Airport MAX
The MAX Red Line is a light rail line serving the Portland metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Oregon. Operated by TriMet as part of the MAX Light Rail system, it is an airport rail link connecting Beaverton, Portland City Center, and Northeast Portland to Portland International Airport. The Red Line serves 27 stations; it interlines with the Blue Line and partially with the Green Line from Beaverton Transit Center to Gateway/Northeast 99th Avenue Transit Center and then branches off to Portland Airport station. Service runs for 22 hours per day with headways of up to 15 minutes. The Red Line carried an average 10,310 passengers per weekday in September 2021, the second-busiest after the Blue Line.
Plans for light rail service to Portland International Airport surfaced in the 1980s, and efforts were accelerated during the airport's expansion in the 1990s. The Airport MAX project was conceived from an unsolicited proposal by Bechtel in 1997, and it was designed and built under a public–private partnership between a consortium of Bechtel and Trammell Crow, the Port of Portland, and local governments. Construction of the four-station, 5.5-mile (8.9 km) branch line began in 1999 and was completed in under two years due to the use of local and private financing and existing public right-of-way.
The Red Line began operating between the airport and downtown Portland on September 10, 2001. It was extended west along existing MAX tracks to Beaverton Transit Center in 2003. Track improvements as part of the A Better Red project are scheduled for completion in 2024; this project eliminated two stretches of single-track along the Airport MAX and will extend Red Line service farther west to Fair Complex/Hillsboro Airport station in Hillsboro.
History
Background and partnership agreement
During construction of the controversial Interstate 205 (I-205) freeway in 1975, Multnomah County leaders negotiated reducing the number of car lanes along a nine-mile (14 km) section of the freeway and adding a separated transit bus right-of-way; this right-of-way was realized as the I-205 busway, but it was never utilized by buses. In 1985, the Portland metropolitan area's regional government, Metro, began a study for the Port of Portland and Clackamas County, who proposed a light rail line using the I-205 busway. They envisioned the line running from Portland International Airport to Clackamas Town Center and connecting with the then-nearly completed Metropolitan Area Express (MAX) line, which traveled between Portland and Gresham and crossed it perpendicularly. Metro had recommended construction by 1995, but in 1987, the Joint Policy Advisory Committee on Transportation (JPACT) separately identified the Westside Corridor from downtown Portland to Washington County as the "next priority corridor for major investment". Metro and the regional transit agency, TriMet, subsequently called on local governments and businesses in Clackamas County to pursue alternative funding sources for the I-205 line, which Clackamas County officials disputed. As a compromise, Metro published a transit plan in 1989 that reasserted the Westside Corridor's priority and commissioned preliminary work for the I-205 proposal.
In April 1991, the Port of Portland approved a master plan for Portland International Airport—a 20-year, $300 million phased expansion of the passenger terminal—to serve predicted passenger traffic growth through 2010. The plan included a long-term goal for an extension of light rail to the airport and thus reserved space for a light rail station near the southern end of the terminal's arrivals hall and baggage claim area. By 1993, however, the airport had already served 8.5 million annual passengers—a growth rate of 18 percent, which exceeded the Port's projection for the year 1997. Meanwhile, environmental studies conducted in the early 1990s caused Metro planners to shift plans away from the I-205 corridor in favor of a north–south route farther west, closer to downtown Portland; this route, between Hazel Dell, Washington and Clackamas Town Center, became known as the "South/North Corridor". Voters rejected local funding proposals for the South/North project in 1995 and 1996. Seeking alternative sources of funding, Metro proposed combining the South/North project with a locally and privately funded airport light rail extension, as doing so would allow Metro to ask for more federal matching funds. TriMet, however, opted to ask Portland-area voters for funding instead, who declined in a 1998 ballot measure.
In 1997, engineering firm Bechtel, wanting to acquire property near the airport, submitted an unsolicited proposal to develop the airport light rail line. The Port expressed its support of the proposal, and a preliminary engineering study commenced in December. After long deliberations, agreements were made between Bechtel, the Port, TriMet, and local governments and agencies in October 1998. A part of the agreements authorized Bechtel to design and build a 5.5-mile-long (8.9 km) light rail extension to the airport in exchange for development rights to the 120-acre (48.6 ha), commercially zoned Portland International Center situated east of the airport. Bechtel later developed this property and renamed it Cascade Station. The following month, the Associated Builders and Contractors filed a petition in Multnomah County Circuit Court claiming that the contract awarded to Bechtel may have violated Oregon procurement laws. The court ruled in favor of TriMet with the judge declaring that the contract was awarded fairly.
