Portland is Oregon’s largest city. With almost 640,000 people living in the city, transportation plays a big role in helping Portlanders get around and TriMet can help them do that. With more than 80 bus lines and five major MAX lines, TriMet has helped people get around the Portland metro area for almost five decades. Starting March 5, 2018, TriMet added two new bus lines and expanded services on some of the busiest lines. I believe that this is a beneficial decision for TriMet riders.

Transportation is a major part of a commuter’s everyday life. Transportation helps people get from work to home, helps people visit landmarks around the Rose City, helps people visit suburbs and a lot more. According to the American Public Transportation Association (APTA) “in 2016, Americans took 10.4 billion trips on public transportation. People board public transportation 35 million times each weekday, and more than 6,800 organizations provide public transportation in the United States.”

According to TriMet.org, some proposals that TriMet has for 2018 are dividing the Line 4 bus into two sections, from Gresham Transit Center to downtown and from downtown to St. Johns. TriMet also added two new bus lines: the 42 on the west side which will go from Beaverton to Tigard using SW Denny & Hall and the 74 on the east side which will go from SE Powell & 82nd AVE to NE Airport Way & 158th Ave. In addition to the two new bus lines, TriMet is expanding services on some of the busiest bus lines, the 20 and 57, to help commuters get to their destinations.

In my opinion, TriMet is making a beneficial decision for Portlanders by expanding lines and service. Some bus lines in Portland are still more crowded than others, and some areas in Portland don’t have a bus line at all. TriMet’s recent decisions will also help reduce crowded conditions on current bus lines, because more buses will be added to the lines that are busiest during rush hour.