The 18-mile extension of MAX Blue Line from Downtown Portland to Hillsboro reaches its 25th anniversary on Sept. 12

The first public riders to make a MAX Blue Line trip all the way from Gresham to Hillsboro did so on a warm Saturday in September. It was 1998— 12 years after the first stretch of the Blue Line opened, which linked Downtown Portland to Gresham. Construction of the new 18-mile Westside extension had proven to be its own massive undertaking, lasting for more than five years at an overall cost of $963 million. After all that time waiting, following a robust period of public outreach, September 12, 1998, was its own momentous and long-awaited occasion.

As TriMet reaches the 25th anniversary of the grand opening of the Westside MAX Blue Line Extension, we look back and celebrate a project that has helped relieve congestion, develop communities and improve the quality of life for people across our region, for the past quarter century. 

For Washington County, the impacts have been monumental.

“To me, the 25th anniversary is really a special milestone. I’ve been able to see… how valuable the Westside expansion of MAX has been to our individual lives as well as our collective community lives,” Washington County Chair Kathryn Harrington said. “It enabled Downtown Beaverton to further develop, as well as Hillsboro—and not just downtown Hillsboro. In order for us to seek federal funding for the Westside MAX, we had to show that we were offering more housing.”

“Extending MAX west to Washington County was the fulfillment of a promise TriMet and local leaders had made decades before, and it set an example for expansions of the MAX system that would come later,” TriMet General Manager Sam Desue Jr. said. “Over the past 25 years, we have been committed to building and maintaining the most efficient and reliable light rail system possible, taking cars off the road, helping people reach their destinations and supporting the growth of the community.”

Planning pays off

To start at the beginning, you have to go back to 1979.

Superman was the top-grossing movie, “My Sharona” topped the music charts and 60 Minutes—yes, a televised news magazine—was the highest-rated television program. It was also the year the seeds were planted for a light rail line to Washington County.

Originally, there had been some discussions for the first MAX line to follow the Sunset Highway west, but instead, funds from the defunct Mount Hood Freeway were transferred to a package of regional transportation priorities that included the Banfield light rail project. That first MAX line was completed in 1986. But once done, there was little time to wait for the next move. It was westward-ho, with planning for the Westside extension kicking off in 1988. Then, in November 1990, voters approved Ballot Measure 26-1 by a 3-1 vote, allowing the issuance of bonds to help pay for the project.

During the project’s planning phase, community members had an opportunity to weigh in. TriMet has made community engagement a cornerstone of all major service decisions to give residents an opportunity to share their voices and learn more about our projects. As a resident, Washington County Chair Harrington said she attended several of the neighborhood association meetings that occurred to discuss the planning of Westside stations, including Willow Creek and Sunset Transit Center.

Looking back on the project now, she’s proud that it accomplished what planners said it would.

“It has really unlocked a lot of potential,” Harrington said. “It has exceeded people’s (initial) vision. People want to know how future MAX lines will build on the community, with walking and biking access and improved transportation all throughout the area.”

Challenges and solutions underground

The Westside MAX Blue Line Extension’s biggest construction challenge was more than 16 million years old. Rock—metric tons of it—mainly volcanic basalt, had been lying dormant since the Miocene era. But this basalt wasn’t alone. Also underground were soft silt deposits that were scattered sporadically, making the earth under the West Hills an inconsistent mix of brittle, mushy and hard—the geological equivalent of baklava.

Before digging could commence, engineers had to gather as much information as they could about what to expect. TriMet spent years researching and engineering the Westside tunnel, with geologists drilling 25 test holes up to 300 feet down to sample soil, rock and ground water. These holes, and the bounty of information they produced, acted as the engineers’ eyes, allowing them to produce maps of an underground world no one had ever seen. With this information, engineers chose to give the tunnel curves, allowing miners the best digging conditions possible.

It would take 18 months of blasting and boring to punch three miles through the hillside. Later came construction of the Washington Park MAX Station. It would come to feature art displays referencing the geological history of the location. The main display, running the length of a wall on the eastbound platform, remains a site of interest 25 years later. It’s a long transparent tube containing a core sample. On the wall, the various geological eras are etched, allowing riders to walk along and track the progression of time.

The station would become, and still remains, the deepest subway tunnel in North America. Care and thought were also given to the surface-level plaza, connecting to the Washington Park Zoo, World Forestry Center and Hoyt Arboretum 260 feet above—the equivalent of going to the top of the Umpqua Bank Plaza.

Twenty-five years after opening, what are now the Robertson Tunnel and Washington Park MAX Station continue to be modern-day marvels, where a marriage of engineering and artistry come together to help people travel efficiently and in style.

Building boom, boon to economy

In preparing for the Westside MAX Extension, planners chose an alignment that would take trains past undeveloped parcels—most notably in Washington County, but in Portland as well. The end result was the project being a catalyst for $825 million in residential and commercial development. Prominent developments that sprung up include Orenco Station, one of the high-density, mixed-use developments that began planning in conjunction with the Westside MAX Blue Line Extension. It was in addition to the “The Round,” a civic plaza built around Beaverton Central, Centerpointe, apartments near Beaverton Creek and Stadium Station apartments, near Goose Hollow.  

The Westside MAX Blue Line Extension created a more direct and attractive connection between two major employment centers: Downtown Portland on one end of the line; the Silicon Forest on the other. Today, MAX Blue Line serves more riders than any other MAX line, providing around 30,000 trips every weekday. And because it covers an extensive 33 miles, between the heart of Gresham and  Downtown Hillsboro, the line also covers more ground for riders than any other bus or MAX line, with about 176,000 passenger miles made every day. It’s one of many examples of how decades of forward-thinking and planning are paying off for tens of thousands of riders a quarter century later!

MAX extension continues with Better Red

The lessons of the past are being applied today.

The MAX Red Line was built just a few years after the Westside MAX Blue Line Extension, completed in 2001. It fulfilled another longstanding promise, this time to bring light rail to Portland International Airport, part of regional master planning that started in the 1980s. Now, more than two decades after opening, TriMet is working on improvements to the line to make it more efficient—and to provide improved service to riders between Portland and Washington County. The project will extend the Red Line 10 stations west, from Beaverton Transit Center to Fair Complex/Hillsboro Airport.

It’s also adding another track and additional infrastructure near Gateway Transit Center and Portland International Airport to improve train movement and keep trains moving throughout the MAX system. TriMet is doing this to continue meeting the growing demands of the region and foster even better connections among our riders.

A multi-year project scheduled to complete next year and fully open to the public in fall 2024, A Better Red is now about 70% completed. For more information on the project, visit trimet.org/betterred.

While levels of drugs detected in University of Washington’s first-of-its kind study of air and surfaces on transit described as “extremely low,” TriMet urges regional crackdown on public drug use    

TriMet values the health and well-being of riders and employees, and that’s why we have been working to keep the rampant use of illicit drugs in our community off our buses and trains. In the past two years, our general manager and other leadership have testified before Oregon lawmakers, city councilors and county commissioners asking state and regional leaders to address drugs and crime before they extend onto our transit system.

We also:

• Significantly increased security personnel for more on-board presence,
• Updated the TriMet Code to address illicit drugs however we can,
• Updated standard procedures for when someone is seen smoking drugs on board,
• And now we’ve taken part in a first-of-its kind study of fentanyl and methamphetamine in the air and on surfaces of transit vehicles. 

