VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) - One pledge coming out of an annual joint cabinet meeting between our province and Washington State is a possibility of high-speed train running from Vancouver, BC, into California.
Premier Gordon Campbell says he plans to put some money into improving the rail bed and track leading into the United States, but will need Ottawa's help. "When I'm talking about high-speed rail, I'm talking about high-speed rail. I'm not talking about a train, I'm talking about a train that gets us from one place to the other quickly, so that we don't have to use our cars."
Washington State Governor Christine Gregoire says her state won a massive federal grant to connect Seattle to Portland with rail. "Some of that money is preparation for Seattle to Vancouver. We're a part of that agenda. Fast, in my opinion, means just that."
Gregoire says they've committed to the US federal government high speed means an average of 110 miles per hour.
The news comes less than a week after federal government opted to keep a second Amtrak train running between Vancouver and Portland.