Seattle-Vancouver-Amtrak

I was looking at Amtrak's web site

It says the train takes 4 hours while there bus

only take's 3.5 hours.

how is that possible?

It makes more stops and the roadbed on the Canadian side hasn't been upgraded to handle higher speeds.

The bus doing it in 3.5 hours depends on the line at the border .

Unless they do pre clearance and seal the bus in Vancouver . They will have to stop at the border.

It makes more stops and the roadbed on the Canadian side hasn't been upgraded to handle higher speeds.

• depends on which Bus.... some buses have more stops than others.
  
• train moves slower.... even on the US side. I was on a tour once from Seattle to Mt Vernon. My bus driver was at the Mt Vernon station before the train to pick us up.
  
• Seattle to Bellingham is a straight line. Once into Canada.... the line meanders into the station.
  
• if cost is an issue.... consider Quick Shuttle. There is no need to pay for additional transfers to and from the train stations at both ends.
  
• train has 2 departures a day. Quick Shuttle, Bolt and Amtrack bus combined has over a dozen daily departures to fit your schedule.
  

There are also a couple of issues with bridges (water traffic has priority) and the passenger train has to wait for freight trains which have priority. However, unlike buses the trains generally run very close to scheduled time since there are no border delays - the Seattle-Vancouver morning train and the reverse in the evening have no dependency on other routes (whereas the evening Seattle train has to come all the way from Oregon, and can end up horribly, horribly late).

I do both often. The bus is almost exactly 2 hrs to the border then border wait time and another one hr or less into Vancouver.

The train is far more scenic and since the train does have 4 or 5 stops even if only 5-10 minutes that adds one hr. I still prefer the train for many reasons.

I like the freedom to get up and walk around the train, plus there is a cafe car. The bus does not have that. The bus can also get caught in heavy border traffic.

We took the train last year, the ride was so relaxing and scenic.

I forgot to add the train has wifi, so you can sit and post on cruise critic all the way there!

Has anyone taken the morning train to Vancouver and had any delays? We have to fly into Seattle Bc we can't get a flight into Vancouver so now we have to get transportation to Vancouver

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Has anyone taken the morning train to Vancouver and had any delays? We have to fly into Seattle Bc we can't get a flight into Vancouver so now we have to get transportation to Vancouver

 

 

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Yes we have and any delays that you experience during the cruise season will be measured in minutes. You really shouldn't have a problem.

We are taking the train from Vancouver to Seattle the day of the cruise. Also hoping for no delays.

The morning train originates from Seattle, so you should have no problems in terms of a train running late from another portion of the route. The Amtrak Cascade trains tend to run on-time, due to having shorter routes and the fact that the train is a priority when traveling on BNSF rails.

We took the 10:45 Amtrak bus on April 2 - arrived in Vancouver about 2:15. The back up for passenger cars at the border was about 3 hours. The bus goes through a different line. Took the bus that left Vancouver around 9 a.m. and arrived in Seattle right on time at 12:45. The bus stops at the border, unloads all luggage, you take your luggage into the customs/immigration building, show your passport, etc. There weren't too many people on board either trip - all in all we were pleasantly surprised with how quick the whole process was.

The morning train originates from Seattle, so you should have no problems in terms of a train running late from another portion of the route. The Amtrak Cascade trains tend to run on-time, due to having shorter routes and the fact that the train is a priority when traveling on BNSF rails.

Amtrak may legally have priority, but since there is zero enforcement of the rules by the STB (USC sec 24308) all freight has de facto priority, even if BNSF have not been granted a specific exemption. I've lost count of how often I've sat on a siding waiting for a freight train to bypass us on BNSF rails - and the stats confirm that things have not changed, with a third of total delay minutes in most recent figures caused on the 510 by 'train interference'. Freight makes money, passengers do not, it's as simple as that - without continuing government subsidies there would be only one passenger train a day or possibly even none at all.

