Editing TriMet (section)

== General information ==
[[File:Portland Trimet Map.png|thumb|TriMet operates a light rail system (MAX Light Rail), the Portland Streetcar, and a commuter rail line (WES Commuter Rail).]]

TriMet is "a municipal corporation of the State of Oregon", with powers to tax, issue bonds, and enact police ordinances and is governed by a seven-member board of directors appointed by the [[Governor of Oregon]].<ref>[https://trimet.org/about/organization/boarddirectors.htm Board of Directors.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160314073417/http://trimet.org/about/organization/boarddirectors.htm |date=March 14, 2016 }} TriMet</ref> It has its own boundary, which currently encompasses an area of about {{convert|533|sqmi|km2}}.<ref name="TriMet At-A-Glance" />  The TriMet district serves portions of the counties of [[Multnomah County, Oregon|Multnomah]], [[Washington County, Oregon|Washington]], and [[Clackamas County, Oregon|Clackamas]]; it extends from [[Troutdale, Oregon|Troutdale]] to [[Forest Grove, Oregon|Forest Grove]] east to west, and from [[Sauvie Island]] to [[Oregon City, Oregon|Oregon City]] and [[Estacada, Oregon|Estacada]] north to south.

For more than 30 years the agency called itself '''Tri-Met''', but it formally dropped the hyphen from its name in 2002, as part of a new [[corporate identity]] strategy involving a redesigned [[logo]] and new color scheme for its vehicles and other media.<ref name="hyphendrop">{{Cite news |last=Leeson |first=Fred |date=August 14, 2002 |title=Tri-Met is changing its stripes |url=http://www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/summary_0286-8810381_ITM |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090830105924/http://www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/summary_0286-8810381_ITM |archive-date=August 30, 2009 |access-date=August 16, 2009 |work=The Oregonian}}</ref>

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TriMet was formed in 1969 after disputes between the [[Portland City Council (Oregon)|Portland City Council]] and the [[Rose City Transit]] Company, the private company that previously operated the bus system serving the city (but not its suburbs).<ref name="Operation date" /> The new public agency was created by an ordinance of the Portland city council, under provisions of a law enacted by the 1969 [[Oregon Legislative Assembly|Oregon Legislature]], and took over all of Rose City Transit's service and fleet effective December 1, 1969.<ref name="takescontrol">"Tri-Met Takes Bus Control; Strike Averted" (December 1, 1969). ''The Oregonian'', p. 1.</ref> Bus service in the suburban portions of the metropolitan area was operated by four smaller private companies which had a common union and were collectively known as the [[Blue Bus lines (Oregon)|"Blue Bus" lines]]: Portland Stages, Tualatin Valley Buses, Intercity Buses and Estacada-Molalla Stages.  These were taken over by TriMet on September 6, 1970.<ref>"Federman, Stan (September 2, 1970). "Tri-Met Action Averts Strike Of Bus Drivers; Agency To Assume Operation Of Four Suburban Blue Lines". ''The Oregonian'', p. 1.</ref>  Eighty-eight buses owned by the four suburban companies were transferred to TriMet,<ref>"Tri-Met To Get Blue Buses Sunday; New Suburban Runs To Start Tuesday" (September 5, 1970). ''The Oregonian'', Section 1, p. 15.</ref> but many were found to be in poor condition<ref name="takesoverblue">"Tri-Met Takes Over Operation Of Blue Buses, Finds Rolling Stock In Bad Condition" (September 9, 1970). ''The Oregonian'', p. 9.</ref> and the TriMet board soon took action to replace them with new buses.<ref name="purchases 75">{{Cite news |last=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |date=October 6, 1970 |title=Tri-Met Purchases 75 New Buses |work=The Oregonian |at=Section 1, p. 10}}</ref>

