There is a considerable amount of passenger car traffic on Interstate 5 in the Vancouver B.C. - Seattle - Portland - Eugene,OR. corridor that could potentially use rail services. Lotsa B.C. plates in Portland & Oregon plates in Seattle. Current Amtrak running times are competitive with I - 5 driving times, especially considering the winter weather & increased holiday driving. Everyone's headed to Grandma's.
The big issue I have with using Amtrak to Portland is connectability between modes; how do I get to Whistle Stop Trains in North East Portland from P.U.S. in downtown ??? The trolley gets me close, with several bus routes necessary from there. How about Bushwhackers in Tualatin ??? Nowhere near the Amtrak Cascades stop in Oregon City; the TriMet DMU line runs within sight, but not on weekends.
The connections between public transit modes is even worse in Puget Sound. Downtown Auburn has a transit center @ the Sounder Commuter train station; it's near several major highways and a natural transfer point for traveling to Enumclaw & Buckley, as well as Maple Valley & Covington. ( All big bedroom communities ). Yet all Amtrak trains, including the Cascades, blow through town w/o stopping. The Cascades stop in Tukwila is useless in my opinion, too close to Seattle yet too far from any residential areas. Based on my past visits, only a handful of Amtrak passengers per day use the stop.
Connections to ferries are good from King St. Station in downtown Seattle, as well as in Edmonds, but Amtrak trains roll right past Steilacoom ( Anderson & Ketron Is. ferries & service to Ft. Lewis ) and Mukilteo ( Whidbey Is. ferry & service to Mukilteo & Lynnwood ). I'm not advocating that Amtrak Cascades service become a commuter run, but the intermediate stops could be better planned.