OLYMPIA, WA (MyBellinghamNow.com) – A bill that would drastically speed up travel through the Pacific Northwest was introduced in Olympia today.

HB 1837 seeks to set new targets for the Amtrak Cascades train service.

Trips from Seattle to Vancouver, B.C. would have a goal of arriving in 2 hours and 45 minutes, more than an hour quicker than the current trip. Service from Seattle to Portland would target a 2-and-a-half-hour trip, which would be a roughly 45-minute cut.

The bill also aims to increase the frequency of the Cascade trips with at least three more daily roundtrips from Seattle to Vancouver and eight more from Seattle to Portland. Those targets would have a goal of being met by 2035.

The bill was forwarded to the House Transportation committee today after its first reading.