Funding and construction
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TriMet estimated the cost of the Airport MAX extension to be $125 million, but additional costs to purchase train sets and build related infrastructure raised this total to $182.7 million. The project's timeline was accelerated with the formation of a public–private partnership, which excluded Federal Transit Administration (FTA) funding and thus eliminated a requirement for FTA approval. Under U.S. federal regulations along with authorization from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the Port was only able to fund a 1.2-mile (1.9 km) stretch within airport property. To ensure funding for the entire project, the Port divided financing into three parts and assumed responsibility for that segment. The next 1.4 miles (2.3 km) of track, which ran through Cascade Station, in turn went to private funding, while the final 2.9 miles (4.7 km) along I-205 was covered by TriMet, Metro, and the City of Portland.
The Port contributed $28.3 million for construction and $20 million for terminal and road improvements; these funds were drawn from a $3 ticket fee levied on travelers. Delta Air Lines, Reno Air, and United Airlines had opposed the use of ticket fees, arguing that the extension would serve few airline passengers, but the FAA approved it in May 1999. Additional funds came from Cascade Station Development, a private consortium of Bechtel and real estate developer Trammell Crow, who provided $28.2 million for the project and $13.1 million for the construction of an interchange over I-205 and Airport Way. TriMet released $27.5 million for construction, which was funded by $30 million in bonds, and procured six new rail cars for $6 million each. Metro allocated $18 million from a regional transportation fund, and $23 million came from tax increment bonds issued by the City of Portland.
David Evans and Associates served as the prime engineer and lead designer. Much of the Airport MAX extension used public right-of-way already owned either by the Oregon Department of Transportation, the Port, or TriMet. This avoided displacing private property owners and limited the project's impact only to parking spaces at Gateway Transit Center and along Airport Way. Bechtel began construction in June 1999 on a segment next to I-205 near the Columbia Slough. Bridgework over the freeway commenced the following December. To minimize lane closures, workers used a cast-in-place concrete pouring method to extend the bridges' spans in 16-foot (4.9 m) increments. Work progressed quickly along the freeway segment due to the existing I-205 busway right-of-way, which came with a tunnel from Gateway Transit Center to the freeway median. Bechtel contracted track installation to Stacy and Witbeck, whose workers placed 3,200 feet (975.4 m) of rail per day to meet the project's deadline; tracks from Gateway Transit Center to the bridge over southbound I-205 were laid by July 2000. Hoffman Construction built the $8.4 million Portland Airport station, and local architecture firm Zimmer Gunsul Frasca (ZGF) designed the station's glass-roofed shelter to complement the airport terminal's drop-off canopy, which ZGF also designed. Bechtel began the end-to-end testing of the power, trains, and signals in March 2001, and TriMet took over the project that July to continue system testing and verify scheduling.
Opening and extension to Beaverton
In 2000, TriMet named the new MAX service to the airport the "Red Line" to differentiate it from the established service between Hillsboro and Gresham, which it renamed the "Blue Line". The Airport MAX extension opened on September 10, 2001. Celebrations scheduled for September 15–16 were canceled in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks, with the airport itself closed for three days due to a nationwide ground stop. Upon opening, the Red Line operated from the airport to the Library and Galleria stations in downtown Portland, where its trains turned around at the 11th Avenue loop tracks. It replaced bus route 12–Sandy Boulevard as TriMet's only service to and from the airport, while C-Tran, the transit agency serving Clark County, Washington, rerouted its bus service from its connection at Gateway Transit Center to Parkrose/Sumner Transit Center. Although tested during trial runs, TriMet opted to omit luggage racks from Red Line trains to maximize rider capacity. By November 2001, ridership had averaged 2,300 riders and peaked at 3,800 riders a day before the Thanksgiving holiday weekend. At the time, service had been using single light rail cars, but the influx of riders prompted TriMet to temporarily deploy two-car consists, which it had not planned to do until 2006.
On September 1, 2003, TriMet extended Red Line service farther west using the existing Westside MAX tracks to Beaverton Transit Center. This was done in an effort to increase capacity between Gateway Transit Center and Beaverton, and to provide a one-seat ride to the airport for westside riders. Regular use of two-car trains on the line began in September 2005, when overcrowding prompted TriMet to change most Yellow Line service from two-car consists to single cars in order to convert the Red Line to two-car trains. On March 2, 2008, three trips in each direction during the morning and evening rush hours began operating between the Hatfield Government Center and Portland Airport stations to provide further additional capacity on the Blue Line amid growing ridership.
