Internal budget reductions decrease spending by $17.7 million, eliminate 68 positions and lead to 26 nonunion employee layoffs
TriMet is in the process of completing a round of organizational changes as part of our ongoing efforts to address a significant structural budget gap and bring staffing levels in line with revenues. In total, we eliminated 68 positions. While more than half of those positions were vacant, 26 employees were laid off. No union employees were let go in this round of layoffs, but some union employees were transferred to other jobs under the Working and Wage Agreement, as their positions were among those being eliminated.
These staff reductions come after months of difficult decisions and careful planning as part of a thorough workforce analysis. They were based on operational streamlining and are not a reflection of the contributions of individuals who held the positions. Where possible, reductions were made through attrition to reduce the need for involuntary separations. For those employees who were laid off, TriMet is offering severance and reemployment assistance to support them. The staffing reductions follow earlier cost-cutting measures such as a hiring freeze, discretionary spending cuts and extensive efforts to identify internal efficiencies – work that continues today.
TriMet faces a $300 million shortfall between projected revenues and expenditures over the next several years — a challenge that cannot be solved through short-term measures alone. The internal budget cuts so far have decreased spending by $17.7 million. Those cuts include the reduction of staff as well as internal reorganization of some work groups and reducing discretionary spending.
“These administrative cuts are part of a broader recovery plan to stabilize TriMet’s finances and ensure long-term sustainability so we can continue providing the public transit service our region needs for decades to come,” TriMet General Manager Sam Desue Jr. said.
That plan includes pursuing new funding sources, as well as exploring a fare increase and new revenue opportunities. The goal is to balance our budget by July 1, 2028.
“Layoffs are always a last resort,” Desue said. “We’ve worked hard to limit them as much as possible, but the financial realities we face made some layoffs unavoidable.”
Service changes being planned for Nov. 30, 2025 and March 2026 will mean fewer buses on some bus lines during times when ridership is lower. More extensive service cuts later in 2026 and 2027 will help bring service levels in line with our funding. As we scale back our transit service, staffing needs will naturally shrink. Again, any necessary employee reductions will first be made through attrition to limit the need for involuntary separations.
“With rising costs and challenges around sustainable funding, our expenses have outpaced our revenue, despite our efforts to increase ridership and make riding easier and safer,” Desue added. “We remain committed to taking the action needed to protect the core transit services our community depends on.”
For TriMet’s service reductions, we recently wrapped up an initial round of community engagement during which people shared feedback on the priorities they would like us to consider in our service decisions. In January, TriMet will be releasing proposals for the broader service cuts to be implemented in the latter part of 2026, and we will open up another round of community engagement to gather rider and public sentiment. Learn more at trimet.org/servicecuts.
