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For the ninth consecutive year, ridership on Amtrak’s Seattle-to-Portland, Ore., Pacific Northwest Cascades line has shot up. In 2003, the Cascades carried 590,000 passengers — a two percent increase compared with 2002.

Amtrak officials attribute the increase to higher-than-usual ridership between June and December.

Amtrak Cascades is financed and operated in partnership with the states of Oregon and Washington. Trains feature onboard movies, laptop computer plug-ins and room for passengers to move around. Customer satisfaction for the service ranks at the top of Amtrak’s system, according to a prepared statement.