Track improvements and extension to Hillsboro
In October 2017, TriMet, citing system-wide delays caused by two single-track segments along the Airport MAX, announced the MAX Red Line Improvements Project, later renamed "A Better Red". A Better Red sought double-tracking a 2,800-foot-long (850 m) section of track north of Gateway Transit Center and another 3,800-foot-long (1,200 m) section alongside Northeast Airport Way just before the airport terminal. To qualify the project for federal funding, TriMet included extending Red Line service farther west to Fair Complex/Hillsboro Airport station in Hillsboro; this extension would use existing Westside MAX tracks and create a one-seat option from 10 additional stations to Portland International Airport. Additionally, TriMet had announced it would procure up to eight new light rail vehicles to accommodate the improvements, but later purchased 30 new trains overall; four were part of A Better Red, while the remaining 26 were replacements for the original MAX fleet, which are gradually being retired.
Preliminary design work began in February 2018. TriMet adopted a locally preferred alternative in April 2019, and the FTA announced $99.99 million for the project through the Capital Investment Grants program in May 2020. Final design was completed by engineering firm Parametrix in early 2021. The design includes two new bridges north of Gateway Transit Center to accommodate the second track and a new MAX platform called "Gateway North". TriMet broke ground on September 28, 2021.
From April 2–9, 2022, Red Line service was suspended to make way for construction, and shuttle buses operated between Gateway Transit Center and Portland International Airport. The project was completed in March 2024.
From June 18 to October 21, 2023, TriMet suspended MAX service between Gateway Transit Center and the airport to allow for construction of the second track between the airport and Mount Hood Avenue.
From January 14 to March 3, 2024, TriMet suspended MAX Red, Blue and Green Line service between NE 7th and Gateway Transit Center. Inbound Red Line trains from PDX began serving Gateway North on March 4, 2024. These projects eliminated the last bidirectional single-track sections on the MAX system.
Route
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The Red Line serves the 5.5-mile-long (8.9 km) Airport MAX segment. This segment begins just south of Gateway Transit Center where it branches from the Eastside MAX segment, makes a 180-degree loop, and heads north along the east side of the I-205 freeway. Near Rocky Butte, it enters a tunnel beneath the northbound lanes of the freeway and emerges along the median. The line then crosses over the southbound lanes of I-205 just south of the Columbia Slough and proceeds northwest along the south side of Cascade Parkway. It follows this road then crosses it just before Mount Hood Avenue station. The line then continues northwest along the south side of Airport Way until it reaches its terminus at Portland Airport station.
Beyond the Airport MAX, the Red Line serves parts of the Westside and Eastside MAX segments, where it interlines with the Blue Line from Beaverton Transit Center to Gateway Transit Center and the Green Line from Rose Quarter Transit Center to Gateway Transit Center.
Stations
The Airport MAX project added four stations to the MAX system: Portland Airport, Mount Hood Avenue, Cascades, and Parkrose/Sumner Transit Center. In March 2024, Gateway North was added as part of A Better Red. The Red Line serves these five stations in addition to 22 others, a total of 27 stations. It shares the 22 stations, from Beaverton Transit Center to Gateway Transit Center, with the Blue Line, of which eight stations, from Rose Quarter Transit Center to Gateway Transit Center, are additionally shared with the Green Line.
Riders can transfer to the Green, Orange, and Yellow lines at the Pioneer Courthouse and Pioneer Place stations from the Pioneer Square stations. Riders can additionally transfer to the Yellow Line at Interstate/Rose Quarter station from Rose Quarter Transit Center. The Library, Galleria, Convention Center, and Northeast 7th Avenue stations connect to the Portland Streetcar, and Beaverton Transit Center connects to WES Commuter Rail. Some stations connect to local and intercity bus services. Red Line service will extend to Fair Complex/Hillsboro Airport station in 2024, adding 10 additional stations.
