Taking action now to close $300 million budget gap will enable TriMet to continue providing safe and reliable public transit service to our region well into the future
Calling all community members: TriMet needs your help.
We are reducing our spending to close a $300 million annual budget gap. After years of rising costs and less money coming in from fares, TriMet has begun making administrative cuts that may include layoffs, but we also need to cut service to bring expenses in line with our revenue.
By taking action now, TriMet is making sure we have enough money to pay for the service we put on the streets and rails in the future. That means we can continue providing the vital transit service our riders rely on to get to jobs, schools, services and other destinations across our 533-square-mile service district.
On Nov. 30, 2025, and again on March 1, 2026, we will reduce how often buses arrive on a handful of lines. But larger cuts will be needed to reduce service by at least 10%. To help us shape the future of our transit service, we have launched an online survey and will be holding open houses in October.
The online survey, accessed through trimet.org/servicecuts, asks people to weigh in on several options for TriMet to cut service and save money.
Planned and possible service cuts
Starting on Nov. 30, TriMet will begin reducing how often buses arrive on a handful of lines during times when fewer people are riding.
Buses will arrive hourly after 9 p.m. on the following lines:
Additionally, on FX2-Division, buses will arrive every 24 to 35 minutes during early morning and nighttime hours. FX2 buses will continue arriving every 12 minutes between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m., every day of the week.
Similar frequency cutbacks are planned for March 2026 on a few more bus lines, ahead of deeper cuts in late 2026 and late 2027. Feedback received through the online survey and open houses will help TriMet shape our future service.
We’re asking people to weigh in on options that involve:
- Reducing how often buses or MAX trains arrive, all day or during specific hours
- Eliminating or reducing service during lower ridership times or in areas with fewer riders
- Removing lines that overlap with other service
- Ending support to other transit providers that connect with TriMet service
Reducing bus or MAX service would also cut service for some LIFT Paratransit riders. LIFT service covers all locations within three-quarters of a mile of bus and rail service and runs during the same hours as buses and MAX.
Have your say
TriMet’s Service Priorities Survey will stay open through Oct. 31, 2025. Feedback will help inform service proposals that we will share for another comment period in January/February 2026.
We’re also holding in-person and virtual open houses in October. Stop in to learn more and share your thoughts.
Virtual open houses
Via Zoom:
- 12-2 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 2 (English)
- 12-2 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 4 (Spanish)
- 5-7 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 7 (English)
- 5-7 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 8 (English, for older adults and people with disabilities)
- 5-7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 9 (Chinese, Korean, Russian, Somali and Vietnamese)
In-person open houses
Multilingual:
- 5-7 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 14, at the Rosewood Initiative, 14127 SE Stark St. in Portland (English, Spanish, Burmese, Dari and Rohingya)
- 5-7 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 15, at the Clackamas Community College Harmony Campus, 7738 SE Harmony Road, Rooms 120/130, in Milwaukie (English, Russian and Ukrainian)
- 5-7 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 21, at APANO, 8188 SE Division St. in Portland (English, Chinese/Cantonese and Vietnamese)
Bilingual (English/Spanish):
- 5-7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 16, at Fairview City Hall, 1300 N Village St. in Fairview
- 5-7 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 22, at the Shute Park Library, 775 SE 10th Ave. in Hillsboro
- 5-7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 23, at the Tualatin Public Library, 18878 SW Martinazzi Ave. in Tualatin
- 12-2 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 28, at the Portland Community College Cascade Campus, 705 N Killingsworth St. in Portland
- 12-2 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 29, at 2 World Trade Center, 121 SW Salmon St., Sky Bridge Terrace, in Portland
Learn more at trimet.org/servicecuts.
Why we’re doing this
TriMet must take steps to solve our projected $300 million budget deficit.
We know that whenever we reduce or remove service, riders are affected. Every bus and train we run serves a function: connecting riders with jobs, school, services and opportunities. Cutting service will make it harder for people to get where they need to go — especially the 35% of our riders who are transit-dependent. It also means more traffic congestion, less economic opportunity and more pollution.
But unless we take action now to reduce spending — including by cutting some transit service — TriMet will hit a “fiscal cliff” in the coming years. To avoid a worst-case scenario, we’re cutting our internal spending and cutting service to match our expenses with our revenues now. If we allow our budget gap to keep growing, we would be forced to make more drastic cuts in the future.
We are also working to increase revenues. The Oregon Legislature is currently considering a temporary increase in the employee payroll tax that helps fund transit. While any increase helps, that temporary increase would generate just a fraction of the revenue needed to address the budget challenges facing TriMet and other transit agencies throughout Oregon.