Oregon Public Broadcasting

An estimated 3000 Amtrak passengers in Oregon and Washington will have to look for another way to get between Eugene and Seattle this weekend, following the cancellation Friday of regional service.Amtrak is offering to reschedule, or refund tickets, but the sudden pulling of four trains on the Cascades line makes it impossible to travel north by rail out of Portland or Eugene. Amtrak spokeswoman Vernae Graham says inspectors found problems with one train. Vernae Graham: "This was an Amtrak Cascades' monthly inspection by Talgo, the manufacturer of the Cascade train set, found some deviation in one of the train sets, therefore, Amtrak in Oregon and Washington decided we'd take out all the trains for inspection, so they could either be repaired or retrofitted." Graham says Amtrak expects to have some replacement trains in place by Monday, but officials are not saying when the full service, of four daily round-trips between Seattle and Portland, will return.It is still possible to head south from Seattle or Portland, on the Coastliner that runs as far as Los Angeles. Seattle travelers can also head north, on the same line.