The ''Willamette Valley'', also known as the ''Willamette Valley Express'', was a passenger train operated by

Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak (; ), is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates intercity rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...

between

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...

and

Eugene, Oregon Eugene ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Lane County, Oregon, United States. It is located at the southern end of the Willamette Valley, near the confluence of the McKenzie River (Oregon), McKenzie and Willamette River, Willamette rivers, ...

, in the early 1980s. The name came from the

Willamette Valley The Willamette Valley ( ) is a valley in Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. The Willamette River flows the entire length of the valley and is surrounded by mountains on three sides: the Cascade Range to the east, the ...

region which the train ran through.

History

Arrivals-departures board inside Portland Union Station in Dec 1981

Amtrak introduced the train on August 3, 1980, with support from the state of

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

. The new twice-daily service supplemented the long-distance ''

Coast Starlight The ''Coast Starlight'' is a Amtrak Long Distance, long-distance passenger train operated by Amtrak on the West Coast of the United States between Seattle and Los Angeles via Portland, Oregon, Portland and the San Francisco Bay Area. The train, ...

'' and added stops at Milwaukie and Woodburn. The ''Willamette Valley'' carried a cafe car and unreserved coaches. The initial trial run was slated to last until June 30, 1981. Two ''Willamette Valleys'' (#751 and #753) operated southbound in the morning and afternoon, respectively, while one (#752) operated northbound in the early afternoon. Amtrak began originating the ''

Mount Rainier Mount Rainier ( ), also known as Tahoma, is a large active stratovolcano in the Cascade Range of the Pacific Northwest in the United States. The mountain is located in Mount Rainier National Park about south-southeast of Seattle. With an off ...

'' (#790) in Eugene instead of Portland for the morning northbound service. In July 1981 the federal government approved funding to continue the trains through 1984 provided that Oregon continued to pay one-third of the subsidy. In early August the state legislature approved additional funds to keep the trains running through the end of 1981 amid concerns over a fare hike and falling ridership. Amtrak discontinued the ''Willamette Valley'' at the end of the year after Oregon declined to continue funding the trains. The ''Willamette Valley'' made its final run on December 31, 1981. The train averaged 170 passengers per day, half of the goal. However, monthly passenger miles averaged 620,000 - 98% of goal - indicating that most passengers were traveling the full route. Multiple daily frequencies south of Portland would not return until October 30, 1994, when the ''Mount Rainier'' was extended to Eugene on a trial basis. The ''Mount Rainier'' was renamed as the ''Cascadia'' in 1995, and folded into the ''

Amtrak Cascades The Amtrak ''Cascades'' is a passenger train route in the Pacific Northwest, operated by Amtrak in partnership with the U.S. states of Washington (state), Washington and Oregon. It is named after the Cascade Range, Cascade mountain range that ...

'' brand in 1998. The ''Willamette Valley'' stops at East Milwaukie and Woodburn were never reinstated, though Oregon City station was added to the ''Amtrak Cascades'' in April 2004.

References

External links

1980 timetable
{{Former Amtrak routes Former Amtrak routes Passenger rail transportation in Oregon Railway services introduced in 1980 1980 establishments in Oregon Railway services discontinued in 1981 1981 disestablishments in Oregon