Metropolitan Area Express (Portland, Oregon)
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Metropolitan Area Express (MAX) is a light rail system in the Portland, Oregon metropolitan area. It is operated by TriMet and currently has three lines: Blue, Red and Yellow, with Green and Orange planned.
In the central city, as well as in central Hillsboro, MAX trains run in reserved lanes on surface streets, unlike the Portland Streetcar, which runs in mixed traffic. Outside the central city MAX runs primarily its own right-of-way fully separated from traffic.
Some track segments are controlled by traffic signals at intersections, including the original segment along East Burnside Street and the newest segment along Interstate Ave. Other segments have gated crossings to give trains the right-of-way. One three mile (4.8 km) section operates as a subway below Washington Park. While this section has only one station, it is 260 feet (79 m) below ground-level.
Because of Portland's 200-foot (61 m) downtown blocks, trains operate with only one or two cars. The MAX cars are about 90 feet (27.5 m) long, so a stopped train consisting of more than two cars would block intersections. Blue Line trains are typically two cars long. Trains on the Yellow and Red Line run in both one and two car configurations.
Lines
There are currently three MAX lines, with two lines proposed. In the following table, the Blue Line is broken into two rows due to its construction history.
¤ Lengths shown include only new track built; Red and Yellow line trains usually share a segment with Eastside MAX and the Red Line also shares a segment with the Westside MAX as far west as Beaverton. The Orange Line may be an extension of the Yellow Line, however recent media reports and [maps] have indicated that this will be a separate line.
Portland MAX Light Rail Lines Name Nickname Outlying terminus Opened Length ¤ Stops Blue
LineBanfield-Burnside
(Eastside)Cleveland Ave.
(Gresham)September 5, 1986 15 mi
(24 km)30 Blue
LineWestside Hatfield Government Center
(Hillsboro)September 12, 1998 (0.5-mile, 2-stop segment to Kings Hill-SW Salmon Street opened on August 29, 1997) 18 mi
(29 km)20 Red
LineAirport Airport September 10, 2001 5.5 mi
(8.9 km)4 Yellow
LineInterstate Expo Center May 1, 2004 5.8 mi
(9.3 km)10 Current totals 44.3 mi
(71.3 km)63 Green
LineI-205
(Clackamas)Clackamas Town Center
(Clackamas)September 2009
(proposed-in final design)6.5 mi
(10.5 km)8 Green
LinePortland Mall Portland State University September 2009
(proposed-in final design)1.8 mi
(2.9 km)6 Orange
LineMilwaukie Lake Road
(Milwaukie)To be
determined6.3 mi
(10.1 km)11 Projected totals 58.9 mi
(94.3 km)88
The central station is at Pioneer Courthouse Square, which also is centrally located in Fareless Square, a section in and around downtown Portland in which all MAX, TriMet bus, and Portland Streetcar transit rides are free.
Blue Line trains run every 10 minutes (15 minutes late nights and Sundays). Red Line and Yellow Line trains run every 15 minutes. Actual schedules vary by location and time of day. At many stations a live readerboard shows the destination and time-to-arrival of the next several trains.
In addition to regular MAX service, the Portland Vintage Trolley runs along the MAX line between the Galleria/Library stations and Lloyd Center.
Types of train cars
There are currently three models of MAX cars.
The original Type 1 cars were manufactured by Bombardier Corporation and featured a raised floor with steps at the doors. The interior design was similar to that of a bus.
With the partial opening of Westside MAX in 1997, new Type 2 cars made by Siemens were introduced. These cars have a low-floor design, a first in North America, digital readerboards, and open floor plan. The floor is nearly level with the platforms, and time-consuming wheelchair lifts were replaced with small ramps called 'bridge plates'. Some of the later models have had automatic passenger counters retrofitted; in these models, they are on the floor of the doorways.
Type 3 cars generally are identical to the Type 2 cars in design, but have TriMet's new paint scheme and some feature improvements. They were introduced when the Yellow Line opened in 2004, and include automatic passenger counters which are located above the doorways using photoelectric sensors.
The MAX Green Line is planned to be served by 21 new Type 4 cars. They will feature a more streamlined design than previous models, offer larger windows and more seating.
Portland MAX Light Rail Cars Designation Car numbers Manufacturer First used Capacity # in fleet Type 1 1xx Bombardier 1986 256 26 Type 2 2xx Siemens 1997 261 52 Type 3 3xx Siemens 2004 261 27 Type 4 4xx Siemens 2009 ??? 21
Proposed lines & extensions
On the drawing board
- Late 2009 - MAX Green Line to Clackamas Town Center via unbuilt I-205 Transitway
- Late 2009 - MAX Green Line (and re-routed Yellow line) along downtown Transit Mall (north-south through downtown)
- 2012/2013 - MAX Orange Line to Milwaukie via UP (former SP) rail line corridor
Rumored or briefly mentioned
- MAX Yellow Line extension to Vancouver, WA via I-5
- MAX extension to Vancouver Mall via either I-5/SR 500 or I-205
- MAX Blue Line to Mount Hood Community College in Gresham
- MAX Blue Line to Forest Grove
- MAX line via Barbur Blvd.
- MAX line via Powell/Foster Blvd
- MAX line to Damascus & Boring
- MAX extension from Milwaukie and/or Clackamas Town Center to Oregon City
MAX in films
- What the #$*! Do We (K)now!? (2004, dir. William Arntz and Betty Chasse): Goose Hollow/Southwest Jefferson Street bird's-eye view and on the westbound platform; brief clips of Bill Robertson Tunnel; Washington Park on the eastbound platform; a brief clip taken from an eastbound MAX train on Southwest 1st Avenue between Yamhill District and Old Town/Chinatown; a couple of scenes filmed aboard a westbound train on the Steel Bridge between Rose Quarter Transit Center and Old Town/Chinatown. Actual Type-2 cars were used in filming of this movie.
- The Hunted (2003, dir. William Friedkin): an imitated Type-1 train (although the train is numbered "300") on the Hawthorne Bridge (where there is no actual MAX track) complete with a KOIN-TV advertisement prominently featuring the KOIN news anchor Jeff Gianola, who also plays the role of a TV news reporter in this film. The simulated MAX car prop was built from a discarded TriMet articulated bus and a Type-1 LRV that was retired in the 1980s after a collision damaged it badly enough to be deemed beyond repair. The bus, which was extensively used to transport commuters between Portland and Westside suburbs, 12 Sandy Blvd route, and select express routes until the 1998 extension of MAX Blue Line replaced the articulated bus service.
- Zero Effect (1998, dir. Jake Kasdan): the wealthy blackmailed timber tycoon is directed by his blackmailer to board the train with a three-digit number delivered to his pager while on his way to deliver his next payment. A MAX train, with the painted number 119 and "Portland" displayed on its sign, pulls up to him. He is then shown on the train for about 15 seconds. As the movie is set in Portland, MAX train bells can be heard in the background throughout.
See also
- Transportation in Portland
- MAX Blue Line
- MAX Red Line
- MAX Yellow Line
- MAX Green Line
- MAX Orange Line
- Washington County Commuter Rail
External links
- [TriMet]
- [System map and schedules]
- [Station to Station], a series of articles about the MAX from 2004, originally published in the Portland Tribune
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