-----Original Message-----
From: Washington State Department of Transportation
Sent: 6/8/2012 5:40:27 PM
To: guyperea@live.com
Subject: WSDOT Rail Office Monthly Highlights
In this issue:
- New ticketing and baggage area opens at Seattle’s King Street Station
- National Train Day celebrated at Olympia’s Centennial Station
- Amtrak Cascades trainset back in service after Bistro and Lounge car upgrades
- State rail grants advance freight rail projects
- Performance Measures
- Spring Marketing Campaign - We’re popping up everywhere
- Customer Compliment
New ticketing and baggage area opens at Seattle’s King Street Station
A new, improved ticket and baggage area opened in May in Seattle’s historic King Street Station, upgrading the 100+ year old station to meet the present and future needs of rail passengers. This work is part of the ongoing restoration of King Street Station, including the current work to strengthen the main building and clock tower to better withstand earthquakes.
Passengers may experience challenges accessing the station and are encouraged to arrive more than 30-minutes prior to train departure. Amtrak will work hard to make sure that passengers can navigate in and around the station during construction. Photos of the new ticketing and baggage area are available on Flickr.
National Train Day celebrated at Olympia’s Centennial Station
Saturday, May 12 marked the 143rd anniversary of the completion of the nation’s first transcontinental railway with the driving of the golden spike in Promontory, Utah. WSDOT joined several other organizations to commemorate the event at Olympia’s Centennial Station.
WSDOT shared information on the department’s role in delivering Amtrak Cascades passenger rail service and the upcoming nearly $800 million capital construction program that will add more daily trains, improve on-time performance, and reduce travel times between Seattle and Portland starting in 2017. The event drew over 100 people on Mother’s Day Weekend.
National Train Day celebration at Olympia's Centennial Station
Amtrak Cascades trainset back in service after Bistro and Lounge car upgrades
The first train in the Amtrak Cascades fleet to get Bistro and Lounge car renovations is back in service after crews upgraded the cars from top to bottom. The Mount Rainier train set left Seattle’s King Street Station May 24 treating passengers to new floors, interior paint, new fixtures and re-upholstered seating. Photos of the newly renovated cars are available on WSDOT’s train set overhaul webpage.
Amtrak Cascades newly renovated Bistro car
State funded track project gets underway at the Port of Longview
The Port of Longview will soon be able to handle longer and heavier rail loads thanks to an $857K loan from the state-funded Freight Rail Investment Bank. Construction on the 2,700 foot section of new track will be complete by spring 2013.
State rail funding helps Tacoma Rail expand its locomotive servicing facility
Tacoma Rail’s locomotive servicing facility has almost doubled in size, thanks to $500K in state rail funding. The expansion project took a year to complete and allows Tacoma Rail to service up to four locomotives at a time. Tacoma Rail will start servicing locomotives in the new facility by mid-June.
Tacoma Rail's expanded locomotive servicing facility
Performance Measures
Amtrak Cascades on-time performance for May 2012 averaged approximately 69 percent, slightly lower than April’s average of 73 percent. The decline in on-time performance was caused by freight train interference, some mechanical issues, and track work on the BNSF main line between Bellingham and Blaine that required reduced operating speeds for trains 510, 513, 516, and 517 through the work zones. This work was completed in the third week of May and Amtrak Cascades on-time performance increased significantly thereafter.
Spring Marketing Campaign - We’re popping up everywhere
Our "Verbs" ad campaign like “Relax to Portland†or “Surf to Seattle†is getting some playtime this season, with print ads, out-of-home messages, web banners and radio commercials springing up in major markets between Eugene, Oregon, and Vancouver, BC. The campaign highlights the benefits of train travel over taking the car, and encourages passengers to "Get away along the way." So when you're out and about this spring, keep an eye out for our ads. You can also view them and listen to our radio ads on AmtrakCascades.com.
Customer Compliment
“The entire onboard staff and the ride were amazing. Everything that was needed was readily available and the staff assisted in every way. Seeing the bald eagle from the train was especially amazing.â€
Dennis C.
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