With the 2010 Winter Olympics taking place in British Columbia in a few months, Amtrak was asked to consider how best to ensure adequate service to and from Vancouver during the event. The study suggests having trains depart the Canadian city later in the evening to allow Washington State residents to attend more events during the day, but it does not propose the addition of any new midday trains, at least in the short term.

One major impediment to expansion of rail service is the required customs and immigration procedures at the U.S.-Canada border, which requires trains to wait at least 15 minutes. The facility can only handle one train at a time; more trains would increase the likelihood of route overlapping and additional delays. As a result, Amtrak proposes that Congress pays for $500,000 in upgrades at the Vancouver station to allow pre-clearance inspections of U.S.-bound passengers there. This would eliminate the mid-journey delay and reduce journey times.

(Source: The Transport Politic)