| Icon | Purpose |
|---|---|
| ‡ | Future terminus |
| † | Current terminus |
| → | Eastbound travel only |
| ← | Westbound travel only |
| Station | Location | Began serving | Line transfers | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blue Line continues to Hatfield Government Center in downtown Hillsboro | ||||
| Fair Complex/Hillsboro Airport‡ | Hillsboro | 2024 (planned) | 
|
— |
| Hawthorn Farm |
|
— | ||
| Orenco |
|
Connects to North Hillsboro Link | ||
| Quatama |
|
— | ||
| Willow Creek/Southwest 185th Avenue Transit Center |
|
Connects to CC Rider, North Hillsboro Link | ||
| Elmonica/Southwest 170th Avenue | Beaverton |
|
Near Elmonica maintenance facility | |
| Merlo Road/Southwest 158th Avenue |
|
— | ||
| Beaverton Creek |
|
— | ||
| Millikan Way |
|
— | ||
| Beaverton Central |
|
— | ||
| Beaverton Transit Center† | September 1, 2003 |
|
Connects to WES Commuter Rail | |
| Sunset Transit Center |
|
Connects to POINT, TCTD | ||
| Washington Park | Portland |
|
Connects to Washington Park Free Shuttle | |
| Goose Hollow/Southwest Jefferson Street |
|
— | ||
| Providence Park |
|
— | ||
| Library/Southwest 9th Avenue→ | September 10, 2001 |
|
Connects to Portland Streetcar | |
| Galleria/Southwest 10th Avenue← |
| |||
| Pioneer Square South→ |   
|
Connects to Portland Transit Mall | ||
| Pioneer Square North← |
| |||
| Yamhill District→ |
|
— | ||
| Morrison/Southwest 3rd Avenue← |
| |||
| Oak Street/Southwest 1st Avenue |
|
— | ||
| Skidmore Fountain |
|
— | ||
| Old Town/Chinatown |
|
— | ||
| Rose Quarter Transit Center |
|
Green Line continues to PSU South stations on the Portland Transit Mall; connects to C-Tran | ||
| Convention Center |
|
Connects to Portland Streetcar | ||
| Northeast 7th Avenue |
|
Connects to Portland Streetcar | ||
| Lloyd Center/Northeast 11th Avenue |
|
— | ||
| Hollywood/Northeast 42nd Avenue Transit Center |
|
— | ||
| Northeast 60th Avenue |
|
— | ||
| Northeast 82nd Avenue |
|
— | ||
| Gateway/Northeast 99th Avenue Transit Center→ |
|
Blue Line continues to Cleveland Avenue in Gresham; Green Line continues to Clackamas Town Center Transit Center; connects to Columbia Area Transit | ||
| Gateway North← | March 4, 2024 |
| ||
| Parkrose/Sumner Transit Center | September 10, 2001 | — | Connects to C-Tran | |
| Cascades | — | — | ||
| Mount Hood Avenue | — | — | ||
| Portland Airport† | — | Connects to C-Tran | ||
Service
TriMet designates the Red Line as a "Frequent Service" route; its trains operate for approximately 22 hours per day with headways ranging from 30 minutes during the early mornings and late evenings to as frequently as 15 minutes for most of the day. Each day, the first train begins service at approximately 3:30 am going eastbound from Beaverton Transit Center to Portland Airport station. Travel between the termini takes approximately 65 minutes and the first westbound service departs Portland Airport station at approximately 4:55 am. In the evenings, select westbound trains travel beyond the line's terminus at Beaverton Transit Center to Hatfield Government Center station in Hillsboro; these trains operate as through services of the Blue Line upon arriving at Gateway/Northeast 99th Avenue Transit Center. The Red Line's last three trips turn into eastbound Blue Line trains at Gateway Transit Center and terminate at Ruby Junction/East 197th Avenue station. The last westbound service departs from Portland Airport station at approximately 12:30 am and the last Red Line service, which travels eastbound, departs from Portland Airport station at approximately 1:40 am.
On September 2, 2018, TriMet reintroduced bus service to the airport, which had been replaced by the Red Line in 2001, with the 272–PDX Night Bus. The bus route ran in the late night and early morning hours when the Red Line was not operating. It was indefinitely suspended on April 5, 2020, amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Ridership
The Red Line averaged 10,310 riders on weekdays in September 2021. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, which impacted public transit ridership globally, the Red Line was the second-busiest service on the MAX network, having averaged 22,530 weekday riders in September 2019. In September 2002, it averaged 2,800 daily riders at the airport, ahead of TriMet's first-year projections of 2,300. The line's extension to Beaverton Transit Center in 2003 increased weekday ridership by 49 percent along the westside corridor and six percent systemwide. IKEA's opening in July 2007 helped to attract more riders to Cascade Station, which had been considered a failed planned development amid the economic recession that followed the September 11 attacks. In 2008, Cascades station recorded an eight-fold increase in traffic, from 250 passengers per week to 2,000; this number increased to 6,000 by 2010. The Red Line's yearly ridership peaked at just over nine million passengers in 2009; it has continued to fall as part of a system-wide decline attributed to crime and rising housing costs in the Portland area. From 8.2 million boardings in 2012, 7.4 million boardings were recorded in 2015.
Explanatory notes
- ^ TriMet publications only provide the total length of the Airport MAX extension, i.e., the 5.5-mile (8.9 km) section that was newly built. The total length of Red Line service, which includes segments of the Eastside MAX and the Westside MAX, is undetermined.
- ^ This list of service connections excludes TriMet bus connections. For a complete list that includes all transfers, see: List of MAX Light Rail stations.