June 27, 2007

TriMet adopts annual budget

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

The TriMet Board of Directors today adopted the agency’s FY 2008 capital and operating budget. The $741 million budget includes continued construction on the 8.3-mile I-205/Portland Mall MAX Light Rail extension and the 14.7-mile Washington County Commuter Rail project.

The board also approved a 5-cent fare increase for most bus and MAX fares to help keep pace with inflation. The fare increase will take effect on Sept. 1, 2007.

Cash fare increase

• 2-Zone cash fare will increase 5 cents to $1.75
• All-Zone cash fare will increase 5 cents to $2.05
• Youth/Student cash fare will increase 5 cents to $1.40
• LIFT cash fare will increase 5 cents to $1.70
• Honored Citizen cash fares remain unchanged. Honored Citizens include seniors 65 years of age and older, people on Medicare and people who have a disability.

Monthly pass fare increase

• 2-Zone and All-Zone monthly passes will increase $2.00
• Youth/Student monthly passes will increase $1.00
• LIFT monthly passes will increase $2.00
• Honored Citizen monthly pass remains unchanged

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 increased 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 FY08 budgeted price per gallon will increase from $2.20/gallon to $2.31/gallon.

"This budget allows us to keep construction moving ahead on our regional rail system as we expand in downtown Portland, the I-205 corridor and in Washington County," said TriMet General Manager Fred Hansen. “We are also putting more environmentally friendly buses in service, and dealing with the fluctuations in diesel prices."

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 budget year runs from July 1, 2007 to June 30, 2008.