[[File:1976 AM General bus, TriMet 1091, in 1984.jpg|thumb|TriMet's first paint scheme was this orange and white, worn by all vehicles from 1971 until 1980 and by a portion of the fleet (the oldest buses) until 1991.]]
As of January 2024, TriMet operates a total of 695 [[bus]]es on 84 routes,{{citation needed|date=June 2024}} 145 MAX [[light rail]] cars on five lines, and 253 LIFT [[paratransit]] vehicles.<ref name="TriMet At-A-Glance" /> Each of the five MAX and 17 of the bus lines are designated as "Frequent Service" lines, scheduled to operate at [[headways]] of 15 minutes or less for most of the service day (service is less frequent in the early morning and late evening).<ref name="FrequentService" />

TriMet connects to several other public transit systems:<ref>[https://www.trimet.org/schedules/othertransit.htm Other Local Transit Services.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160810005403/https://trimet.org/schedules/othertransit.htm |date=August 10, 2016 }} TriMet. Retrieved October 2, 2009.</ref>
* [[Portland Streetcar]], a circulator streetcar service in [[downtown Portland]] and nearby neighborhoods
* [[C-TRAN (Washington)|C-Tran]], serving [[Vancouver, Washington|Vancouver]] and [[Clark County, Washington|Clark County]], [[Washington (state)|Washington]]
* [[Canby Area Transit]], serving [[Canby, Oregon|Canby]] and rural areas south of [[Oregon City, Oregon|Oregon City]] along [[Oregon Route 99E|Highway 99E]] (formerly within the TriMet district)
* [[Cherriots]], the public transit service for [[Salem, Oregon|Salem]] and [[Keizer, Oregon|Keizer]], connecting at the [[Wilsonville Station|Wilsonville WES station]]
* [[Columbia County Rider]], serving [[Scappoose, Oregon|Scappoose]], [[St. Helens, Oregon|St. Helens]], and [[Columbia County, Oregon|Columbia County]]<ref name="CCRider">{{Cite web |year=2014 |title=Schedules & Routes |url=http://www.columbiacountyrider.com/schedules.html |url-status=unfit |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130826030101/http://www.columbiacountyrider.com/schedules.html |archive-date=August 26, 2013 |access-date=March 28, 2014 |publisher=Columbia County Rider}}</ref>
* [[Sandy Area Metro]], serving [[Sandy, Oregon|Sandy]] (formerly within the TriMet district)
* [[South Metro Area Regional Transit|SMART]], serving [[Wilsonville, Oregon|Wilsonville]] (formerly within the TriMet district)
* [[South Clackamas Transportation District]], serving [[Molalla, Oregon|Molalla]] and rural areas south of Oregon City along [[Oregon Route 213|Highway 213]] (formerly within the TriMet district)
* [[Tillamook County Transportation District]], serving [[Tillamook County, Oregon|Tillamook County]]
* [[Yamhill County Transit Area]], serving [[Yamhill County, Oregon|Yamhill County]]

[[File:TriMet, Average Daily Ridership, All Modes, 2002-2016.pdf|250px|thumb|right|TriMet, Average Daily Ridership, All Modes, 2002–2016 Updated link:https://trimet.org/about/performance.htm]]

TriMet also links to various local shuttle services operated by the following: [[Ride Connection]], which serves [[Banks, Oregon|Banks]], [[Gaston, Oregon|Gaston]], [[King City, Oregon|King City]] and [[North Plains, Oregon|North Plains]]; the [[Swan Island (Oregon)|Swan Island]] Transportation Management Association; the [[Tualatin, Oregon|Tualatin]] Transportation Management Association; [[Intel]]; [[Nike, Inc.|Nike]]; and [[Oregon Health & Science University]], including the [[Portland Aerial Tram]].

Long-range transportation planning for the metropolitan area is provided by [[Metro (Oregon regional government)|Metro]], an elected regional government. Metro also has statutory authority to take over the day-to-day operations of TriMet, but has never exercised that power, as past studies of such a merger have found it to be problematic.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Federman |first=Stan |date=January 18, 1988 |title=Pathway to altar for Tri-Met, Metro filled with financial, legal potholes |work=[[The Oregonian]]}}</ref>