Today, the University of Washington released the results of that study, which included testing on some TriMet MAX trains. The study did not assess the health impacts on our riders and operators from the traces found in air and surfaces samples, so TriMet sought the expertise of health experts. Among them, Dr. Robert Hendrickson, a professor of emergency medicine and medical toxicologist at OHSU and the Medical Director of the Oregon Poison Center.

“The concentration of drugs detected in the air and on surfaces in this study were extremely low and would not cause harm to TriMet riders and operators,” Hendrickson said. “There is no threat to the public related to these study results, and individuals who use public transportation for travel needs should continue to feel safe doing so.”

Read the full public health assessment

Despite the low levels of drug residue found in the University of Washington research, TriMet wants to keep drugs off our transit system completely. But Oregon law poses challenges for keeping the smoking of fentanyl and meth out of public spaces, such as transit.

TriMet and our union, the Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) 757, continue our call to state and local officials and lawmakers to deliver the policy changes and enforcement necessary to curb what has become an epidemic of rampant public consumption of drugs in our region.

“Our riders, operators and other employees deserve to use our system without being exposed to drug use,” said TriMet General Manager Sam Desue, Jr.  “More needs to be done to ensure that transit and other public spaces are safe and comfortable for everyone.”

Desue stressed, “TriMet stands ready to be part of the solution to this region-wide drug epidemic, but we urge state and local leaders and our law enforcement partners to continue to address drugs and addiction in our community.” 

In addition to collecting air and surface samples on transit, UW researchers tested three Downtown Portland locations*. Three of the samples tested positive for very low levels of meth and none tested positive for fentanyl, yet the challenges of the public consumption of drug use are well known in the communities we serve.
* SW 10th Ave & SW Harvey Milk St, SW Taylor St & SW Broadway, SW 9th Ave & SW Alder St St.

Overdose deaths from synthetic opioids have increased by 533% in Multnomah County alone from 2018 to 2022. In June 2023, Dr. Teresa Everson, M.P.H, interim Multnomah County Health Officer, told the Multnomah County Board of Commissioners that the region is in “an unprecedented time with fentanyl” and that the sharp upswing in overdose deaths, “reflects the rapid and radical change in local drug supplies towards fentanyl and other potent synthetic opioids, which began in 2019.”

While the UW study looked at illicit drug residue levels specifically, smoking of any substance—whether nicotine or drugs— is not allowed on TriMet. That includes inside our buses and trains, on rail platforms, at transit centers or in elevators and Park & Rides. Those caught smoking face a citation and fine of up to $175 or exclusion. If riders see someone smoking drugs on board, they should alert the operator immediately.

UW study on secondhand drug smoke on transit

With the use of illegal use of fentanyl skyrocketing across the U.S. and here in the Pacific Northwest, TriMet joined four transit agencies in Washington State in inviting researchers from University of Washington’s Department of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences to come on board to determine what level of drug residue could be detected.

“The transit agencies share rising concerns about illegal substance use and untreated behavioral health conditions that are common in their communities and throughout the nation. The agencies proactively commissioned this study to identify what levels of drug smoke and surface residue transit employees and riders might encounter on transit vehicles, with a goal of helping to identify responses. The agencies join in thanking the University of Washington’s research team for its work to execute the study.”

– Joint statement from Sound Transit, King County Metro, Community Transit, Everett Transit and TriMet 

Overall findings

Researchers placed air pumps on board and collected surface samples from seats, windows and doors in *30 transit buses and train cars across four of the agencies. In total, 180 samples (78 air samples and 102 surface samples) were collected.
*This represents 1% of the 2,743 transit vehicles operated by the agencies.

The measurements found may be challenging to comprehend as they are small and abstract. A microgram is a millionth of a gram and one-thousandth of a milligram. A nanogram is one-billionth of a gram, one-millionth of a milligram and one-thousandth of a microgram. Some liken a microgram to a single cell in the human body. Or, consider a grain of sand. While the size of a grain of sand can vary, generally a grain of sand weighs approximately 23 micrograms. Another comparison could be a crystal of sugar. A single fine sugar crystal in those little packets you find at restaurants generally is about 20 milligrams. That’s 20 million times larger than one nanogram and 20,000 times larger than a microgram

Extremely low levels of fentanyl were detected in 25% of the air samples. Extremely low levels of fentanyl also were detected in 46% of the surface samples, ranging from one-hundredth of a nanogram to under a nanogram.

UW researchers also tested the 180 samples taken on the transit agencies’ buses and trains for remnants of methamphetamine. All the air samples tested positive for very low levels of meth and 98% of the surface samples found very low levels of meth as well.

Read the UW study report

TriMet findings

In Portland, on TriMet, researchers collected samples on MAX trains. They gathered the air and surface samples from *eight two-car trains and one single-car train over a two-day period (June 20-21) between 7 p.m. and 12 a.m. The trains traveled through areas where we’ve had incidents of drug smoking reported.
*Correction: Previous version incorrectly state ten two-car trains and one single car train. Samples were taken on 17 of TriMet’s 142 train cars or 12% of our light rail vehicles.

The air samples were collected by pumps installed on the ceiling of the train cars, just inside the door to the operator cab and on the outside of the door, in the passenger area. Surface samples were mainly taken on the outside of the operator cab door, in the passenger area, as well as on seats/dividers in the middle of the trains and in the bench seating at the back of the vehicles. Overall, very low levels of fentanyl, meth and cocaine were detected in the air (less than two-tenths of a microgram) and on surfaces (less than two and a half nanograms). A few samples were also tested for cocaine. As with the positive fentanyl and meth results, the level of cocaine found was very low as well.

TriMet Air Samples  – 16 Total

Drug type	Operator side of cab door	Passenger side of cab door
Fentanyl	3 positive samples	3 positive samples
	0.005-0.077 μg/m3	0.005-0.14 μg/m3
Meth	8 positive samples	8 positive samples
	0.011-0.024 μg/m3	0.011-0.039 μg/m3
Cocaine		1 positive sample
	N/A	0.144 µg/m3

TriMet Surface Samples  – 26 Total

Drug type	Passenger side of cab door	Mid train car	Rear of train	Front seatback
Fentanyl	3 positive samples	2 positive sample	7 positive samples	1 positive sample
	0.015, 0.13 ng/cm2	0.014 ng/cm2	0.022-0.17 ng/cm2	0.117 ng/cm2
Meth	8 positive samples	8 positive samples	9 positive samples	1 positive sample
	0.035-0.93 ng/cm2	0.081-1.32 ng/cm2	0.020-2.23 ng/cm2	0.79 ng/cm2
Cocaine*	2 positive samples	2 positive samples	2 positive samples	N/A
	0.018-0.024 ng/cm2	0.011-0.02 ng/cm2	0.011-0.88 ng/cm2	N/A

Public health experts assess findings

TriMet asked Dr. Hendrickson, as well as Multnomah County Public Health officers, to analyze the findings and help us understand them. 

These health experts said the study results aren’t surprising: If someone smokes on transit or comes on board after smoking drugs with the residue clinging to their clothes, then that residue can be detected on board. However, the experts determined that the concentrations found in this study are so low that they would not pose a threat to the health of our riders, operators and other employees and that people should continue to feel safe riding.

