TriMet

TriMet
Info
Locale	Portland metropolitan area
Transit type	Commuter rail Light rail Streetcar Local bus
Number of lines	4 Light rail 1 Commuter rail 81 Bus routes[1] 1 Streetcar (operated on behalf of the City of Portland under contract)[2]
Number of stations	84 light rail; 5 commuter rail[1]
Daily ridership	321,100 (1st qtr 2011 weekday average)[3]
Website	trimet.org
Operation
Began operation	December 1, 1969[4]
Number of vehicles	127 light rail cars[5] 4 commuter rail cars 660 buses[6]
Technical
Track gauge	1,435 mm (4 ft 8½ in) (standard gauge)

TriMet, more formally known as the Tri-County Metropolitan Transportation District of Oregon, is a public agency that operates mass transit in a region that spans most of the Portland metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Oregon. Created in 1969 by the Oregon legislature, the district replaced five private bus companies that operated in the three counties; Multnomah, Washington, and Clackamas. TriMet started operating a light rail system named MAX in 1986, and opened new lines in 1998 (Westside), 2001 (Airport), 2004 (Interstate Ave.), and 2009 (Clackamas), as well as a commuter rail line in 2009. It also runs the Portland Vintage Trolley on light rail lines in Downtown Portland and operates the City of Portland owned Portland Streetcar.

In addition to rail lines, TriMet provides the region's bus system, as well as LIFT paratransit service. There are 660 buses in TriMet's fleet that operate on 81 routes. In Fiscal Year 2009, the entire system averaged almost 325,000 rides per weekday^[1] and operates buses and trains between the hours of approximately 5 a.m. and 2 a.m. with no "night owl" service. TriMet's annual revenues total $404 million, with over half of the revenues coming from a district-wide payroll tax.^[7] The district is overseen by a seven-person board of governors appointed by the state's governor.

Contents 1 General information 2 Rail lines 3 Fleet 3.1 Buses 3.2 Light rail (MAX) 3.3 Commuter rail (WES) 4 Timeline 5 Communities served 6 See also 7 References 8 External links

General information

TriMet is "a municipal corporation of the State of Oregon", with powers to tax, issue bonds, and enact police ordinances and is governed by a seven-member board of directors appointed by the Governor of Oregon.^[8] It has its own boundary, which currently encompasses an area of about 575 square miles (1,490 km²).^[1] The TriMet district serves portions of the counties of Multnomah, Washington, and Clackamas; it extends from Troutdale to Forest Grove east to west, and from Sauvie Island to Oregon City and Estacada north to south.

For more than 30 years the agency called itself Tri-Met, but it formally dropped the hyphen from its name in 2002, as part of a new corporate identity strategy involving a redesigned logo and new color scheme for its vehicles and other media.^[9]

TriMet was formed in 1969 after disputes between the Portland city council and Rose City Transit Company, the private company that previously operated the bus system serving the city (but not its suburbs).^[4] The new public agency was created by an ordinance of the Portland city council, under provisions of a law enacted by the 1969 Oregon Legislature, and took over all of Rose City Transit's service and fleet effective December 1, 1969.^[10] Bus service in the suburban portions of the metropolitan area was operated by four smaller private companies which had a common union and were collectively known as the "Blue Bus" lines: Portland Stages, Tualatin Valley Buses, Intercity Buses and Estacada-Molalla Stages. These were taken over by TriMet on September 6, 1970.^[11] Eighty-eight buses owned by the four suburban companies were transferred to TriMet,^[12] but many were found to be in poor condition^[13] and the TriMet board soon took action to replace them with new buses.

