Pacific International
 The Pacific International at Bellingham in 1973 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Overview | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Predecessor | International | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| First service | July 17, 1972 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Last service | September 30, 1981 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Former operator(s) | Amtrak | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Route | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Termini | Vancouver, B.C., Canada Seattle, Washington, U.S. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Stops | 6 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Distance travelled | 156 miles (251 km) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Average journey time | 4 hours, 30 minutes | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Service frequency | Daily | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Train number(s) | 793/794 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| On-board services | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Catering facilities | Cafe car | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The Pacific International was a passenger train operated by Amtrak between Seattle, Washington and Vancouver, British Columbia. It was Amtrak's first international train service, operating from 1972 until 1981.
History
[edit]
Amtrak did not retain any cross-border services when it assumed control of most intercity passenger trains in the United States on May 1, 1971. As part of its 1972 appropriation for Amtrak the United States Congress directed that $2 million be used for the establishment of service to Vancouver, Montreal (the Montrealer), and Nuevo Laredo (the Inter-American).[1] The Burlington Northern Railroad's International had served the Seattle–Vancouver route up until the creation of Amtrak, and resuming service posed no significant challenges.[2][3]
The first Pacific International, Amtrak's first international train, ran on July 17, 1972.[4][5] The train was scheduled to connect with the Los Angeles–Seattle Coast Starlight in both directions.[3] Initially, the route had intermediate stops in New Westminster, White Rock, British Columbia, Blaine, Washington, Bellingham, Mount Vernon-Burlington, Everett, and Edmonds.[6] In mid-May 1973, the United States Customs and Immigration Service began requiring off-train inspection of southbound passengers at the U.S. border, after investigative journalist Jack Anderson reported that Vancouver was being used as a U.S. gateway for drugs and illegal immigration. Canadian inspection was still conducted onboard the train for northbound passengers who crossed the border.[7] Full onboard border inspection was re-established in May 1974.[8] By the first half of 1975, the White Rock stop had been eliminated.[9][10][11]
The route was suspended for about 4 months because of a runaway barge collision with the New Westminster Bridge on December 26, 1975. Amtrak initially attempted to run trains between Seattle and White Rock or Blaine, then using buses over the remaining route to or from Vancouver. However, the plan was soon scrapped due to the difficulty of servicing the trains at the interim terminus. Amtrak subsequently ran buses as a substitute over the full Seattle–Vancouver corridor until the bridge was fixed.[12][13][14]
On July 19, 1976, newly manufactured Amfleet cars debuted on the route.[15] On June 13, 1979, Amtrak began using double-deck Superliner train coaches in place of the single-deck Amfleets on certain other trains in the Pacific Northwest and planned to make the same change soon to the Pacific International.[16] Superliner service on the Pacific International began in mid-August 1979, after a short delay because of damage to the New Westminster Bridge from another barge ramming incident.[17][18][19]
On October 28, 1979, the southbound Pacific International had a schedule change. Previously, the train left at 6:05 am from Vancouver to arrive in Seattle at 10:50 am, allowing a connection to a Coast Starlight departure at 11:05 am that went as far as San Diego, California. Instead, the train began departing from Vancouver at 11:50 am and arriving in Seattle at 5:00 pm to connect with a Mount Rainier departure at 5:30 pm that terminated in Portland, Oregon.[20] In the second quarter of 1980, the schedule was reverted to an early morning departure to connect again with the Coast Starlight.[21][22]
On paper, the Pacific International should have been a success. Rail service had operated between Seattle and Vancouver for most of the 20th century. However, the train struggled to attract riders throughout its history. In 1975 the United States Department of Transportation said it was the worst performer in the system, with a deficit of 47 cents per passenger mile. Critics of the train noted the influence of Senator Warren Magnuson (D-Washington) in establishing the service.[23] In early 1979, Secretary of Transportation Brock Adams proposed eliminating 43% of Amtrak's route network, and the Pacific International was on the chopping block.[24] In the end Congress agreed to fewer, though still significant, cuts, and the Pacific International survived for another two years.[25] Amtrak discontinued the Pacific International on September 30, 1981, as part of another restructuring.[26][27]
After its discontinuance Vancouver service did not return until the inauguration of the Mount Baker International in 1995. This route was folded into the Amtrak Cascades brand in 1998, and still exists today with two daily round trips, one from Seattle to Vancouver and one from Portland to Vancouver.
Notes
[edit]- ^ "Amtrak gets $227 million". Kingsport News. June 24, 1972. p. 1. Retrieved October 4, 2014 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Passenger trains operating on the eve of Amtrak". Classic Trains. Archived from the original on October 29, 2013. Retrieved October 4, 2014.
- ^ a b "Vancouver-to-Seattle Run By Amtrak to Start July 18". Nashua Telegraph. July 1, 1972. p. 6. Retrieved October 4, 2014 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Glischinski, Steve (October 27, 2015). "Amtrak 'Cascades' celebrate 20 years in service". Trains News Wire. Archived from the original on November 12, 2018. Retrieved November 12, 2018.
