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'Metropolitan Area Express (MAX)' is a light rail system in the Portland metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Oregon. It is operated by TriMet and currently has three lines: Blue, Red and Yellow, with Green under construction and Orange planned.
As of late 2006, MAX is the fifth most ridden light rail system in the United States and the country's second most ridden standalone light rail system, after San Diego's. (The busiest light rail systems—Boston, San Francisco, and Los Angeles—are part of larger subway networks.) Since its inception about $3 billion has been invested in light rail in Portland.^[1]
In central Portland and 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 within 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 is tunnel below Washington Park. While this section has only one station, it is 260 feet (79 m) below ground level, making it the deepest train station in North America and the second deepest train station in the world.^[2]

Because of Portland's relatively small 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, though increasingly more Red and Yellow Line trains are two-car.

Contents

Lines and projects

Rolling stock

Fares

Proposed lines & extensions

Under Construction

On the drawing board

Rumored or briefly mentioned

MAX in films

See also

References

External links

Lines and projects

TriMet runs three MAX lines, each designated by a color. The MAX system was built in a series of four separate projects, each line runs over several of these project segments.
The central station is at Pioneer Courthouse Square, on the Portland Transit Mall. The stop is near the center of Fareless Square, a section in and around downtown Portland in which all MAX, TriMet bus, and Portland Streetcar transit rides are zero-fare.
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.

'Portland MAX lines'

	Line Name	Opened	Stations	Length	Termini
	Blue Line	1986	27	33 mi	Hatfield Government Center (Hillsboro) - Cleveland Avenue (Gresham)
	Red Line	2001	26	25.5 mi	Beaverton Transit Center (City Center) - Airport
	Yellow Line	2004	27	7.2 mi	Galleria/SW 10th Avenue (City Center) - Expo Center

'Timeline'

Project Name	Opened	Line(s)	Section	Stations	Length
Banfield-Burnside (Eastside)	September 5, 1986	Portions of: Blue, Red and Yellow	Galleria/SW 10th Avenue - Cleveland Avenue	30	15 mi (24 km)
Westside	September 12, 1998 (portion opened on August 29, 1997)	Portions of: Blue and Red	Hatfield Government Center - Library/SW 9th Avenue	20	18 mi (29 km)
Airport	September 10, 2001	A portion of: Red	Gateway TC - Airport	4	5.5 mi (8.9 km)
Interstate	May 1, 2004	A portion of: Yellow	Old Town/Chinatown - Expo Center	10	5.8 mi (9.3 km)
Totals				64	44.3 mi (71.3 km)

Rolling stock

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 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.^[3]

'Portland MAX Light Rail Cars'

Designation	Car numbers	Manufacturer	First used	Capacity	# in fleet
Type 1	1xx	Bombardier	1986	166	26
Type 2	2xx	Siemens	1997	166	52
Type 3	3xx	Siemens	2004	166	27
Type 4	4xx	Siemens	2008	232	21

Fares

MAX uses a proof-of-payment system; riders must carry a receipt at all times. Fares are purchased before boarding, and receipt is retained as proof of paid fare. Passengers must board the train before the receipt's expiration, and are allowed to ride past the time on the receipt, provided the train was boarded before the expiration time. Receipts are good for 2 hours after purchase, and can be used an unlimited number of times, for travel in any direction, as well as for buses, Portland Streetcar, and C-TRAN.
MAX fares (as of September 12007) are:

★ All Zone: $2.05 (Valid for any ride within time-stamp)



★ 1 and 2 Zone: $1.75

★ Honored Citizen: $0.85 (disabled and elderly passengers)

★ Youth: $1.40 (ages 7-17 and students in high school or pursuing a GED). 'Must' show proof of age or student status if asked.

★ LIFT Paratransit All Zone: $1.70

★ Children under 7: Free when accompanied by fare paying passenger

★ Day Pass: $4.25 (Valid all day, and for all zones)
Many MAX stations also serve bus routes, and as the tickets for MAX are valid for the buses as well, there are some pros and cons to purchasing a ticket for a bus ride from a MAX ticket machine:

★ Pros

★
★ During weekdays, bus transfers are good for one hour past purchase time, MAX tickets are for two hours.^[4]

★
★ Machines can give change, whereas buses can not.

★
★ Some machines can take credit/debit cards, buses can not.

★
★ Bus transfers are issued by humans, so errors can be made, such as issuing a zones 1 & 2 transfer, when zones 2 & 3 are requested, or an improper expiration, such as 30 minutes can be issued. This does not occur with the machines.

★
★ Bus transfers are issued by machines, so no errors can be made to the rider's disadvantage.

★ Cons

★
★ Bus transfers are issued by humans, so errors can be made in the rider's favor, such as a transfer good for 5 hours past purchase time, or an "all zone" when a 2 zone is purchased.

★
★ Machines can often be out of service, or be out of change.
Books of 10 tickets may be purchased from several locations, including the TriMet Customer Service Center at Pioneer Courthouse Square. When using these, riders must validate them at a ticket validator before boarding, which stamps the date and time on the ticket.
Riding is free in fareless square which includes most of downtown and the Lloyd Center area.

Proposed lines & extensions

Under Construction

; 'Portland Mall:' Rose Quarter TC - PSU South/SW College Street
''Proposed opening: September 102009, length: 1.8 mi (2.9 km), stations: 14''
: MAX Green Line (and re-routed Yellow line) along downtown Transit Mall (north-south through downtown)
; 'I-205 Green Line:' Gateway TC - Clackamas Town Center
''Proposed opening: September 102009, length: 6.5 mi (10.5 km), stations: 8''
: MAX Green Line to Clackamas Town Center via the existing partially built I-205 Transitway

On the drawing board

; 'Milwaukie Orange Line:' PSU South/SW Jackson Street - Lake Road
''Proposed opening: September 102014, length: 6.3 mi (10.1 km), stations: 11''
: MAX Orange Line to Milwaukie via UP (former SP) rail line corridor. The Orange Line may be an extension of the Yellow Line, however some reports have indicated it will be a separate line.

Rumored or briefly mentioned

★ Blue Line to Mount Hood Community College in Gresham

★ Blue Line to Forest Grove

★ Line via Barbur Blvd.

★ Line via Powell/Foster Blvd

★ Line to Damascus & Boring

★ Extension from Milwaukie and/or Clackamas Town Center to Oregon City

★ Vancouver, WA/Clark County

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 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 imitation Type-1 train (although the train is numbered "300") on the Hawthorne Bridge (where there are no tracks) 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 two discarded TriMet articulated buses. The bus was used extensively to transport commuters between Portland and Westside suburbs, on the ''12 Sandy Blvd'', the ''57 Forest Grove'' route, the now defunct ''58 Sunset Limited'' 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.

★ ''Kurt and Courtney''. A MAX train is shown going the other way on Interstate 84 briefly.

★ ''Free Willy''. A MAX train is seen in the background at Pioneer Courthouse Square.

See also

★ List of rapid transit systems

★ Transportation in Portland

★ Washington County Commuter Rail

★ Mount Hood Freeway

References

1. The Portland Edge: Challenges and Successes in Growing Communities, , , , Island Press, , ISBN 1-55963-695-5
2. Washington Park MAX Station
3. New MAX Trains Due Fall 2008
4. Transferring Among Buses & Trains

External links

★ TriMet's MAX pages

★ Station to Station, a series of articles about the MAX from 2004, originally published in the ''Portland Tribune''

★ MAX Light Rail at nycsubway.org

★ Puget Sound Transportation Projects - Portland MAX