(The Associated Press circulated the following story on September 19.)
PORTLAND, Ore. — An eleventh-hour grant has revived the Amtrak Cascades commuter line between Eugene and Portland for at least two more years.
The line was set to close down for good at the end of this month.
But Gov. Ted Kulongoski’s office said that about $15 million in federal and state money has been found to use for for rail improvement projects.
Last month, state lawmakers agreed to spend $9.2 million to operate the twice-a-day-train. But they failed to find money to fix old parts of the rail line, and unclog congested areas.
The rail improvement projects will begin in the next year. About 95,000 people ride the Cascade line between Portland Eugene annually.