Oregon Public Broadcasting

The Washington Department of Transportation and BNSF Railway signed an agreement Friday that should beef-up passenger train service between Seattle and Portland.

Washington State Rail and Marine Director Scott Witt says the agreement outlines how the recent $590 million federal high speed rail grant will be spent. He says signals and tracks will be upgraded to improve speed and reliability.

Scott Witt: "Where we could be running at a higher speed, say 79 miles an hour which we're allowed to do, we maybe have to slow down to 45 or 50 through that area. By these improvements being made we can actually increase our speeds through these areas and have a much more consistent time."

BNSF owns the tracks, and Amtrak operates the trains.

Witt says the work should clear the way for two additional round-trips between Seattle and Portland, bringing the total to six a day.

Oregon received a much smaller share of the federal high speed rail giveaway. Most of Oregon's $8 million is going toward replacing the roof on Portland's aging Union Station.

On the web:WSDOT Passenger rail website

ODOT Passenger Rail website

Amtrak Cascades