Will the Cascadia High-Speed Rail actually happen? [Video]

PORTLAND Ore. (KPTV) – If you live in Portland and want to enjoy a weekend in Seattle or Vancouver, British Columbia, you will likely have to take some time off work, or at least wake up before the sun rises.

However, long-awaited plans to build a high-speed railroad may change all of that.

The idea for the Cascadia High-Speed Rail has been in the works since 2016, when leaders in Washington, Oregon, and British Columbia signed a Memorandum of Understanding to commit to pursuing the project.

While the current Amtrak Cascades system can get someone from Portland to Seattle in around three-and-a-half hours, program leaders want the high-speed rail to run at 250 mph – landing riders in Seattle just an hour after being in Portland. It would take riders from Seattle to Vancouver in the same amount of time.

Back in December 2024, the project received $55 million from the Federal Railroad …