believe I said "until further notice" anywhere in my post. Actually my post reads exactly as you posted.

 

Not quite. I posted a cut and paste from Amtrak's service announcement. This says cancelled on May 12th (which indicates a 1 day event). Adding to this, if you try to book a train on May 12th, the booking engine says cancelled. On May 13th and beyond, it is still allowing booking of trains.

 

My "until further notice" comment was in regards to Amtrak's official service announcement and not your post.

 

Your information might be correct, . . . the CSR might have more information on this than what has been posted on their website. Then again, the CSR might be have provide incorrect information (not the first time that would have occurred). Hence, I think there is still confusion. :)

 

We leave end of May, so if this is cancelled for the next few months, I need to scramble. :(

Edited May 12, 2015 by brentp

[pklein9747]

We are scheduled on #517 from Vancouver to Seattle on June 8. I just called Amtrak and the information they gave me was that there were 3 days of service disruption...April ??, May 5 & May 12. She said that we would have received a notice from Amtrak if there was a problem with our trip.

 

Since this info is so different from the OP's info, I don't know who to believe??!!!

[ladams52]

We are on the 516 Cascade Seattle to Vancouver, 17 June. No mention of disruption on the website and I also call and was told no problem.

[ubarpants]

I'm also just seeing the info that the train is cancelled on May 12th, no mention of ongoing work.

 

Also, just as a reference point, the bus is actually a shorter ride than the train--typically 3.5 hours instead of 4. The downside is that the border crossing is messier on the bus, but I still don't see it taking 6 hours...

[xlxo]

Service notice...

http://www.amtrakcascades.com/PSN_0415-108.htm

[Urban trekker]

As one who has taken both the train and the Amtrak bus there is very little time difference - there is a dedicated lane for buses at the Pacific Border crossing into Canada - Amtrak has factored in the border wait times in their schedule - I have yet to be more than 15 minutes late on any bus trip.

 

BNSF has been working on fixing the bridge ( trestle ) over Mud Bay for some time and is long overdue.

 

Cheers!

 

Dennis

[Urban trekker]

Here's a link to the schedule for the Amtrak Cascades showing both the train and bus schedule.

 

http://www.amtrak.com/ccurl/433/192/Amtrak-Cascades-Schedule-101614-r.pdf

 

I don't see any 6 hour bus schedules - not sure what your source of that information is?

 

Cheers!

 

Dennis

[deborahjo]

Only putting what I was told by "Jean" the Amtrak agent told me Sunday night. I hope everyone that is involved has been contacted and have made other arrangements.

[Tee & Chilli]

I'm in Seattle and I'm scheduled to take the first morning train tomorrow to Vancouver. I'll report back.

[BEAV]

As the link provided in post #9 indicates, its only select dates (April & May) that Trains 510 & 517 (morning northbound, evening southbound) are affected.

 

Since the train operates over the Burlington Northern railroad, Amtrak has no option but to cancel when the railroad shuts down the line for maintenance work.

[brentp]

Only putting what I was told by "Jean" the Amtrak agent told me Sunday night. I hope everyone that is involved has been contacted and have made other arrangements.

 

Deborahjo - Understood, but I personally feel that there was a miscommunication (or misunderstanding) of the situation and how the Amtrak schedule is being impacted.

 

Clearly there is bridge work taking place. As for how that impacts service, I feel the PSAs are likely accurate in showing the disruption is limited to certain days (May 12th being one of them), and on those days only 2 of the 4 Seattle/Vancouver Amtrak trains are being affected. The other 2 are still schedule to run.

 

Perhaps "Jean" was indicating that the bridge work would take another few months this summer to be completed and either implied or it was assumed that service would be disrupted for the full duration of the project. If it were, I believe the PSA would show that, the booking engine would show it, and all 4 of the trains would be impacted versus just 2 of the 4.

 

I am not going to worry any more for our trip. Feel pretty good that on May 30th, given no other incidents between now and then, that we will be on the 7:45am #510 train out of King Street Station headed towards Vancouver. :)

[Tee & Chilli]

I took Amtrak #510 this morning from Seattle to Vancouver.

[TinCan782]

Why don't you contact BNSF...they own the track!

Edited May 14, 2015 by TinCan782

[Urban trekker]

The aren't four trains a day from Vancouver to Seattle - there are only two - one in the morning and one in the evening - the other trips on the Amtrak schedule are buses.

 

The repair work on that trestle has been ongoing for some time - with the increase in freight and coal shipments from the US that is going out of Roberts Bank BNSF is finally spending some money on fixing that trestle which has caused a slowdown on the trip for many years.

 

Most of the work can be done between trains - both passenger and freight but just like on highway improvement projects it is sometimes necessary to completely close a highway to do certain work.

 

Cheers!

 

Dennis

[brentp]

The aren't four trains a day from Vancouver to Seattle - there are only two - one in the morning and one in the evening - the other trips on the Amtrak schedule are buses.

 

The repair work on that trestle has been ongoing for some time - with the increase in freight and coal shipments from the US that is going out of Roberts Bank BNSF is finally spending some money on fixing that trestle which has caused a slowdown on the trip for many years.

 

Most of the work can be done between trains - both passenger and freight but just like on highway improvement projects it is sometimes necessary to completely close a highway to do certain work.

 

Cheers!

 

Dennis

 

Very true there are only 2 Southbound, . . . however, plus the 2 Northbound = 4 trains scheduled on that route per day across the tracks. Only 2 (1 Southbound & 1 Northbound) of the trains are listed as impacted by Amtrak's PSAs on the closure days. :)

 

This was a critical piece of information to the original discussion on an extended cancellation of service, for it would have been more probable that all 4 trains would be affected if the tracks were out of service for an extended period. Of course, we now know this is not the case and the trains are still running, with the only possible cancellation still pending being on May 19th per the original PSA link in post #9.

Edited May 15, 2015 by brentp

[deborahjo]

Sorry if I misunderstood the Amtrak rep and for creating all the hoopla.

[Urban trekker]

"Sorry if I misunderstood the Amtrak rep and for creating all the hoopla"

 

No problem - call centers have a problem many times of not knowing what is going on on the ground as they are reading from a computer screen.

 

I realized after I posted that the 4 trains could be as I posted or as was explained - combined north and south bound trains.

 

Have a wonderful weekend everyone and to my fellow Canadians - happy Victoria Day long weekend.

 

Cheers and happy cruising

 

Dennis

[brentp]

Sorry if I misunderstood the Amtrak rep and for creating all the hoopla.

 

No worries, . . . I'm sure most of us have been on the receiving end of incorrect information from CSRs. Just happy we can all still enjoy the train ride before or after our cruises. :)