“Unfortunately, whenever drugs are being used or handled in a community, very small amounts of drug will be detectable with today’s laboratory technology”, said Hendrickson. “For example, small amounts of cocaine can be found on the surface of paper money.” 

The UW study took air samples over a 4-5 hour period on MAX Green and Orange/Yellow Line trains. The testing did not determine how long fentanyl or meth may linger in the air, and it did not evaluate ventilation systems or filters. But for those who have longer rides and our operators who are on trains for hours, Hendrickson says the amount of fentanyl in the air samples is thousands of times lower than a dose that would be used to treat pain in a hospital.  He also noted that the highest concentration of meth found in air samples was extremely low—0.039 micrograms—which is just 78-thousandths of the medical dose for treating ADHD (5000 micrograms).

Fentanyl fueling national epidemic

Nationally, health and drug enforcement experts say illicit fentanyl is primarily responsible for fueling the ongoing opioid crisis in the United States. While illicit fentanyl clearly poses a risk for those who abuse it, health experts say secondhand or third hand exposure does not.

Among published information about fentanyl dangers:

• Studies have looked at fentanyl concentrations in the bloodstream after someone has had secondhand fentanyl exposure from smoke. The levels are extremely low or not detectable. So, there’s no real risk for the everyday person being exposed to secondhand opioid smoke. – Dr. Scott Phillips, Medical Toxicologist and Medical Director of the Washington Poison Center; Public Health Insider, April 2022
• Illicit fentanyl cannot be absorbed through the skin or by touching an item or surface where it is present.  – Tennessee Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services
• Fentanyl must enter the system through the mucus membrane or the bloodstream. It
  is not a volatile drug, so when it is left undisturbed, it can’t cause harm. It cannot
  enter through the skin, only through ingestion. – Denver Public Health and Environment

Also, TriMet received 61 workers compensation claims between February 2021 and June 2023, in which employees immediately sought medical treatment after concerns of exposure to secondhand drug smoke. While it was up to emergency room doctors to determine whether toxicology/blood tests were warranted, no tests completed ever came back positive for drugs.

Combatting drug use on board

“We saw this wave of fentanyl and meth use rolling through our community, and we took action,” said TriMet Chief Safety Officer Andrew Wilson. “We have taken a number of steps to try to keep drug use off our buses and trains, and we won’t stop. It will be a continuous effort.” 

TriMet has doubled the number of personnel on our security teams since the start of 2022, to increase presence on board. Our security teams will inform anyone seen smoking on board that it is not allowed and supervisors and/or police will be contacted if the person refuses to leave or stop smoking. Our Customer Safety Supervisors enforce TriMet Code, including issuing citations or exclusions for smoking. A year ago, we had 18 Customer Safety Supervisors; today, we have 46.

In addition to increasing security personnel, we changed the TriMet Code in early 2022, to include non-criminal violations of laws or ordinances as actions prohibited on TriMet. Since possessing a small amount of drugs and drug use are now categorized as a violation under Oregon law (ORS Chapter 153), by prohibiting violations of those activities, security personnel can further address the behavior, with a citation or exclusion.

TriMet has added a Safety Response Team, which has now expanded to 58 personnel. Team members connect people in need on and around our transit system with social services such as shelters, mental health resources and addiction services.

In recent years, TriMet has updated our standard operating procedures. Workers focused on cleaning our vehicles wipe down touch points each night, before the bus or train goes into service the next day. We also have procedures to address smoke when it is reported on board. We upgraded the filters in our buses and trains during the COVID-19 pandemic. The HVAC system on our fixed-route buses uses a MERV-12 rated filter and our FX articulated buses use a MERV-13 filter. Our MAX trains use the highest level of filter possible for their HVAC systems, a MERV-10. All the air in the MAX car passes through the HVAC unit about every 74 seconds. The frequent opening and closing of bus and train doors provides additional ventilation. While on-board air is recycled, the fresh air from opening and closing doors and from windows, as well as the air passing through the ventilation filters, helps to clean it.

See something. Say something

TriMet has long had signs and announcements that if you see something suspicious, say something to an operator, other TriMet employee or police. The same is true for riders if they see someone smoking on board. Please alert the operator, whether or not you know they are smoking drugs. Smoking of any kind is prohibited on TriMet. If you are on MAX, you can go to the other end of the train car to use the intercom to talk to the operator. Or, if time allows, you can go to the other car of the train and use the intercom.

TriMet and health experts also urge people to continue practicing good hand hygiene. While handwashing and the use of hand sanitizer became common during the pandemic, it is good practice to always wash your hands after being in public spaces and touching items that others may have touched.

With data now showing trips on FX are faster, the Institute of Transportation Engineers honors TriMet and partner agencies with special recognition

With the one-year anniversary of TriMet FX® – Frequent Express – fast approaching, an important aspect of the service has come into focus: FX buses are more efficient, thanks in large part to next-generation transit-signal priority. The cloud-based system, which uses artificial intelligence to give buses more green lights and fewer reds, is among the latest advancements TriMet has made to improve travel time, reliability and the overall customer experience.

Experts nationwide are taking notice of the benefits of this first-of-its-kind system as well. 

A new study commissioned by the Federal Highway Administration affirms that TriMet’s next-generation transit signal priority system speeds up buses by making changes to signal timing. The system’s algorithm adapts signals to give buses an edge as they approach intersections.

TriMet and the Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) conducted the study with the oversight of Kittelson & Associates, a Portland-based transportation engineering, planning and research firm. The study was performed in late May by running through different scenarios after the system had been turned off, then comparing those to when the system was turned back on.  

Part of the Division Transit Project, which laid the groundwork for our FX—Frequent Express–service, the next-generation transit signal priority system was implemented specifically for FX2-Division buses, which run between Downtown Portland and Gresham. While the new system is not part of the FX2-Division’s downtown segment, which also serves other bus lines, it does operate at 57 signals along Division Street, covering roughly 11 miles, the majority of the 15-mile route. When added up across a one-way trip, the new system reduces the time buses would spend waiting at those 57 intersections, between Southeast 11th Avenue and Cleveland Avenue in Gresham, by around four minutes.

With the system proving itself to be more flexible and reliable than previous versions of transit-signal priority, which rely on line-of-sight emitters and receivers, it’s gained attention and major recognition from transportation engineers from across the country. Four agencies and one consulting company involved in the Division Transit Project received the 2023 Transportation Achievement Award in the Transportation Systems Management & Operations category at this year’s Institute of Transportation Engineers Annual Meeting, which was held this August in Portland.

Award winning transit engineering

Presented in five categories, the Transportation Achievement Awards recognize excellence in the advancement of transportation to meet human needs. In its recognition, the Institute of Transportation Engineers said the Division Transit Project leveraged “the most advanced signal technology available to deliver better buses to residents living along one of the region’s most diverse—and historically, most dangerous—arterial corridors.” Also involved in the Division Transit Project were PBOT, the City of Gresham, the Oregon Department of Transportation and engineering consultants DKS Associates.

The project was designed to increase bus reliability and performance. It does so by improving transit capacity and efficiency, with next-generation transit-signal priority aided further by longer buses with room for 60% more riders. There are now bus-only lanes at some intersections, which give buses green lights first ahead of all other vehicles. The project also brought elevated bus stations to the route, with level boarding at multiple doors for briefer stops, along with onboard bike storage and stations located where rider demand is greatest.

Based on the early success of FX2-Division, our first FX line that celebrates its one-year anniversary on Sept. 18, we look forward to pursuing ways to further improve it in the future.

