Commuter rail cultural ignorance in Portland

I’ve been watching the progress of WES, TriMet’s first commuter rail line, with great interest since its opening in February. One of the many aspects of it that strikes me as fascinating is the total lack of understanding by some of the function of commuter rail. On more than one occasion, I have heard people complain that it does not run all day, for example, or that it does not connect to major shopping areas near the route, such as to Washington Square Mall.

TriMet’s WES line is Portland’s first commuter rail in over 60 years.

Of course, Portland has not had commuter rail since the Second World War, so a lack of understanding of the concept may not be all that surprising. The region’s only significant rail transit system over the last twenty years has been the MAX light rail system, operating short trains at rapid intervals all day, every day. It is via this lens that most of the region’s transit riders tend to view rail based transit.

Seattle’s Sounder commuter rail has been peak only and weekday since inception.

Peak hour, weekday only transit service is not at all uncommon in North America. The Puget Sound region to our north has had its Sounder commuter rail service operating in this fashion since it opened in 2000. Further south, San Francisco’s Caltrain service also operates on weekdays only. Chicago’s Metra — one of the nations largest commuter rail operations — does run on weekends, but it runs only at peak hours and is unidirectional — inbound to Chicago in the mornings, outbound to the suburbs in the evenings. Each of these services aims not at general transit riders, but specifically at commuters, people traveling from home to work and back again. They serve a vital role as a safety valve to reduce peak hour transportation congestion. Commuter rail systems are the hallmark of a mature metropolitan area and frequently become intertwined with the urban cultural fabric.

The real irony is that although commuter rail is new to the Portland region, commuter oriented services are not. TriMet has long operated commuter buses known as “expresses.” Like commuter rail, they operate only at peak hours on weekdays, traveling from outlying points to the city center in the morning and reversing their direction in the evenings.

In time, the metro area may get used to the concept of commuter rail, and hopefully build more such lines. Peak hour weekday service may be limiting in some ways, but it can be a significant asset for the region’s workforce, especially if properly supported with generous park and ride lots and connecting bus routes. Less expensive and far faster than light rail, additional lines would dramatically improve the commuting experience in the region, and take us a good way towards reducing our auto dependency.