TriMet is experiencing a significant fiscal crisis, and it’s forcing the public transit agency to cut service by 10 percent over the next two years, with reductions coming as soon as this fall. Bus frequency, especially in the early mornings and at night, will be first on the chopping block, but TriMet may need to reduce service on some MAX train lines and eliminate certain bus lines altogether. The agency also plans to implement company-wide layoffs.
TriMet, like other public transit agencies across Oregon, was counting on state lawmakers to direct more funding their way during this year’s legislative session. But the Legislature failed to pass a long-anticipated transportation funding package before the 2025 regular session adjourned last month, putting all of Oregon’s transportation services in a bind. For TriMet, which is facing an estimated $300 million budget gap, this means imminent cuts.
“As Oregon’s largest public transit provider, we have a tremendous responsibility to keep people in our region moving,” TriMet General Manager Sam Desue Jr. said in a July 23 press release. “Cutting service now means avoiding sudden, catastrophic cuts in the future.”
TriMet’s financial woes have been years in the making, with the agency operating at a deficit for several years, forced to dip into reserves to make up the difference. The public transit agency has chalked up much of its current financial difficulties to inflation. But over the past few years, TriMet has dedicated an increasing amount of its annual budget to safety and security efforts. The agency’s Safety & Security Division has been allocated about $78 million in TriMet’s fiscal year 2026 budget—more than double the $33.4 million dedicated to security in 2023.
The Legislature’s failure to pass a transportation funding bill made an existing crisis much worse. But even if legislators did pass a transportation package, it’s unclear how much Oregon’s transit agencies would have benefitted.
Public transportation in Oregon receives a significant amount of funding through the Statewide Transportation Improvement Fund (STIF) payroll tax. The tax is currently set at 0.1 percent. House Bill 2025, the transportation bill written by Democrats on the Legislature’s Joint Transportation Committee, sought to raise it to 0.3 percent by 2030. This would have been a significant increase, but not quite the 0.4 percent the Oregon Transit Association (OTA) said was necessary to “avert a disaster scenario for public transportation in Oregon.” (The OTA was still highly supportive of HB 2025.)
Earlier this week, Governor Tina Kotek officially announced the Oregon Legislature would meet starting in August for a special session focused on transportation funding. In a press conference, Kotek offered some details about the bill she wants legislators to pass during the special session. Her proposal would include increasing the STIF payroll tax to 0.2 percent, far lower than what Oregon transit agencies have said they need. And, considering the hostility to tax increases that left legislators at an impasse over the bill last month, Kotek’s proposal isn’t a sure bet.
TriMet says an increase to the STIF program would “buy valuable time to pursue long-term efficiencies and additional resources, avoid deeper service cuts, and preserve access to transit for thousands of Oregonians.” But the agency’s immediate service cuts may be necessary regardless.
TriMet is planning to reduce service starting on November 30, cutting the frequency of some frequent service bus lines in the morning and at night, and reducing service on the FX2 Division line, the agency’s highest capacity bus route. The agency could also completely cut service on up to eight other bus lines. TriMet says it will need to continue making reductions effective at the beginning of March, which could include eliminating service from low-ridership bus lines, and possibly eliminating the lines altogether. The agency is also considering restricting MAX Green Line service to the stations between the Gateway Transit Center and Clackamas Town Center. More cuts will be needed down the line, including additional reductions to frequency on the bus and MAX trains.
Agency leaders also say they are investigating how to “right-size the agency” through staffing cuts. At least 140 bus driver and MAX operator jobs are on the line, and maintenance and administrative positions are also at risk.
As far as revenue is concerned, TriMet is planning to pursue fare increases, raising ticket prices by 20 cents for adults paying standard fare and 10 cents for those paying reduced, “Honored Citizen” prices. These new fare prices wouldn’t be implemented until 2028, with public outreach starting a year prior. The agency is likely to see pushback for the decision, as it did when the TriMet Board approved a 30-cent fare hike in 2023.
But the agency is really relying on the Oregon Legislature to stop the bleeding. Without an increase to the STIF payroll tax, TriMet is looking at an even more dire budget situation, requiring tens of millions more in cuts. Other public transit agencies around the state, particularly in rural communities, are in even worse positions. So, until the Legislature meets again later this summer, the full outlook for Oregon’s public transportation system is unclear.
“Without strong action by lawmakers to protect transit service, tens of thousands of Oregonians will lose access to reliable public transportation,” the OTA said in a June press release, after the Legislature adjourned without a transportation bill. “In many communities, this outcome will be devastating for the local economy, cause significant strain on service providers, and place many transit-dependent riders at risk, especially those who rely on transit to access lifesaving services.”