A smarter, better-connected transit system

The new transit-signal priority system benefits from all the information TriMet collects as part of daily operations. On a given day, we can collect as many as 500,000 stop and event data records through our automatic vehicle location and passenger counter systems, which help the new transit-signal priority system to become smarter.

Increasingly, information informs decisions that TriMet and our partners make to speed up service. Data used to better understand overall traffic patterns helps in deciding the locations of Rose Lanes, for example. TriMet also works to make more information available to our riders. In early 2022, TriMet introduced our retooled website, with several new features, including real-time vehicle tracking, that improve our riders’ trip-planning capabilities. Also, at our Transit Centers and bus stops, we have installed ePaper digital displays, which provide transit information to more locations than ever before.

For more information about FX2-Division and all the ways it’s working to speed up service, go to trimet.org/fx.

TriMet’s Tilikum Crossing, Washington Park MAX station serve up wonder while speeding up transit

They are some of the region’s most spectacular architectural landmarks, and they can’t be reached by car. TriMet’s Tilikum Crossing, Bridge of the People and the underground Washington Park MAX Station are awesome achievements in transportation that were built to be experienced by transit. These brilliant structures are more than beautiful, they are integral parts of our regional transit system. They are where form meets function, giving buses, trains and the people who ride them an advantage–a faster, more reliable ride, with a one-of-a-kind view. 

We are moving another bus line to the car-free Tilikum Crossing as part of the Forward Together Service Improvements that go into effect Sunday, Aug. 27. In the meantime, we’re continuing progress on “A Better Red,” a project that benefits from the dedicated right-of-way of the Robertson Tunnel. The tunnel was created as part of the Westside MAX Project, which extended MAX Blue Line west of Downtown Portland to Beaverton and Hillsboro. MAX Red Line trains would later share the track. Today, both lines serve the Washington Park MAX Station–-the deepest transit station in North America. 

Tilikum Crossing improves transit service

Take TriMet to experience the towering light and splendor of the Tilikum Crossing, a first-of-its-kind crossing of the Willamette, accessible only by transit, by bike, mobility device or foot. Completed in 2015 as part of the Portland-Milwaukie Light Rail project, Tilikum Crossing was the first bridge of its kind in the United States. The four-pier, cable-stayed-type bridge rises 78 feet above the Willamette River, with twin towers that soar another 180 feet into the sky! The bridge opened as the first new span across the Willamette since the Fremont Bridge in 1973. 

TriMet will move Line 19-Woodstock/Glisan to the Tilikum Crossing as part of Forward Together, to help avoid delays caused by traffic congestion on the neighboring Ross Island Bridge. And that’s not all. We’re improving service so that Line 19 buses arrive every 30 minutes for more hours of the day, every day. And, we’re adjusting the route in Southeast Portland through the Eastmoreland neighborhood. Buses will no longer travel on Southeast Rex Street or 32nd Avenue, to speed up travel time.

The changes coming to Line 19 are part of the first large package of updates that TriMet will roll out with Forward Together, a sweeping overhaul of transit service that we took on coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic. Forward Together is focused on equity and will make it easier for more people to connect with opportunities throughout the region. It moves some service from areas with low ridership and higher incomes to those where there are more people with lower incomes, who rely on transit to connect with opportunities throughout our region.

Additional improvements include upgrading Line 54-Beaverton-Hillsdale Highway to Frequent Service and adding buses on lines 8, 15, 35, 43, 56, 44, 70, 75 and 94 to increase the hours of day, frequency and days of the week when our service is convenient, robust and reliable.

The Forward Together plan moves buses to where they’re most needed and most likely to be used. As a result, we are reallocating some of our services. We are discontinuing lines 61, 64, 65, 66 and 68 due to low ridership. The limited, commuter-hours service will be replaced by improvements on lines 43, 54 and 56 and the current service on lines 8, 9 and MAX. Line 36-South Shore will also be retired due to very low use.

About 30% of our bus lines will see some sort of change with this package of improvements, and we ask all riders to visit trimet.org and plan a trip for Aug. 27 or later, to see how to adjust their travel after the changes take effect. 

A Better Red work continues

We’re rolling out Forward Together as A Better Red—our MAX Red Line extension and reliability project continues. Less than two months remain in our ongoing, 126-day disruption required for the current phase of the project. The work includes the replacement of the Portland Airport MAX Station and the installation of a second track along the alignment between the airport and Gateway Transit Center. During the project, shuttles are serving MAX stations between PDX and Gateway, running about every 15 minutes throughout most of the day. 

When the work is completed in 2024, the MAX Red Line will extend to 10 additional stations into Hillsboro. The entire MAX system will benefit from the track improvements, resulting in more reliable light rail service across the region.

Transit tunnel moves MAX trains past traffic

MAX Blue and Red lines benefit from another architectural wonder: the Washington Park MAX Station. At 260 feet underground, it’s the deepest transit station in North America, sitting some 90 feet further below ground than any station in New York City’s famed subway system. 

Located within Portland’s West Hills, the station serves as a gateway to Washington Park and some of the region’s most beloved treasures, including the Oregon Zoo. It’s a one-of-a-kind stop along our 60-mile light rail system. Because of its underground location, the Washington Park MAX Station stays a cool 50-55 degrees year-round. Riders coming in from a warm day relish the rush of cool air as trains arrive after traveling 55 miles per hour through the underground tube. A geological timeline—created from a drilling core sample—runs along the platform, highlighting historical milestones. The walls of the tunnel are awash with colorful vinyl panels that capture the natural beauty of the Washington Park experience. 

Experienced best by transit

Like Tilikum Crossing, the Washington Park MAX Station was built to support the region’s transit system. These architectural wonders make riding faster and more convenient by giving transit vehicles opportunities to move past traffic, maintain speed and avoid delays. Each was a first of its kind–the Tilikum Crossing, as the nation’s longest car-free bridge and the Washington Park MAX station, the nation’s deepest. And neither can be experienced by car. TriMet invites you to take in the awe the next you ride. Visit trimet.org and plan a trip.

Resuming Aug. 28, the transit center elevator will provide access only to riders with valid fare

TriMet is entering the next phase of an elevator safety and reliability project, intended to cut down on misuse and the need for unplanned repairs. Resuming Aug. 28, the elevator at Hollywood/NE 42nd Ave Transit Center will only be accessible to riders with a valid fare. While there will be no charge to use the elevator, riders will need to tap their fare payment against a reader to the right of the elevator door for it to open. Riders on the platform level will also need to tap the reader for the elevator to take them to the top of the skybridge.

Earlier this summer, TriMet conducted a successful four-week trial run of the system. It helped prevent damage and reduced elevator outages. Our goal is to keep elevators as clean and reliable as possible for riders, to improve the customer experience. The Hollywood elevator will be a work in progress as we fine-tune how the access system works. The aim is to use what we’ve learned at this elevator as we look to improve other elevators in our system in the future.

“Access control tools, like the ones we’re using, give us options for all kinds of different things into the future,” TriMet Executive Director of Safety and Security Andrew Wilson said. “I think this is an important piece for us, having built a very open system, just to make sure that it’s accessible.”

