According to the WSDOT web site, the Point Defiance Bypass Project, currently under construction, will move passenger train service to an inland route. “The proposed route of this WSDOT project is the same route that Sound Transit will use to extend Sounder commuter rail service to Lakewood.”

The Point Defiance Bypass Project page continues, “The end result is more frequent, more reliable, and faster Amtrak Cascades service.”

Fewer trains on the existing rail line will mean quieter neighborhoods in cities like University Place as well.

“The improvements will allow passenger trains to use the bypass route without being delayed by freight or Sounder trains. After the completion of other capital rail projects, two additional daily round trip passenger trains could be added as early as 2015. Freight train traffic will not increase on this line beyond the minimal amount that utilizes it today.

When completed, the Point Defiance Rail Bypass project will bring a total of five daily round trip passenger trains through Tacoma, Lakewood, and DuPont intersections as soon as 2013, with an average crossing time of less than 50 seconds per intersection and a maximum speed of 79 mph.”

While government hearings and project milestone checks are a part of the project, construction is underway on parts of the project. This photo gallery at the Tacoma News Tribune site contains a very nice set of captioned photos that show parts of the route and of the project under construction.