That said, while the morning train SEA-VAC is among the least punctual by Amtrak standards (~65% on time vs. average of almost 80% for all Cascades trains), the delay is much more likely to be a few minutes than over an hour. For this route being more than 10 minutes late means they cannot count it as an on-time train, and there is very little chance of making up any lost time in such a short trip - one freight train, one bridge opened for boats, even a few passengers running up at the last moment means the train will almost certainly count as Not On Time.

I've never heard a single report of any same-day train cruisers missing their ships though - and there are ALWAYS dozens and dozens of cruise tags on the suitcases we see, so somebody would be posting here on CC if it had happened!

I forgot to add the train has wifi, so you can sit and post on cruise critic all the way there!

We took the train this past September from Seattle to Vancouver and we only had free wifi to the Canadian border.

Northbound there are unlikely to be bus delays at the border, and the train doesn't even stop.

Southbound is the difference. The bus can be badly delayed at the truck crossing. The train always has officers waiting to meet it, and you've done preadmission check at the station.

I'd have no hesitation using either option northbound, but the train is vastly more comfortable and the ride more scenic. Consider springing for business class if you're particular about quiet cars and extra space.

As pointed out in a previous post the northbound train originates in Seattle, the ontime statistics cover the entire route from Eugene, OR to Vancouver, BC so should be taken with a grain of salt.

The reason that the train does not stop northbound at the CAN/USA border is because CBSA clearance is done at the Vancouver train station.

Bottom line shadowmeboy, its highly unlikely that your train will be more than a few minutes late getting into Vancouver.

As pointed out in a previous post the northbound train originates in Seattle, the ontime statistics cover the entire route from Eugene, OR to Vancouver, BC so should be taken with a grain of salt.

Actually the on-time stats I quoted are unique to the 510 morning train - Amtrak break down by each train as well as keeping an average for all Cascades routes in combination. However the crux is that you are right, while much more likely to be officially late, the degree of lateness is tens of minutes rather than the two hours plus that would have to happen for there to be any risk of even the last passenger off and through CBSA failing to get to the pier in time to board.

Besides the Amtrak site, here is another that compiles stats on Amtrak with a breakdown of arrivals along the route. Of course, all that matters is the day you are riding.

http://dixielandsoftware.net/Amtrak/status/StatusPages/AmtrakCascadesStatus.htm

Today is one of those rare days where passengers on the morning Seattle to Vancouver train that are boarding either Star Princess or Nieuw Amsterdam this afternoon are getting a little nervous.

The Fraser River Bridge drawbridge (which the trains travel over) in British Columbia is having mechanical problems. Efforts are underway to repair, however the rail line is currently closed as of 9:30am. Amtrak is making contingency plans if the bridge delay continues, to locate buses to transport cruise passengers from Bellingham to Vancouver.

Will post updates once I learn of them ...

There also was a significant delay on May 6th. A Canadian National train lost part of its load on the Fraser River bridge. This caused a closure until the load could be hand adjusted off of the bridge structure. We had to be bussed up to Vancouver from Bellingham.

I was taking the train that day, and if it wasn't for the horrendous line at Canada Place due to the first three ship day of the 2016 season, we would have missed the boat.

Here is a link to the review in which I talk about our experience: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2355797&page=1

Bottom line: Go a day early if at all possible, so you don't get in a situation where you could possibly miss the boat. Take it from someone who has been there.

Today is one of those rare days where passengers on the morning Seattle to Vancouver train that are boarding either Star Princess or Nieuw Amsterdam this afternoon are getting a little nervous.

 

The Fraser River Bridge drawbridge (which the trains travel over) in British Columbia is having mechanical problems. Efforts are underway to repair, however the rail line is currently closed as of 9:30am. Amtrak is making contingency plans if the bridge delay continues, to locate buses to transport cruise passengers from Bellingham to Vancouver.

 

Will post updates once I learn of them ...

Today's delay had a happy ending. The bridge was repaired causing only a 45 minute delay arriving into Vancouver. The morning southbound train from Vancouver to Seattle didn't fare as well, though, as they were delayed 4 hours by the incident.