Elevator access

At the Hollywood/NE 42nd Ave Transit Center, card readers used to access the elevator will be black but look similar to our Hop Fastpass readers. It’s important to remember that unlike Hop readers, the elevator’s card readers do not collect fare. Riders will need to tap another time, against a green Hop reader before boarding. Signs will also be posted near the elevator, reminding riders to tap at the elevator card reader for the doors to open.

Accessing the elevator will work with any of our traditional forms of fare:

• Plastic Hop card
• Hop ticket from a ticket vending machine
• Contactless credit/debit card
• Phone (with mobile wallet or digital Hop Fastpass enabled).

Not only is Hop Fastpass a convenient way to open the elevator, it continues to be TriMet’s best way to pay fare, allowing riders to tap, board and save, all at the same time. With Hop, riders never have to worry about overpaying, thanks to daily and monthly fare capping. Once the equivalent of a monthly pass—$100 for adult fare or $28 for those in our reduced-fare Honored Citizen program—is reached, there’s no charge again until the next month. Additional benefits of Hop include lost-card protection and auto reloading.

While the paper tickets dispensed by the ticket vending machines contain a chip inside and can be tapped against readers, paper tickets printed out on buses do not. TriMet security staff will be stationed at the transit center to help riders with those tickets access the elevator when needed.

Reliability and safety improvements

TriMet is committed to improving reliability, efficiency and the customer experience across our transit system. This not only includes buses and trains, but other services and amenities that help riders get around. Due to their public accessibility, misuse of the elevators can damage equipment, leading to unplanned outages. These outages have the greatest impact on riders who need elevators the most. TriMet will be using feedback from our Committee on Accessible Transportation to guide the project forward to help it further meet the needs of people with disabilities. CAT members have signaled their support of the project, including the height and placement of the card readers to the right of the elevator doors.

“Our goal is to make this the most accessible system in the country, and to make it accessible to everybody and user friendly,” Committee on Accessible Transportation Chair Jan Campbell said. “And I think working directly with users, the Committee on Accessible Transportation, you’re actually meeting with the users, so we can be at the very beginning of the design and the improvements.”

By working to ensure that those who are using the elevators are doing so to get to and from MAX trains, we hope to cut down on maintenance-related delays and disruptions and make the riding experience safer, more reliable and welcoming. For more information about the elevator access project, go to trimet.org/elevatoraccess. You can also sign up for Service Alerts to stay in the loop as we work toward adding card readers at other elevators in the future.

With more work to come, TriMet hits mid-point on schedule to reopen MAX Red Line Oct. 22

TriMet’s four-month-long disruption for “A Better Red” is approaching the halfway mark on schedule. In the past two months, crews have been busy with significant demolition and construction of the MAX system between the Gateway Transit Center and Portland International Airport. The 126-day disruption, which began June 18, is allowing crews to completely replace the Portland International Airport MAX station and install a second track along the alignment, between the new station and Air Cargo Road.

Since the MAX Red Line opened in 2001, this three-quarters-of-a-mile stretch has been served by one track, supporting both PDX’s inbound and outbound trains. Installation of the second track also involves upgrading all the components that support trains, such as rail crossings, signals, rail crossovers and the overhead contact wires, as well as the poles and power systems that support them. This will complete the Red Line’s double trackway between PDX and Mt. Hood MAX stations, improving efficiency by allowing trains to move past each other in both directions at once. 

During the project, shuttle buses have been serving MAX stations between PDX and Gateway Transit Center, running about every 15 minutes throughout most of the day. Due to the length of the shutdown, Customer Service representatives and additional Ride Guides have been stationed at PDX at times to help riders make their shuttle bus connections. This phase of the Better Red project is expected to finish this fall, with MAX Red Line trains returning to regular service on Sunday, Oct. 22.

New PDX station takes off

The Portland International Airport MAX Station as we knew it is no more. It was demolished during the first few weeks of the disruption to make room for the new station, designed with two parallel tracks in mind. Construction recently began on the new station, with some of the concrete foundations being formed.

The new station will be a little longer to better accommodate trains. It will also be rectangular —200 feet long and 18 feet wide—for improved train movement and rider comfort. The previous station was triangular-shaped, ending at a point where the two tracks on both sides of the platform intersected into one. This made the former platform unique among our stations. Uniformity has its upside, as not only will the new platform be more spacious end-to-end, but it will also feature two shelters, similar to those along the MAX Orange Line, stretched to provide cover across nearly the entire station. The new station will open once the project completes in October.

Major demolition, significant construction

In addition to the new MAX station, crews have been working to reconstruct the existing track between Air Cargo Road and PDX. Previously, this was the only track serving the area, with trains using it to travel in both directions. Crews have also made significant progress on the new track between Air Cargo Road and PDX, including the construction of a second at-grade crossing.

Crews are also working on the construction of a new multi-use path for bikes and pedestrians, which will also run between Air Cargo Road and PDX.

A Better Red

TriMet’s A Better Red MAX Extension and Reliability Project will extend the MAX Red Line 10 stations west, from Beaverton Transit Center to Fair Complex/Hillsboro Airport. It’s also adding another track and additional infrastructure near Gateway Transit Center and Portland International Airport to help keep trains moving throughout the MAX system more reliably. The project has been ongoing since September 2021, with occasional disruptions necessary to allow for major construction to take place in the trackway. Now more than 70% completed, the project is expected to be closed out in the summer of 2024.

With the Better Red project covering parts the MAX Red Line from PDX to Hillsboro, crews have been working at multiple locations at once to finish the multi-phased project. Much of the work has taken place near the Gateway Transit Center, including the installation of new track and track components along with the construction of new MAX bridges. A new station for westbound trains will also be constructed just north of the Gateway Transit Center.

In Washington County, crews at Fair Complex/Hillsboro Airport are working on finishing the interior of the new operator building and constructing a walkway for TriMet operators. The completed facility will have bathrooms, a small meal area and a work station. Construction on the building and walkway is expected to wrap up within the next couple months and be ready for operators’ use when MAX Red Line service is extended to Hillsboro next year.

We appreciate our riders’ patience as we continue making progress on this major project and work to get riders around the construction. For more information, go to trimet.org/bettered. 

Roll out of Forward Together improvements starting Sunday, Aug. 27, to bring increased frequency, more hours and days of service on multiple bus lines; route changes to speed up service; schedule updates to keep buses on time; reduced or discontinued service on some lesser used, low-ridership bus lines

Here we go! Starting Sunday, Aug. 27, TriMet will expand and improve bus service, as we implement the first major package of changes from our Forward Together service concept. The plan, which was developed in partnership with the community as travel changed during the COVID-19 pandemic, includes a sweeping overhaul of transit service for our tri-county service area. Forward Together is focused on equity and will make it easier for more people to connect with opportunities throughout the region. It moves some service from areas with low ridership and higher incomes to those where there are more people with lower incomes, who rely on transit to make important daily connections – like getting to work, school, health care and other services.

In this first bulk delivery of improvements and adjustments, we’re expanding our Frequent Service network and making it easier and more convenient to ride, with buses arriving more often, at more times and on more days. However, with limited human and financial resources, these improvements come with trade-offs. Some lesser-used bus lines will be discontinued, while others will be streamlined to reduce duplication, move service closer to those who need it most and make our transit system work more effectively for everyone.

