MAX Light Rail

Metropolitan Area Express
Top: A Type 2 Blue Line train crossing the Steel Bridge Bottom: A MAX train and a Portland Streetcar tram traversing Tilikum Crossing
Top: A Type 2 Blue Line train crossing the Steel Bridge
Bottom: A MAX train and a Portland Streetcar tram traversing Tilikum Crossing
Overview
OwnerTriMet
LocalePortland, Oregon, U.S.
Transit typeLight rail
Number of lines5
Number of stations94
Daily ridership76,100 (weekdays, Q2 2024)[1]
Annual ridership23,446,700 (2023)[2]
Websitetrimet.org/max
Operation
Began operationSeptember 5, 1986; 38 years ago (1986-09-05)
Rolling stock
Number of vehicles145[3]
Technical
System length59.7 mi (96.1 km)
Track gauge4 ft 8+12 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge
ElectrificationOverhead line750 V DC[4]
System map
Handicapped/disabled access All stations are accessible
Cleveland Avenue
Gresham Central
Gresham City Hall
Civic Drive
Ruby Junction/E 197th Avenue
Rockwood/E 188th Avenue
E 181st Avenue
E 172nd Avenue
E 162nd Avenue
E 148th Avenue
E 122nd Avenue
E 102nd Avenue
Expo Center
Portland Airport Portland International Airport
Delta Park/​Vanport
Mount Hood Avenue
Kenton/N Denver Avenue
Cascades
N Lombard
Parkrose/Sumner
Rosa Parks
Gateway North
N Killingsworth Street
NE 82nd Avenue
Gateway/NE 99th Avenue
NE 60th Avenue
Hollywood/NE 42nd Avenue
SE Main Street
N Prescott Street
Lloyd Center/NE 11th Avenue
Overlook Park
NE 7th Avenue
Albina/​Mississippi
Convention Center
Interstate/​Rose Quarter
Rose Quarter
SE Division Street
SE Powell Boulevard
SE Holgate Boulevard
Old Town/​Chinatown
Union Station
Skidmore Fountain
SB MAX Yellow Line continues as MAX Orange Line
Oak Street/SW 1st Avenue
Mall
Pioneer Place LowerRight arrow
Lents Town Center/SE Foster Road
Pioneer Courthouse UpperLeft arrow
SE Flavel Street
Pioneer Square LowerLeft arrow UpperRight arrow
SE Fuller Road
Clackamas Town Center
Library Down arrow | Galleria Up arrow
SW 6th & Madison Up arrow | City Hall Down arrow
Providence Park
PSU Urban Center
PSU South
Kings Hill/SW Salmon Street
NB MAX Orange Line continues as MAX Yellow Line
Goose Hollow/
SW Jefferson Street
Lincoln Street/SW 3rd Avenue
Washington Park
South Waterfront/S Moody
Sunset
OMSI/SE Water
Beaverton
Clinton Street/SE 12th Avenue
Beaverton Central
SE 17th Avenue & Rhine Street
Millikan Way
SE 17th Avenue & Holgate Boulevard
Beaverton Creek
SE Bybee Boulevard
Merlo Road/SW 158th Avenue
SE Tacoma/Johnson Creek
Elmonica/SW 170th Avenue
Milwaukie/​Main Street
Willow Creek/SW 185th Avenue
SE Park Avenue
Quatama
Orenco
Hawthorn Farm
Hillsboro Airport/​Fairgrounds
Washington/SE 12th Avenue
Hillsboro Health District
Hillsboro Central/SE 3rd Avenue
Hatfield Government Center
Key
Blue Line
Red Line
Green Line
Yellow Line
Orange Line
Two services sharing a track
Multiple services sharing a track

Bidirectional
Unidirectional
Open interchange
Closed interchange
Station

The Metropolitan Area Express (MAX) is a light rail system serving the Portland metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Oregon. Owned and operated by TriMet, it consists of five lines connecting the six sections of Portland; the communities of Beaverton, Clackamas, Gresham, Hillsboro, Milwaukie, and Oak Grove; and Portland International Airport to Portland City Center. Trains run seven days a week with headways of between 30 minutes off-peak and three minutes during rush hours. In 2019, MAX had an average daily ridership of 120,900, or 38.8 million annually. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which impacted public transit use globally, annual ridership plummeted, with only 14.8 million riders recorded in 2021.

MAX was among the first second-generation American light rail systems to be built, conceived from freeway revolts that took place in the 1970s. Planning for the network's inaugural eastside segment, then referred to as the Banfield Light Rail Project, started in 1973 ahead of the cancelation of the Mount Hood Freeway. Construction began in 1982, and service commenced between downtown Portland and Gresham on September 5, 1986. The original 27-station, 15.1-mile (24 km) line has since been expanded to 94 stations and 59.7 miles (96.1 km) of track. The latest extension, from Portland to Milwaukie, opened in 2015.

MAX is one of three urban rail transit services operating in the Portland metropolitan area, the other two being the Portland Streetcar and WES Commuter Rail. MAX directly connects with them as well as with other transit services such as Amtrak, Frequent Express, and local and intercity buses. Trains operate with two-car consists due to downtown Portland's short city blocks. Vehicles and platforms are fully accessible, and fares are collected through the Hop Fastpass payment system.

  1. ^ "Transit Ridership Report Second Quarter 2024" (PDF). American Public Transportation Association. September 3, 2024. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  2. ^ "Transit Ridership Report Fourth Quarter 2023" (PDF). American Public Transportation Association. March 4, 2024. Retrieved September 5, 2024.
  3. ^ "TriMet At-A-Glance". TriMet. January 2016. Archived from the original on January 31, 2016. Retrieved March 28, 2016.
  4. ^ "Power, Signals and Traffic Interface" (PDF). TriMet. July 2016. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 5, 2022. Retrieved October 5, 2022.