Train passengers in Oregon will see new schedules take effect Saturday. The changes are an attempt to boost ridership on the Portland-to-Eugene corridor.
Ridership on the Oregon portion of the state-subsidized Cascades Corridor has dropped 15 percent over the past two years. State lawmakers want the Oregon Department of Transportation to reverse that trend with things like an ad campaign or schedule changes.
Kathy Holmes of ODOT's Rail Division said adjusting schedules took a lot of coordination, since Oregon doesn't own the tracks.
"We don't want our trains to not be on time, so it's in our best interest to work with the host railroads to try and get a schedule that works for both them and us,” Holmes said.
The initial schedule change is modest: Two weekend trains will run later in the morning to try to appeal to more leisure travelers.
Holmes said additional schedule changes are possible.