More buses at more times on more lines and days of the week

TriMet’s Frequent Service buses and MAX lines arrive every 15 minutes or better, for most of the day, every day. We’re expanding upon our existing network, with more service for Line 54-Beaverton Hillsdale Hwy. Previously, the popular bus line combined with Line 56-Scholls Ferry Road to provide 15-minute service. Starting Aug. 27, we’re adding buses to Line 54, to keep them arriving about every 15 minutes, every day of the week.

You can also look for more buses arriving more often or for more hours of the day, or route adjustments or schedule changes to keep buses on time on the following lines:

• Line 8-Jackson Park/NE 15th: We’re increasing weekday service to Marquam Hill during the morning and afternoon commute.
• Line 15-Belmont/NW 23rd: We’re improving the existing Frequent Service so that buses on NW 23rd arrive every 15 minutes starting at 9 a.m. on Saturdays and Sundays.
• Line 19-Woodstock/Glisan: We’re improving service with buses arriving every 30 minutes for more hours of the day, every day. We’re also changing the route, moving the line from the Ross Island Bridge to Tilikum Crossing to avoid auto traffic. And, we’re adjusting the route in Southeast Portland through the Eastmoreland neighborhood. Buses will no longer travel on Southeast Rex Street or 32nd Avenue, to speed up travel time.
• Line 35-Macadam/Greeley: We’re improving Line 35 service with buses arriving every 30 minutes for more hours of the day, every day. We’re also changing the route with buses between Johns Landing and Lake Oswego alternating between Highway 43/Riverside (35R-Macadam/Riverside) and Taylors Ferry and Terwilliger Blvd (35T-Macadam/Terwilliger) to serve Lewis & Clark College and South Burlingame. 
• Line 44-Capitol Hwy/Mocks Crest: We’re increasing weekday morning service in Southwest Portland to help riders connect with Lines 43 and 56 and Marquam Hill. 
• Line 70-12th/NE 33rd Ave: We’re increasing evening service to NE 33rd Ave on weekends.
• Line 75-Cesar Chavez/Lombard: We’re extending evening service to Milwaukie on weekends. We’re also moving lines 75 and 77-Broadway/Halsey out of Hollywood/NE 42nd Ave Transit Center due to construction. Buses will serve temporary stops on Northeast 42nd, Broadway and Halsey.
• Line 94-Pacific Hwy/Sherwood: We’re improving Line 94 service between Tigard and Sherwood with buses arriving every 20 minutes for more hours of the day, every day. We’re also changing the route by removing Line 94 service between Tigard and Portland. Line 12-Barbur/Sandy Blvd will continue to serve that area.

Spreading service where it’s needed most

The Forward Together plan aims to put buses where they’re most needed and most likely to be used. As a result, we are reallocating and realigning some of our services. This brings major changes for riders who use TriMet to connect with OHSU, Doernbecher Children’s Hospital, Portland VA Medical Center and other healthcare facilities on Marquam Hill. 

We are discontinuing several bus lines that provided service to Marquam Hill due to low ridership. Lines 61-Marquam Hill/Beaverton, 64-Marquam Hill/Tigard, 65-Marquam Hill/Barbur Blvd, 66-Marquam Hill/Hollywood and 68-Marquam Hill/Collins Circle will be retired. These weekday-only bus lines primarily offered service during the morning and afternoon commutes and were experiencing lower-than-expected ridership, even before the COVID-19 pandemic. 

With Forward Together, the service that was dedicated to those low-ridership lines will be redistributed to nearby lines that offer more service throughout the day and week. This will help more people get to and from Marquam Hill, no matter when they need to be there. The service will be replaced by changes to service on lines 43, 54 and 56 and current service on lines 8, 9 and MAX, connecting with the Portland Aerial Tram. As Line 54 moves to Frequent Service, we will also make improvements to lines 43 and 56:

• Line 43-Taylors Ferry: We’re adding buses to Line 43 so that riders will see arrivals every 30 minutes. Line 43 will provide service between the Hillsdale neighborhood and OHSU. Riders should also know that we are changing the route of Line 43 between Tigard and OHSU. We’re moving buses off of South Corbett, as there are additional transit options nearby. Lines 12-Barbur/Sandy Blvd, 35-Macadam/Greeley and 99-Macadam/McLoughlin offer service nearby.  
• Line 56-Scholls Ferry Rd: We’re improving service on Line 56 with buses arriving every 30 minutes for more hours of the day, every day. When combined with Line 43, this change will bring 15-minute service between Hillsdale and OHSU. We’re also adjusting the route of Line 56 to OHSU, discontinuing service on Southwest Barbur Boulevard, where there’s service nearby on lines 12 and 44-Capitol Hwy/Mocks Crest. 

Additional adjustments

• Line 36-South Shore: We are discontinuing Line 36 due to low ridership.
• Line 39-Lewis & Clark: We are reducing weekday service due to focus on peak travel times for students at Ida B. Wells High School. We’re also extending the route to serve the Arnold Creek neighborhood and Barbur Transit Center, moving it off of Palatine Hill Road.
• Line 51-Vista: We’re extending Line 51 service on Dosch Road to Wells High School and Southwest Barbur and Bertha. Line 51 will no longer travel to Southwest 2nd but rather end at Goose Hollow, with service to Lincoln High School.
• Line 55-Hamilton: We’re reducing service on Line 55 due to low ridership and available service nearby on Beaverton-Hillsdale Highway. The remaining buses will be timed to serve Wells High School students.
• Line 99-Macadam/McLoughlin: We’re simplifying the route and moving buses to South Moody through the South Waterfront to help reduce delays.

More improvements

• Line 17-Holgate/Broadway: We’re adjusting the route of Line 17 to improve transfers and help keep buses on time, by moving the end of the line for eastbound travel to Southeast 122nd Avenue and Holgate Boulevard. Riders continuing to Southeast 136th can board Line 17 buses to Portland City Center to complete their trip.
• Line 44-Capitol Hwy/Mocks Crest and Line 78-Denney/Kerr Pkwy: We are restoring weekend service to PCC Sylvania.
• Tigard Transit Center: We’re reorganizing bus stops to accommodate more service at Tigard Transit Center. Riders of lines 43, 64, 76, 78 and 94 can expect to see changes.

Check the schedule and plan your trip

In addition to increasing service, we’re also adjusting schedules on about 30% of our bus lines. By adding or removing time from the schedule in response to traffic patterns, we can help keep buses on time. We’re planning adjustments of more than three minutes, to FX2-Division and Line 32-Oatfield. 

We encourage all riders to visit trimet.org by Sunday, Aug. 27, and use the online trip planner to see how your travel will change. Some lines will see smaller adjustments to help riders make transfers and give operators breaks.

Forward Together

Our Forward Together Service Concept provides a roadmap for increasing service by more than 30% in the coming years. Forward Together focuses on transportation priorities defined by our community: increasing transit ridership and improving connections to destinations for people with low and limited incomes. 

We began adopting proposals from the Forward Together Service Concept in May, as we added back service hours that were reduced in 2020 when COVID-19 put the brakes on the largest bus service expansion in our history. We continue our work to overcome a historic operator staffing shortage and now have operators in place to continue adding back service. Watch for more improvements from the Forward Together plan in the years ahead, as provided by adequate staffing and financial resources. 

TriMet Administrative Headquarters moves to One Main Place, contributing to Downtown Portland’s post-pandemic revitalization with a 10-year lease of 95,000 square feet of office space to accommodate hundreds of employees 

TriMet has a new destination in Downtown Portland: One Main Place! We’ve moved our administrative headquarters to 101 Southwest Main Street, demonstrating a long-standing and unwavering commitment to the city’s resilience and Downtown Portland’s post-pandemic revival. The lease includes 95,000 square feet of space within the 20-story office tower.