The TriMet district is currently divided into three fare zones, with fares based on the number of zones in which a passenger travels.^[14] Zone 1 consists of the Portland city center out one to two miles (3 km). Zone 2 is a ring around Zone 1 out two to three more miles. Zone 3 wraps around Zone 2 and consists of rest of the system within the suburbs of Portland. Within Zone 1 is the Free Rail Zone, an area in and around downtown Portland within which all rides on light rail and streetcars are zero-fare. TriMet tickets and passes are also valid on the Portland Streetcar, which is owned by the City of Portland but operated mostly by TriMet personnel under a contract with the city.^[2] From 1975–2010 the area now known as the Free Rail Zone applied also to buses and was known as "Fareless Square".

In Fiscal Year 2009, TriMet operated a total of 654 buses on 81 lines, 105 MAX light rail cars on three lines, and 269 LIFT paratransit vehicles.^[1] MAX and 12 of the bus lines are marketed as "Frequent Service" lines, scheduled to operate at headways of 15 minutes or better for most of the service day, seven days a week.^[15]

TriMet connects to several other mass transit systems:^[16]

• C-Tran, the public transit district for Vancouver and Clark County, Washington
• Canby Area Transit, the public transit service for Canby and rural areas south of Oregon City along Highway 99E (formerly within the TriMet district)
• Cherriots, the public transit service for Salem and Keizer. This connection is at the Wilsonville Station of TriMet's Westside Express Service rail line.
• Columbia County Rider, the public transit service for Scappoose, St. Helens, and Columbia County^[17]
• Portland Streetcar, a circulator streetcar service in downtown Portland and neighborhoods near downtown
• Sandy Area Metro, the public transit service for Sandy (formerly within the TriMet district)
• SMART, the public transit service for Wilsonville (formerly within the TriMet district)
• South Clackamas Transportation District, the public transit service for Molalla and rural areas south of Oregon City along Highway 213 (formerly within the TriMet district)
• Tillamook County Transportation District, the public transit service for Tillamook and Tillamook County
• Yamhill County Transit Area, the public transit service for McMinnville, Newberg and Yamhill County

TriMet also links to various local shuttle services operated by the following: Ride Connection, which serves Banks, Gaston, King City and North Plains; the Swan Island Transportation Management Association; the Tualatin Transportation Management Association; Intel; Nike; and Oregon Health & Science University, including the Portland Aerial Tram.

Long-range transportation planning for the metropolitan area is provided by Metro, an elected regional government. Metro also has statutory authority to take over the day-to-day operations of TriMet, but has never exercised that power, as past studies of such a merger have found it to be problematic.^[18]

Rail lines

TriMet runs the MAX Light Rail (short for Metropolitan Area Express) system, and contracts with Portland and Western Railroad to operate the Westside Express Service (WES) commuter rail line. Fares on MAX (as well as WES) are the same as TriMet bus fares, and fare collection uses a proof-of-payment system (or honor system) with ticket vending machines at each station. Fare inspectors patrol the system randomly. Incidents of violence on the system have led to calls for more security,^[19] and some have argued that more thorough checking of fares would improve riders' overall feeling of safety, but there are currently no plans to make any major changes to the fare collection system used on MAX.

TriMet trains operate using reporting mark TMTC.

TriMet's rail lines include:

• MAX Blue Line: Hillsboro/Beaverton/City Center/Gresham
• MAX Red Line: Beaverton/City Center/Airport
• MAX Yellow Line: City Center (Portland State University)/Expo Center
• MAX Green Line: City Center (Portland State University)/Clackamas Town Center
• MAX Orange Line (in design): City Center/Milwaukie
• Westside Express Service: Beaverton/Wilsonville

TriMet also operates the Portland Vintage Trolley service, which runs on a portion of the MAX system and currently operates on Sundays only.

