(The Associated Press circulated the following on September 21, 2010.)
OLYMPIA — Washington state officials are worried that a passenger train that runs from Portland to Vancouver, B.C., might have to be canceled because the Canadian government wants the state to pay $550,000 a year for customs services.
Canada’s federal government said last week that it wants Washington’s Transportation Department to pay for additional border staffing for the nighttime Amtrak Cascades train.
State Transportation Secretary Paula Hammond says that doesn’t make sense, because that second daily train has brought nearly $12 million in economic benefits to British Columbia in the year it’s been operating. She also notes that U.S. Customs doesn’t charge a fee for passengers on southbound trains.
Amtrak runs the trains in partnership with Washington and Oregon.