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Latest News from AAWA

AAWA Leads Rail Caucus Meeting in Olympia

All Aboard Washington led Wednesday’s Rail Caucus meeting at the request of its co-chairs, who were busy participating in floor debates. Regarding Amtrak Cascades, Ron Pate from the WSDOT Rail, Freight, and Ports Division announced that the agency is currently in negotiations for new equipment to allow for service along the Point Defiance Bypass....

All Aboard Washington Testifies For Rail Safety Legislation

The impacts of the tragic December 18, 2017 Cascades 501 derailment on the Point Defiance Bypass are still being felt in Olympia. In response to the incident, which took the lives of three passengers, including our valued colleagues and friends Jim Hamre and Zack Willhoite, the House Transportation Committee (HTC) convened on January 15. The committee heard testimony on HB 2287, a bill intended to improve rail safety governance. The intent of the bill is to improve cooperation and coordination among the large number of responsible state and federal agencies....

Year-End News from AAWA

We have had a successful year, and 2020 looks to be even busier. Check out the latest from our website and social media, as well as other sources....

Mid-December Updates From Olympia

The Joint Transportation Committee (JTC) presented an update of the East-West Intercity Passenger Rail Study at the Capitol on Tuesday, Dec 17th, 2019. Dave Catterson of the JTC was joined by Ian Sproul of Steer, the consulting group selected to conduct the study. Sproul summarized Steer’s outreach efforts in Yakima and the Tri-Cities, their modeling work to date, and their anticipated next steps for the project. Catterson and Sproul also took the time to answer the questions of representatives. Rep. Beohnke of Kennewick expressed his interest in improving cooperation with local councils of government, saying, “Let me know, of course, so I can help make sure they’re highly motivated.” The study is due in June 2020, with a significant progress report expected in May. The route in question, the Stampede Pass rail line owned by Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF) Railroad, handled passenger trains for over 90 years until 1981. The next day, WSDOT conducted a meeting at their Olympia headquarters providing an update to the state rail plan....

Cascades Service Improvements

The need for fast, frequent, and reliable passenger rail service in Washington has never been more urgent. All Aboard Washington’s (AAWA’s) goal is to make passenger rail service safer, more comfortable, more reliable, faster, and more frequent....

AAWA Honors Lloyd Flem, Jim Hamre, & Zack Willhoite

Nearly 80 people gathered at the Washington state capitol building on Saturday, December 14th, 2019 to celebrate Lloyd Flem, a passenger rail advocate who has served All Aboard Washington (AAWA) for nearly 35 years....

Restoring Cascades Service Levels

All Aboard Washington urges WSDOT, Amtrak, and ODOT to replace the trainset lost in the Cascades 501 accident and to restart service on the Point Defiance Bypass at the December 2017 planned running time and frequency of service, as soon as possible....

Re-Evaluating Our Priorities

We should put ALL options on the table, and make 2020 the year that we finally set our transportation priorities straight....