- ^ Thoms, William E. (1973). "Amtrak Revisited: The 1972 Amendments to the Rail Passenger Service Act" (PDF). Transportation Law Journal. 5: 143. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 20, 2017. Retrieved November 12, 2018.
- ^ "Amtrak 'first'". Ellensburg Daily Record. Vol. 71, no. 166. United Press International. July 14, 1972. p. 3. ISSN 2834-1872. Retrieved February 2, 2025.
- ^ "Canadian news letter". Rail Travel Newsletter. Vol. 3, no. 10. May 1973. p. 9. ISSN 0896-4440. ARK ark:/13960/s2srfc6rp68. Retrieved April 8, 2025.
- ^ "Canadian news letter". Rail Travel Newsletter. Vol. 4, no. 9. May 1974. p. 7. ISSN 0896-4440. ARK ark:/13960/s2g31832c5x. Retrieved April 8, 2025.
- ^ Ellenwood, Lorraine. "History of rail". White Rock City Hall. Retrieved March 14, 2025.
- ^ "Vancouver-Seattle-Portland". Amtrak. November 15, 1974. p. 51. Retrieved March 14, 2025 – via The Museum of Railway Timetables.
- ^ "Vancouver-Seattle-Portland". Amtrak. May 15, 1975. p. 53. Retrieved March 14, 2025 – via The Museum of Railway Timetables.
- ^ "Rail Canada". Rail Travel News. Vol. 5, no. 24. December 1975. p. 13. ISSN 0896-4440. ARK ark:/13960/s2mqdrwf6b4. Retrieved March 14, 2025.
- ^ "Amtrak link is blocked". Newscope. Lewiston Morning Tribune. Associated Press. January 6, 1976. p. 2A. ISSN 0892-2586. Retrieved March 6, 2025.
- ^ "Amtrak train to B.C. operating". Ellensburg Daily Record. Vol. 75, no. 102. United Press International. April 29, 1976. p. 2. ISSN 2834-1872. Retrieved March 6, 2025.
- ^ Lee, Glenn (August 1976). "Amfleet hits the northwest". Rail Travel News. Vol. 6, no. 13. pp. 12–14. ISSN 0896-4440. ARK ark:/13960/s2hpzdvjct3. Retrieved April 8, 2025.
- ^ "Amtrak's new coach: Take a ride on 'Superliner'". Ellensburg Daily Record. Vol. 78, no. 148. June 23, 1979. p. 16. ISSN 2834-1872. Retrieved March 6, 2025.
- ^ Tieleman, Bill (August 1, 1979). "Damage to rail bridge delays Superliner start". In general. Vancouver Sun. Vol. 93, no. 27. p. F7. ISSN 0832-1299. Retrieved March 26, 2025.
- ^ "Mixed train of thoughts". Rail Travel News. Vol. 9, no. 9. August 1979. p. 16. ISSN 0896-4440. ARK ark:/13960/s2h7ftcrkkr. Retrieved March 26, 2025.
- ^ "Mixed train of thoughts". Rail Travel News. Vol. 9, no. 10. September 1979. p. 16. ISSN 0896-4440. ARK ark:/13960/s2m5tgr4k5n. Retrieved March 26, 2025.
- ^ Ober, Hal (October 27, 1979). "Amtrak derails Vancouver passengers". Travel. Vancouver Sun. Vol. 93, no. 99. p. H3. ISSN 0832-1299. Retrieved April 7, 2025.
- ^ "Mixed train of thoughts". Rail Travel News. Vol. 10, no. 4. March 1980. p. 18. ISSN 0896-4440. ARK ark:/13960/s20t1q0n78n. Retrieved April 14, 2025.
- ^ "Going places? Funny, so are we". Entertainment. Vancouver Sun. Vol. 93, no. 283. June 5, 1980. p. C6. ISSN 0832-1299. Retrieved April 14, 2025.
- ^ Rood, Mick (September 22, 1976). "Despite 'sowing': Amtrak reaps deficits". Harlan Daily Enterprise. Vol. 75, no. 226. p. 10. ISSN 1041-7109. Retrieved April 7, 2025.
- ^ Lengel, John (February 1, 1979). "Congress eyes rail-service cuts". New London Day. Vol. 98, no. 179. Associated Press. p. 35. ISSN 0744-0499. Retrieved April 7, 2025.
- ^ "Huntingdon Passenger Service To Continue". The Daily News. Huntington, Pennsylvania. October 1, 1979. p. 2. Retrieved October 4, 2014 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Amtrak train ends run". The Province. October 1, 1981. p. A6. ISSN 0839-3303. Retrieved January 24, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Adams, Norris (April 1982). "90 years rail passenger service in the Vancouver-Seattle corridor" (PDF). Canadian Rail. No. 363. Canadian Railroad Historical Association. pp. 102–106, 108–109. ISSN 0008-4875. Retrieved April 7, 2025.
References
[edit]- Goldberg, Bruce (1981). Amtrak--the first decade. Silver Spring, MD: Alan Books. OCLC 7925036.
- Solomon, Brian (2004). Amtrak. Saint Paul, Minnesota: MBI. ISBN 978-0-7603-1765-5.