SEATTLE — Editor’s note: The video above on Amtrak resuming service was originally published on May 13, 2022.
A popular train service connecting Washington state and Oregon to Canada will resume in September, three months before its expected return, Amtrak said in a release Friday.
Amtrak said in the release that plans projected a December return to service, but the company was able to push up the schedule by three months. More details are expected to be released at a later date, the company said.
In May, Amtrak said the extended delay was due to widespread staffing shortages. Conductors, on-board service, staff and mechanics needed to be hired to support the service, Amtrak said in the May release.
The Washington State Department of Transportation and Oregon Department of Transportation "expressed extreme disassociation" with the delay, but the agencies said in May they were committed to an earlier start date if more employees were hired.
The two transportation agencies urged Amtrak to offer service a few days a week on an interim basis until full service can resume, according to the release.
The route served Seattle, Edmonds, Everett, Stanwood, Mount Vernon, Bellingham and Vancouver, British Columbia but has been suspended since May 2020 when the Canadian border closed to non-essential travel.
Amtrak is still offering daily bus service between Seattle and Vancouver, B.C. and between Seattle and Bellingham.