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April 11, 2007

TriMet unveils annual budget

Includes continued construction on I-205/Portland Mall light rail & commuter rail; 5 cent fare increase

TriMet today unveiled its $741 million FY 2008 capital and operating budget. The budget includes construction on the 8.3-mile I-205/Portland Mall MAX Light Rail extension and the 14.7-mile Washington County Commuter Rail project. It also includes a 5-cent fare increase to help offset the cost of inflation.

Other FY08 budget highlights:

  • $1.7 million to begin replacing the original 20-year old Ticket Vending Machines located along Eastside MAX line with debit/credit-card only machines.
  • $1.1 million to retrofit 70 buses with new exhaust filters that reduce particulate and most other emissions by 90 percent. This is in addition to retrofitting now underway on 84 buses.
  • 44 Accessible Transportation Program (ATP) vehicles totaling $3.7 million, 90 percent funded with federal funds. Of the 44 vehicles, 13 are for expanded service
  • Diesel fuel budget increases 5 percent due to expected increases in fuel costs, bringing the annual budget to $15.6 million. TriMet buys 6.6 million gallons of a diesel/biodiesel blend annually for its fixed route and ATP buses. The budgeted price per gallon for fixed route service will increase from $2.20/gallon to $2.31/gallon in the FY08 budget.

"This budget allows us to continue construction on our expanding regional rail system in downtown Portland, I-205 corridor and Washington County, have more environmentally friendly buses, and deal with the fluctuations in diesel prices," said TriMet General Manager Fred Hansen.

Agency Efficiencies

The FY08 budget brings the total Productivity Improvement Process (PIP) annual savings to $20.5 million in operating and capital spending. The eight-year PIP program implements suggestions from front-line employees that have changed the way the agency does business and delivers service more efficiently. This year bus and MAX schedules will be adjusted to better match ridership with service and capacity. Some low ridership trips will be eliminated.

Timeline

The TriMet Board of Directors is set to adopt the budget on June 27, 2007; the budget year begins July 1, 2007; the five-cent fare increase is scheduled to take effect Sept. 1, 2007.