Month: February 2012

  • Employee Relations Board paddles TriMet’s bottom–again

    Things don’t appear to going well for TriMet in its ongoing labor dispute–at all. In a blistering 8-page order, the state Employee Relations Board (ERB) once again ruled that TriMet’s recent offer in the ongoing contract negotiations constitutes an attempt to introduce a new issue into the bargaining process at the last minute, and as…

  • Watch Out for Streetcars!

    Track testing for the Streetcar Loop will take place Tuesday through Thursday next week (Feb 21-23). Look for the first vehicles to appear on the east side (and on the Broadway Bridge)!

  • Could TriMet become a “free” (or nominally-priced) service, Part 2

    Last fall, Portland Transport considered the question of whether or not TriMet could become a free (or nominally-priced) service. Right now, the Farebox Recovery Ratio of the TriMet system in aggregate is about 25%, and last fiscal year fares provided nearly $100 million of TriMet’s overall operating budget. This discussion occurred right after TriMet first…

  • SmartPhone Worth 20% Off Your Transit Waiting Time

    But it feels like 30% according to the studies reported here… And frequency doesn’t hurt either.

  • Ray of Hope in the Senate: Cardin-Cochran

    While the travesty in the House continues (with some hope of some Republic defections) there is a ray of sunshine in the Senate. The Cardin-Cochran amendment would shift more control over allocation of funds from state DOTs to local governments. Transportation for American is asking for support for the amendment.