The location of One Main Place, at Southwest 1st Avenue and Main Street, retains TriMet’s administrative presence in the heart of the city, where 39% of our buses and trains travel daily. Throughout our 50+ year history, Downtown Portland has been a vital connection point, where people from communities throughout our 533-square-mile service area come together, to work, shop and play!

“For as long as TriMet has existed, we’ve been part of Downtown Portland, and we’re not going anywhere,” said TriMet General Manager Sam Desue Jr. “During the darkest days of the pandemic, our buses and trains were some of the only vehicles on those streets. We never stopped, and our commitment to revitalizing the heart of our city will never fade. With 11 years to go on our lease at One Main Place and increasing optimism for the future, we are here for Portland. We are here to stay.”

One Main Place includes a lobby with shared common space. TriMet occupies six floors of the building; our reception area is on the seventh floor. Workgroups that report regularly to One Main Place include Engineering, Construction and Planning; Facilities Management; Finance, Labor Relations and Human Resources; Legal Services; Public Affairs; and Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Access. The General Manager, Chief Operating Officer and members of the executive leadership team also have offices at One Main Place.

The building is located near the Hawthorne Bridgehead. One of the city’s first Rose Lanes, installed in 2019 to help speed up buses traveling into downtown, leads to a bus stop right outside. Lines 6-ML King Jr Blvd, 10-Harold and 14-Hawthorne arrive there regularly each day. Hundreds of buses can be accessed on the Portland Transit Mall, just blocks away on Southwest 5th and 6th avenues. All five MAX lines also travel to Downtown Portland, and our Customer Support Center is located at Pioneer Courthouse Square.

One Main Place is situated in a vibrant section of Downtown Portland, close to coffee shops, restaurants and cafes that bustle with business during the work day, at times resulting in lines out the front door! The location provides easy access to services and shopping. In addition, it is located within walking distance of parks, fountains and the Willamette River. Portland’s Wednesday Farmers Market at Shemanski Park is a popular lunchtime destination.

Lease terms leverage advantageous economic conditions

When TriMet negotiated terms for the lease agreement at One Main Place in late 2021, it represented the largest new commercial lease agreement in the state of Oregon. The agency’s total investment over the 11-year term of the lease is about $33 million, a total that Board member Thomas Kim described as a “heck of a deal,” when the Board approved the terms in early 2022. We were also able to secure advantageous terms for the lease, as the region grappled with the economic realities of the COVID-19 pandemic, including a central city with a growing inventory of vacant office space. TriMet’s real estate broker, Cushman & Wakefield, estimates Downtown Portland’s vacancy rate was 20%, at that time.

TriMet previously leased more than 50,000 square feet of administrative office at Harrison Square, an office building about a half mile south of One Main Place. The 10-year agreement for that property expired in June. Should TriMet have stayed, the agency would have been responsible for a much larger financial obligation under a longer lease term. It was projected at $44.2 million, compared to $33 million at One Main Place. 

We reviewed 27 potential locations before selecting One Main Place. The building checked many of the boxes in our search criteria, including a location that is well-served by transit, near a vibrant neighborhood and is seismically resilient. 

A new home away from home, for our administrative employees

About 275 people, nearly half of TriMet’s 600 non-union employees, will report to One Main Place at least one day per week under the revised telework policy that brought administrative workers back to the office in January 2023. Having TriMet staff report to work in person boosts ridership, as many use transit and forms of active transportation, such as biking, to get to the office. While the building provides free bike parking to our employees, we do not have space for employees to park personal vehicles. There is limited access for agency-owned vehicles that are used for work purposes.  

Fare increase revenue dedicated to service

Earlier this year, the TriMet Board of Directors approved the agency’s first increase in Adult fare in more than a decade. It takes effect in January 2024. One hundred percent of the revenue that TriMet collects from fares is dedicated to the maintenance and operation of our transit service. None of the funds will be directed toward the lease at One Main Place. Annual payments for the lease at One Main Place are included in TriMet’s annual budget for leased facilities.

American Public Transportation Association conferred TriMet with its highest honors for security and safety, acknowledging TriMet’s ongoing improvements to the wellbeing of our customers and the community

TriMet’s Board of Directors has approved continuing and expanding TriMet’s Safety Response Team, recognized for making a positive impact on the community and in the transit industry. The Board voted on Wednesday, July 26, 2023, to approve a new contract with Portland Patrol Inc. (PPI), the company that provides members for the Safety Response Team. TriMet’s Safety Response Team model, first introduced as a pilot in 2021, is one of two industry-leading advances in transit safety and security that led to top honors from the American Public Transportation Association (APTA) earlier this year. The Safety Response Team discourages inappropriate and illegal behavior with an emphasis on riders in need, conducting social service outreach and providing referrals for housing and mental health services.

APTA Rail Security Gold Award highlights Safety Response Team, other security initiatives

TriMet has reimagined public safety and security on transit, for which the Safety Response Team plays a critical role. Our Reimagining Public Safety and Security on Transit efforts began in 2020, following candid conversations around racial injustice. TriMet earmarked nearly $2 million to kick start initiatives to identify agency-wide improvements to safety, security and the customer experience.

By 2023, our efforts to reimagine safety and security merged into an approach that emphasizes community-driven security solutions, using teams spread across TriMet’s system. Traditional security and police continue to operate on TriMet, but our new efforts call for a more holistic approach, where specialized teams act on their strengths, freeing up the Transit Police Division to respond to crimes and major incidents. Among the nearly 33,000 people the Safety Response Team has connected with, 4,582 have been welfare checks and 1,372 have been referrals to social services, including emergency and long-term shelters, addiction and mental health services, and immigration and refugee services.

“By taking a holistic approach to public safety on our system, TriMet has dramatically increased our outreach efforts, helping passengers in need across our system while making it more inviting for everyone to get on a bus, MAX or WES train,” said Andrew Wilson, Executive Director of Safety & Security for TriMet.

Safety and security are among the top issues for our riders, according to TriMet surveys. Through our reimagining process, we gathered feedback from more than 13,000 riders, frontline employees and community members across 14 languages and cultural communities. We also established a blue ribbon panel of local and national experts—our Transit Public Safety Advisory Committee—to advise us on national best practices for transit security, equity and community engagement in safety and security. By listening to community partners, experts and our riders, we’ve grown our roster of security teams over the past three years and adapted to the new challenges facing all metropolitan transit agencies.

TriMet’s reimagined security efforts helped us to diversify our security teams, using unarmed, non-police security and TriMet code enforcement personnel in most situations. This has given TriMet more flexibility with staffing and identifying the best teams needed to address incidents on our system.

Learn more about our security teams:

Safety Response Team

Customer Safety Supervisors

Customer Safety Officers

Transit Security Officers

Transit Police Division Officers

For a complete list of the teams working on TriMet’s system, go to trimet.org/personnel.

