About seven miles of the MAX Green Line route will be eliminated in two months—just one of 33 changes that the TriMet service lines will undergo beginning August 23 as the agency seeks to close a large budget shortfall.
Additional cuts may loom. TriMet, which runs the Portland area’s public transit system, says it aims to reduce operations by 10% in the next two years. As the agency trims down, close transit observers say service quality could erode for the long haul if policy makers don’t find new funding sources soon.
“This is managed decline,” says Chris Smith, transportation activist and former vice chair of the Portland Planning and Sustainability Commission. He adds, “The problem with cutting transit is it’s kind of a one-way ratchet to change people’s habits, and it takes a long time to change them back.”…