What You Need To Know About Changes on 82nd Ave, TV Highway and the Trimet Fare Increase

Access matters. How do you get to family and loved ones? How many transfers to get to your nearest grocery store? If there’s no bus route to your nearest park, do your children have a safe place to play? This is why transportation justice has been part of APANO’s work for years. When we improve our routes, schedules and renewable energy infrastructure, we can reduce our climate impact and better access the places, people and resources that help us thrive. We sat down with our Community Development team to talk about developments on 82nd Ave and TV Highway, and how Trimet’s fare increase works. 

APANO: What’s the latest with our transportation and anti-displacement work? 

Duncan: In September 2022, TriMet unveiled the new FX2 line, a bus rapid transit project that serves our communities in East Portland. APANO played a big part in advocating for the project and accompanying community benefits, like transit-oriented development, affordable housing, and small business resources. 

APANO: How is the FX2 line doing? How has it been helping Jade District residents get to where they need to go? 

Duncan:The FX2 has improved travel times by about 20% since opening and is even faster in East Portland. In its first year, the line provided 520,000 more rides than the previous Line 2–that’s a 40% increase. While some of that is due to more venues opening and people returning to in-person work and studies following the COVID-19 pandemic, FX2-Division ridership is increasing faster than Trimet’s system-wide ridership that went up 15% during the same period. Who knew that when you build faster, higher capacity, more predictable transit with nice covered bus stops, more people will ride transit! 

APANO: Transit for the people! That’s amazing. Speaking of East Portland, what is the transportation work like for 82nd Ave? 

Brian: So I sit on the 82nd Ave Coalition, which is dedicated to creating a safer, more accessible, and environmentally sustainable 82nd Avenue. Our goals include enhancing infrastructure for all ages, promoting ADA compliance, and ensuring safe and comfortable transit design. We advocate for diversity, cultural expression, local ownership, and economic strategies that prevent displacement. Our commitment extends to environmental stewardship, focusing on green infrastructure and sustainable transportation.

APANO: How has the coalition made progress on its goals for 82nd Avenue? 

Brian: The 82nd Ave Coalition has made notable progress in mobilizing for the envisioned transformation of 82nd Avenue. We have convened regular meetings with community stakeholders and organizational representatives from the 82nd corridor, facilitating discussions around our objectives for the forthcoming investment. With this input, we’ve connected with local officials and city commissioners to advocate for an 82nd Avenue that serves our communities. 

When we improve our routes, schedules and renewable energy infrastructure, we can reduce our climate impact and better access the places, people and resources that help us thrive.

APANO: AANHPIs are not just in the Jade District and East Portland. We held last year’s Voices of Change in Washington County to celebrate how we’re reaching out and engaging more AANHPIs in the west side. Any update on the TV Highway’s Bus Rapid Transit project? 

Karmen: Over the past two years, I’ve represented APANO on the TV Highway Equity Coalition (TEC), led by Unite Oregon, along with 7 nonprofit organizations including Centro Cultural, Muslim Educational Trust, Adelante Mujeres, Street Trust, Bienestar, and other community leaders. This coalition identifies and advocates for the community benefits to prevent displacement and promote equitable community development.  

Simultaneously, I served on the TV Highway Steering Committee alongside jurisdictional partners and agencies to bring Bus Rapid Transit and transit improvements to the TV Highway Corridor. We are currently developing a plan for a bus rapid transit project similar to the FX2 on Division. You can read more about the transit project on Metro’s website here. 

Last summer, the TEC co-created an Equitable Development Strategy for the TV Highway Corridor (which you can view here), with direct participation from trusted community members, advocates, and leaders. The most pressing issues we identified were access, pedestrian safety, and housing. The TEC also determined 13 priority actions that the Coalition and government partners can take to bolster community prosperity in anticipation of transportation investments in the TV Highway Corridor (begins on page 13).   

APANO: Wow! So many changes happening from the ground up. There’s also a change happening with Trimet and their fares. What exactly is changing and who is affected? 

Karmen: With all these investments coming to our transit infrastructure, it may be less exciting to acknowledge that some TriMet fares have increased. Despite TriMet’s decision to increase base fares, frequent riders with a registered Hop Card won’t be affected! The monthly fare caps for frequent riders has not changed: a month pass for Adults is still $100, and $28 for Honored Citizens. 

APANO: It’s great that frequent riders will not have to pay more. How can you apply for an Honored Citizen card? All frequent riders should register your HOP Card with TriMet so you can make sure your rides count towards the monthly pass fare cap ($100/month for adult riders and $28/month for honored citizens). Find out if you are eligible for the Honored Citizen fare on TriMet’s website - you can apply online, too!

APANO: If you want our community to take away one thing from our transportation work, what would it be? 

Karmen: Regional transportation improvements have a significant impact on how our communities travel, move, and grow. These changes can make or break how people access shelters during heat waves and ice storms. It’s going to affect how people access food and emergency supplies. Transportation work has been a longstanding environmental justice issue, and it needs to serve the most climate vulnerable populations, including BIPOC folks, immigrants, refugees, elders, youth, people with disabilities, and low income families. These decisions are made with taxpayer money so our communities should have the most say (check out the transit-dependent riders in OPAL’s Bus Riders Unite! (BRU) union working towards free and fareless transit). We can have a world where transportation options are not just for school and work, but also for play, faith and connection, and that will only happen if we have more community voices in the room.