Camera-aided investigations

APTA honored TriMet with a Rail Security Gold Award not only for our diversified security teams but also for our camera-aided deployment of personnel. TriMet’s extensive camera network has more than 3,000 cameras on our light rail system, with roughly half upgraded in the past three years. This improved technology allows for monitoring the system in real time, to verify reported incidents and deploy the appropriate resources for improved outcomes. The security camera network features state-of-the-art cameras that TriMet personnel can remotely control to pan, tilt and zoom. They also record footage of incidents on or near our system and assisted our law enforcement partners apprehend suspects in 49 homicide investigations and 57 shooting cases in 2022.  It’s one more way to upgrade response times and curb unwanted and illegal behavior, and they come in addition to new violence reduction strategies that have more efficiently incorporated law enforcement resources.

In 2022, the Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO), which oversees TriMet’s Transit Police Division (TPD), developed a violence reduction strategy called the Enhanced Public Safety Initiative. The missions focus on disrupting criminal activity, recovering stolen property and seizing illegal firearms. The missions rely on the Safety Response Team and others for support. Transit Police and partner law enforcement agencies address criminal activity with the shared goal of making communities safer by getting criminals and illegal firearms off the streets. Among other outcomes, these missions resulted in 93 arrests, 233 warnings, 25 citations and 74 exclusions from TriMet.

“It’s through strong partnerships and collaborative approaches, such as this enhanced initiative, that help us achieve our collective goal of improving safety within our community,” Multnomah County Sheriff Nicole Morrisey O’Donnell said. “I am proud to lead the public safety work of the Sheriff’s Office, alongside TriMet, to support the transit system and make our neighborhoods around them safer and stronger.”

Calls for police services dropped in 2022 by 14% over the prior year. While these include both criminal and non-criminal calls, they represent a decrease that has allowed the Transit Police Division to continue employing its community policing model.  This came as the Safety Response Team also increased its presence to handle situations that shouldn’t require police intervention. If they do run across a dangerous situation, they have a direct line to the police, however.

Safer rail crossings

APTA also recognized TriMet’s innovative approach to crossing safety with its Rail Safety Gold Award. Safety is a core principle in everything TriMet does, influencing all of our decisions. Transit agencies across the world have to contend with unsafe behavior around their buses, trains and trackways, and TriMet is no different. We work continuously on making our rail crossings safer, often tapping into emerging technology to better understand human behavior around our tracks.

APTA recognized TriMet’s ongoing project to increase safety at rail grade crossings using video analytic data to inform a Risk Ranking Tool that will help prioritize crossing improvements. In partnership with the Federal Transit Administration (FTA), the new approach uses deep-learning software to improve the accuracy of data over time and better understand human behavior around our tracks. The project is cataloging pedestrian, motorized and non-motorized vehicle traffic counts, which are then compared with infrastructure, operating environment and reported incident data. The goal is to identify and categorize rail crossings, using a Risk Ranking Tool, to prioritize the most effective safety enhancements. The project is scheduled to last through 2025. The project was made possible through a cooperative agreement with the FTA.

Safety and security innovations

With a reimagined approach to security and new groups like the Safety Response Team connecting with riders, TriMet continues to adapt to the needs of the public and be an example for transit agencies across the country. Throughout the U.S., transit agencies and the communities they serve are focused on safety and security amid new challenges. TriMet has adapted, and, as we look to the future, we plan to continue innovating and applying security and safety resources effectively as we work to make our system a safe and welcoming place for everyone.

Ozzie Gonzalez, Dr. LaVerne Lewis and Kathy Wai will lead the governing body for Oregon’s largest transit agency through June 2025

The most diverse Board of Directors in TriMet history has achieved another first: They have selected the most diverse trio of officers to lead the organization’s governing body. The board elected Ozzie Gonzalez as President, Dr. LaVerne Lewis as Vice President, and Kathy Wai as Secretary/Treasurer. The board elects officers every two years, keeping them in their new roles through June 2025. 

“Inclusion, diversity and equity are fundamental values which guide everything we do at TriMet,” said General Manager Sam Desue Jr. “I am confident that the lived experience of these Board members as people of color will bring a new level of representation for our riders and the greater community, ensuring confidence that TriMet’s financial decisions are being made with everyone’s needs in mind. Just as all are welcome on our transit system, these diverse voices and perspectives are welcome in the ranks of the TriMet Board’s leadership roles.”

TriMet thanks former Board President Dr. Linda Simmons and Vice President Lori Irish-Bauman for the years of volunteer service they shared with the Board. In 2021, Dr. Simmons also made history as the first woman to serve as TriMet Board President.

Ozzie Gonzalez – President

Osvaldo “Ozzie” Gonzalez is TriMet’s first Latino Board President. He has served on the Board since 2018. Gonzalez lives in and represents District 2, which covers Northwest and parts of Southwest Portland. 

“It’s wonderful to see that we have arrived at a slate of Board Officers who not only represent the geography of the TriMet district, but who represent a diversity of thought, of age, of cultural upbringing, and professional specialty,” Gonzalez said. “I look forward to working with [my fellow officers] and serving the public through our collective commitment to strengthening the value public transit will provide the residents of our region.”

Gonzalez works as an urban ecologist. His professional background includes architecture, planning, policy and design of urban spaces. 

Dr.  LaVerne Lewis – Vice President

Dr. LaVerne Lewis is TriMet’s second African American Vice President and the first Black woman to serve in the role. She joined the TriMet Board of Directors in 2021 and represents District 6: East Multnomah County. 

“As the first appointed African American woman to the TriMet Board, I am proud to represent a transit agency as an officer, which touches a historic moment in my heart, when my family celebrated the news of the end of the Montgomery bus boycotts,”Dr. Lewis said. “Because of the valiant sacrifices of others, I not only sit anywhere on the bus but also serve in leadership on the TriMet Board of Directors, sworn to bring my professional best as a public servant to all.”

Dr. Lewis has extensive experience in business, civil rights, criminal justice and education. She volunteers as a global humanitarian in communities worldwide.

Kathy Wai – Secretary/Treasurer

Kathy Wai was born in Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, in Southeast Asia, and she is TriMet’s first Secretary/Treasurer of Asian descent and the youngest to serve in the role. Wai lives in and represents District 7: Clackamas County, where she also serves on the North Clackamas School Board.

“I am proud to be part of a TriMet Board of Directors that can help advocate for our transit-dependent riders,” Wai said. “Safe, reliable transportation is vital to serving our rapidly growing and diverse region. As a Board member and now an officer who relied on transit for most of my life, I am committed to engaging with the community to ensure that all voices and perspectives are heard. As Treasurer, I will work hard to ensure that our budget is transparent, accountable and meets the needs of our communities.”

About the Board of Directors

Additional Board members who are people of color include Thomas Kim, who represents District 1: Washington County and Keith Edwards, who represents District 5: Northeast Portland. The Board is completed by Robert Kellogg, who represents District 3: Southwest Portland and Tyler Frisbee, who represents District 4: Southeast Portland. Kellogg and Frisbee are Governor Tina Kotek’s first appointments to the Board.

TriMet’s Board consists of seven Directors appointed by the governor of Oregon and serving as volunteers. The Board provides financial stewardship of TriMet’s annual budget, which totaled $1.8 billion for the 2024 Fiscal Year that began on July 1, 2023. In addition to fulfilling fiduciary responsibilities, Board members appoint the general manager, help set high-level agency policy, and implement legislation on transit operations. They also serve in liaison roles on special advisory groups and committees. For more information about the TriMet Board, visit trimet.org/board.

TriMet Board Business meetings are typically held once per month. The next meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, July 26.