See also: Portland Streetcar (operated and partially funded by TriMet, but not a TriMet service)

Fleet

Buses

TriMet's fleet includes 660 buses, in lengths of either 40 or 30 feet (12 or 9 meters).^[6] Currently, about half of TriMet's buses are low-floor vehicles.^[20] The agency's fleet of paratransit vehicles included 254 minibuses and 15 sedans as of mid-2009.^[1]

TriMet does not currently operate any 60-foot (18 m) articulated buses. In 1982, the agency introduced 87 such buses,^[21] manufactured by Crown-Ikarus, a now-defunct partnership between Ikarus, of Hungary, and Crown Coach, of California, but experienced numerous problems with them,^[22] and has not purchased any more articulated buses. The last such buses were retired in 1999. However, over the intervening years the agency has introduced and expanded its MAX light rail system, which also uses higher-capacity, articulated vehicles. In 1997, the TriMet board decided that all buses purchased in the future should be low-floor type and equipped with air-conditioning.^[23] The decision was for a gradual phase-out of high-floor, non-air-conditioned buses as they reach the ends of their normal lifespan (about 18–20 years), meaning that the transition was not expected to be completed until about 2013.^[23]

Two hybrid electric buses have been in service since 2002.^[24][25] However, TriMet has publicly stated its position that the hybrid buses have not performed sufficiently better than its newest diesel buses to justify the estimated 50-percent-higher purchase cost, and that consequently the agency has no plans to purchase additional hybrid buses.^[26] Since October 30, 2006, all TriMet buses and paratransit minibuses have been fueled by a B5 biodiesel blend.^[27] Plans to increase to a B10 or higher mix were later put on hold as a result of cost increases and problems experienced in a trial use of B10 blend in about one-quarter of the fleet.^[28]

In 2008 TriMet ordered 40 New Flyer D40LFR buses,^[29] which model features restyled ends, and these entered service in 2009. These buses offer better fuel efficiency and quieter operation than previous New Flyer buses while maintaining high parts compatibility. The restyled look replaces the square-shaped headlights and front windows with round headlights and a more rounded windshield.

TriMet's buses operate out of three garages: Powell Garage to the east, Merlo Garage on the west side, and the Center Street Garage in inner Southeast Portland.

Fleet Number Range	Make	Model	Length	Year Built
1401-1463	Gillig	Phantom	40'	1990
1601-1643	Gillig	Phantom	30'	1990-1991
1701-1808 1817-1843	Flxible	Metro	40'	1992 (1700 series), 1994 (1817+ series)
1901-1910	Flxible	Metro	30'	1992
2001-2022	New Flyer	D40LF	40'	1997
2101-2165	Gillig	Phantom	40'	1997
2201-2318	New Flyer	D40LF	40'	1998-1999
2501-2560	New Flyer	D40LF	40'	2000-2001
2561-2562	New Flyer	DE40LF (hybrid-electric)	40'	2002
2601-2655 2701-2725 2801-2839	New Flyer	D40LF	40'	2002 (2600 series), 2003 (2700 series), 2005 (2800 series)
2901-2940	New Flyer	D40LFR	40'	2009

Light rail (MAX)

There are 127 light rail vehicles, of three general types: TriMet Type 1, Type 2/Type 3 (effectively identical) and Type 4.^[30] The first few cars of the latest type began to enter service in August 2009.^[31]

Portland MAX Light Rail Cars

TriMet Designation	Car numbers	Manufacturer	Model No.	First used	No. of Seats/ Overall Capacity	Quantity
Type 1	101-126	Bombardier	none	1986	76/166	26
Type 2	201-252	Siemens	SD660	1997	64/166	52
Type 3	301-327	Siemens	SD660	2003	64/166	27
Type 4	401-422	Siemens	S70	2009	68/172[32]	22

Note on capacities:

• The capacities given are for a single car; a two-car train has double the capacity.

Commuter rail (WES)

Four rail cars built by Colorado Railcar operate on the commuter rail line between Beaverton and Wilsonville.

