Multnomah County
Multnomah County Transportation Providers
TriMet
TriMet’s district spans 533 square miles across Oregon’s three most populous counties (Multnomah, Washington and Clackamas) and nearly 30 cities with 1.65 million people – approximately 90 percent of the tri-county population and 39 percent of the state’s population.
TriMet provides 60 million rides annually. Notable destinations include the region’s major employment centers (downtown Portland, Hillsboro, Gresham, Clackamas Town Center, Bridgeport Village); institutions of higher education (Oregon Health & Science University, Portland State University, the University of Portland, Reed College, Lewis and Clark College, Pacific University, the Oregon College of Oriental Medicine, Portland Community College, Mt. Hood Community College, Clackamas Community College); and major health care and hospital systems (Adventist, Legacy, Kaiser, Tuality, OHSU and Providence).
Bus Service
TriMet’s bus service includes 80 lines and a Frequent Express (FX) high-capacity line that serve much of the Portland metro area. Many bus lines connect with MAX Light Rail, WES Commuter Rail, Portland Streetcar and the Portland Aerial Tram. In addition to the FX line, 17 other bus lines are frequent service lines that connect with regional hubs where many riders live and work and run every 15 minutes or less most of the day, every day.
MAX
MAX (Metropolitan Area Express) Light Rail consists of five lines connecting Portland City Center with Beaverton, Clackamas, Gresham, Hillsboro, Milwaukie, North/Northeast Portland and Portland International Airport. All MAX light rail lines are frequent service lines running every 15 minutes.
LIFT Paratransit
LIFT is TriMet’s shared-ride service for people who are unable to use regular buses and trains due to a disability or disabling health condition.
WES Commuter Rail
Westside Express Service is a commuter rail line serving Beaverton, Tigard, Tualatin and Wilsonville. WES runs weekdays during the morning and afternoon rush hours, with trains every 45 minutes.
“I don’t have a car and never will, so I want to thank TriMet for giving me the most freedom I’ve ever had in my life. You allowed me to go to so many places.”
“A LIFT operator showed kindness when a disabled woman dropped her drink and he stopped to get her a new one on New Year’s Day.”
“I suffered a stroke 12 years ago and I’m very appreciative when my driver takes pains to know where I need to go.”
“I’m 65 and found out that I can ride the bus for half price. I’m going to sell my car! Your drivers, your website, your customer service – it all rocks! I should have sold my car 20 years ago. You are all amazing. Thank you for being here for us.”
Ride Connection
Ride Connection is a private, non-profit organization based in Portland that provides free transportation services to older adults and people with disabilities. It offers ways for people to access goods and services needed to survive and enjoy independence, health, and inclusion.
The Ride Connection network is made up of a collection of agencies that serve older adults and people with disabilities as well as low-income individuals and the general public by offering a variety of transportation options in Clackamas, Multnomah, and Washington counties.
Many Ride Connection services throughout the tri-county area do not operate on a fixed route system. For example:
Door-to-Door services provide riders with transportation to access medical care, healthy foods, and social services and avoid social isolation
The Ride Together program provides mileage reimbursement for community members who drive friends and family members on a regular basis.
The Travel Training program provides one-on-one coaching for riders, whether new to public transportation or facing challenges due to developmental disabilities, to help them chart a course to the places they need to go.
Ride Connection works with local transportation partners to schedule, dispatch, and organize non-emergency medical transportation for patients.
Community Connector Shuttles run regular routes through key outlying areas to reach as many riders underserved by traditional public transportation.
A Proud Moment for Ride Connection
Ride Connection’s proudest achievement in the last three years is its response to the pandemic. When the pandemic began in early 2020, Ride Connection restructured its services to follow guidelines from the Center for Disease Control (CDC), implementing social distancing protocols and providing personal protective equipment (PPE) to all drivers and riders.
Ride Connection established cleaning procedures that also followed CDC guidelines and utilized emergency funding to purchase a fogging machine to increase cleaning capabilities for vehicles.
When ride requests decreased because many destinations were closed, Ride Connection shifted its capacity to deliver food boxes to riders who could not leave their homes.
Why Rider Connection is so vital
Neil and his wife live in Forest Grove. When he learned he needed dialysis, he turned to friends for rides six times a week.
Then he discovered Ride Connection and its door-to-door service that takes him to his appointments like clockwork.
The service became especially important when his wife was diagnosed with cancer and now has her own travel challenges.
Meaghan works at Amazon and rides the North Hillsboro Link Shuttle to her job.
The ride saves her a long, often rainy walk to and from her work.
“After a 10 or 12-hour shift, I thank my Ride Connection driver for the convenience,” she says. “The shuttle will become even more important as jobs here continue to expand.”