When TriMet announced the first round of service cuts last summer year they told us the worst was yet to come. Now that the second round has been announced, we get an even stronger taste of what they meant.
“With rising costs and less money coming in, we must reduce spending now to avoid more severe cuts down the road, which would affect many more riders,” reads a TriMet statement released today. The agency faces a $300 million budget gap due to rising inflation, low ridership numbers and other factors.
One of the highest profile cuts is the elimination of about half of the MAX Green Line. The line, which opened in 2009, currently runs from the Clackamas Town Center, north to the Gateway Transit Center in Northeast Portland, and then along I-84 into downtown. Starting in August of this year, the line will only service stops between Clackamas Town Center and Gateway. All east-west travel on the line will be cut. Other cuts include changes to 35 bus lines (including the elimination of all bus service in south Gresham; along Stafford and Salamo roads in West Linn; and Tualatin-Sherwood Road in Tualatin)…