Timeline

Items in the following timeline lacking individual citations are taken mostly from TriMet's Rider Insider newsletter, November/December 2004 issue:

• 1969 Tri-Met takes over for the nearly bankrupt Rose City Transit Company. The system has 175 buses and a daily ridership of about 65,000.
• 1970 Tri-Met takes over the "Blue Bus" companies, the four companies which had been providing bus service to and within Portland's suburbs,^[13] adding another 88 buses to the agency's fleet.
• 1973 Route numbers (or Line numbers) are adopted for the first time; previously, routes had been designated only by names.
• 1974 The first shelters at bus stops are installed.
• 1975 The "Fareless Square" is created in downtown Portland, with the goal of reducing short automobile trips within the city core and attracting more riders. Fares outside the Square are 35 cents.
• 1977/78 The 22-block Portland Transit Mall opens on downtown's Fifth and Sixth Avenues.^[33][34] The mall includes bus-only lanes and provides a hub to make it easier for riders to make connections.
• 1981 24-hour recorded schedule information becomes available over the phone.

• 1982 Tri-Met introduces articulated buses for the first time.^[21] The Crown-Ikarus buses prove to be sufficiently trouble-plagued that the agency later sues the manufacturer to recover expenses tied to excessive repairs;^[35] a settlement was reached in 1987.
• 1986 As part of a package of budget cuts,^[36] Tri-Met discontinues its all-night "Owl" service,^[37] making Portland the second largest U.S. city without all-night transit service. Seven regular (daytime) bus routes also were eliminated.^[37]
• 1986 The 15-mile (24 km) long MAX light rail line between Portland and Gresham opens. It reintroduces rail transit service to the Portland area, missing since the 1950s.
• 1989 Tri-Met is named the best large transit system in North America by the American Public Transit Association.^[38]
• 1992 The first bike racks are installed on the fronts of some Tri-Met buses, as part of a one-year trial project.^[39]
• 1995 Tri-Met's website goes online, hosted by local ISP Teleport (which eventually becomes acquired by OneMain.com, later to become part of Earthlink). At the time when Internet access was less ubiquitous, Tri-Met also offered a dial-up information service through Teleport using UNIX shell and Lynx.
• 1996 Tri-Met begins to equip its bus fleet with vehicle tracking system equipment, to enable monitoring of buses in service, using GPS technology.^[40]
• 1997 The first low-floor buses and light-rail cars go into service.^[41][42]
• 1998 Westside MAX (now known as the Blue Line between Portland and Hillsboro) opens. Tri-Met also establishes bus lines that come every 15 minutes or sooner everyday, lessening the need to consult a schedule when using them.
• 1999 Satellite-assisted bus arrival time displays (later to be named Transit Tracker) are installed at select major bus stops in North Portland and downtown.
• 2001 Fareless Square is expanded to a small portion of Northeast Portland between Lloyd Center and the Steel Bridge. Airport MAX (the Red Line) begins service on September 10 after a public/private partnership, prompted by a proposal from Bechtel Corporation, enables its construction years ahead of TriMet's plans for the use of public funds. Bechtel received exclusive development rights to 120 acres (486,000 m²) near the entrance to Portland International Airport. The original MAX line began to be referred to as the MAX Blue Line upon the opening of the Red Line. Bus sector symbols began to be phased out from maps and publications.
• 2002 With the September schedule change, Tri-Met launches a new corporate identity strategy. It is renamed TriMet (without a hyphen) and a new logo and blue, white and yellow livery are introduced.^[9] An improved automated phone service is introduced.
• 2004 Interstate MAX (the Yellow Line) opens along Interstate Avenue. The fleet has grown to 638 buses, 208 paratransit vehicles, and 105 trains with a daily ridership of over 300,000.
• 2005 TriMet introduces biodiesel fuel into its fleet, using a B5 blend (5 percent pure biodiesel, 95 percent petroleum diesel), initially on LIFT (paratransit) minibuses only. Use of B5 biodiesel was expanded to the entire bus fleet in late 2006.^[27]
• 2007 The Portland Mall, on 5th and 6th Avenues, is shut down for rebuilding and southward extension (to PSU), including adding a second light-rail alignment through downtown. The rebuilding, to take over 2 years, is part of the MAX Green Line project, but will also replace all infrastructure for buses on the already 29-year-old transit mall.^[43] Most bus routes serving downtown are detoured to other streets until 2009.
• 2009 The 14.7 mile WES Commuter Rail opened on February 2nd. WES (Westside Express Service) provides service between Beaverton and Wilsonville with stations in Tigard and Tualatin inbetween.^[4]
• 2009 In May, the Portland Mall reopens for buses, and testing and training runs for the new Mall MAX tracks begin, for opening August 30.^[44]
• 2009 Due to the national recession's effect on the agency's finances, the board approves a series of service reductions, to take effect in September.^[45] The board votes on August 12 to discontinue Fareless Square for bus service beginning in January 2010, while retaining fare-free rides in the downtown area on MAX and the Portland Streetcar.^[46]
• 2009 On August 30, MAX service on the transit mall is introduced, with the shifting of the Yellow Line to the new alignment.^[47] September 12 brings the opening of the Green Line, also using the new transit-mall tracks, running from downtown (PSU) to Clackamas Town Center.^[48] It is TriMet's first light rail line serving Clackamas County.^[49]

