The April 2011 open thread
To celebrate the first day of April, I’m proud to announce that the editorial staff of Portland Transport has decided to confirm that (as certain skeptics have long suspected), we really are railfans. As such, we’ve decided to rename this blog Portland Trainspot, and our new mission will be the posting of pictures of MAX, WES, and Streetcar rolling stock. To start off our new mission, here is a picture of cars 101 and 240, taken at Beaverton Transit Center (and ruthlessly cribbed from Wikipedia).
Getting back to reality, a few other notes:
- On the topic of fares and such, Joseph Rose of The Oregonian has a front-page article on the reduction of fare inspectors on the TriMet system, and a corresponding rise in crime. Rose also writes a followup article on his blog.
- On a related topic, more cameras are coming to MAX stations in town.
- The feds have put their seal of approval on the Milwaukie MAX FEIS, allowing TriMet to commence with final design. Construction on the new bridge will start this summer.
- In a recent guest editorial at The Oregonian, electric trolleybusses are proposed for Portland.
- In Part 3 of his recent interview, Neil McFarlane addressed the issue–noting that he is in favor of electric-powered busses, though suggesting that advances in technology soon may make wireless electric busses a more practical solution in the coming years.
- Two big votes upcoming on the LO Streetcar, as the Lake Oswego and Portland city councils make decisions on the project. Vote in LO is expected to be a squeaker (but the project is expected to pass), the vote in Portland will likely be broadly in support.
But of course, this is the open thread, so feel free to talk about anything transit-related that you like.