^[3]

Communities served

The following cities and unincorporated communities (*) are in the TriMet service area:

TriMet buses and commuter rail also serve Wilsonville, Oregon in order to provide connections to transit services in that city.

The Boring Area will be removed from the TriMet District effective January 1st, 2013.^[50]

See also

• List of TriMet bus routes
• Portland Streetcar
• Transportation in Portland

References

External links

• Media related to [//commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:TriMet TriMet] at Wikimedia Commons
• iPhone compatible arrivals
• 2003 Transit profile from the National Transit Database

Mass transit in the Portland metropolitan area Bus TriMet (list of transit centers • list of routes) • C-TRAN (list of routes) • Canby Area Transit • Mountain Express Bus • Sandy Area Metro • South Clackamas Transportation District • South Metro Area Regional Transit Light rail MAX (list of stations):      Blue Line •      Green Line •      Red Line •      Yellow Line •      Orange Line Streetcar Portland Streetcar Commuter rail Westside Express Service Other Transportation in Portland, Oregon • Portland Aerial Tram • Free Rail Zone • Portland Transit Mall • Union Station • Caruthers Bridge • Vintage Trolley • Willamette Shore Trolley • I-205 Transitway • Metro Italics denote lines or services which are planned, under construction, or otherwise not operating at the present time.

Currently operating light rail and streetcar systems in the United States Arizona Metro Light Rail · Old Pueblo Trolley Arkansas River Rail Streetcar California MUNI: Cable Car, F Market & Wharves, and Metro lines · Metro Rail: Blue Line, Green Line and Gold Line · Sacramento RT · San Diego Trolley · Sprinter · Santa Clara VTA · Waterfront Red Car Colorado Fort Collins Municipal Railway · Platte Valley Trolley · RTD Light Rail Florida TECO Line Streetcar System Georgia River Street Streetcar Louisiana New Orleans Streetcars Maryland Baltimore Light Rail Massachusetts Ashmont–Mattapan High Speed Line · MBTA Green Line Minnesota Como-Harriet Streetcar Line · Hiawatha Line Missouri /  Illinois MetroLink New Jersey Hudson–Bergen Light Rail · Newark Light Rail · River Line New York Buffalo Metro Rail North Carolina Lynx Rapid Transit Services · Charlotte Trolley Ohio RTA Blue and Green Lines Oregon MAX Light Rail · Portland Streetcar · Portland Vintage Trolley · Willamette Shore Trolley Pennsylvania Pittsburgh Light Rail · SEPTA Routes 15, 101, 102, and Subway–Surface Lines Tennessee Memphis MATA Trolley Texas DART Light Rail · Houston MetroRail · M-Line (McKinney Ave.) Utah UTA TRAX Virginia Norfolk Tide Washington Link Light Rail · Seattle Streetcar Network Wisconsin Kenosha Transit