Eastside MAX

Station-by-Station

The route through Gresham follows an old electric interurban right-of-way, once known as the Mt. Hood Railway. This section was originally single-tracked to Ruby Junction. Increased ridership figures in the 1990's merited double tracking, especially after the Westside line opened. Tracks are tie-and-ballast style and continue in this form until the Lloyd District.

Service begins at Cleveland Avenue, a large park and ride station. Tracks and electrification continue east to allow for the storage of a two car train on each track. To turn trains around, the operator simply switches cabs here. A double crossover switch exists to the direct west of the station to allow access to both tracks for incoming trains.

Moving west, the next stop is Gresham Central Transit Center. This station received a sculptured living room set in 2001 as part of public art program. Bus service connects to points in eastern Multnomah County and Portland. A park and ride garage here includes a ground-floor retail level.

Gresham City Hall is another park and ride station, and is host to the new Gresham seat of government. The new city hall is just off the westbound platform. The east end of the new Gresham Station retail development is served here.

Civic Neighborhood is an unfinished station awaiting the build-out of Gresham's mixed-use Civic Neighborhood Project. TriMet ties development of stations into the development of the surrounding area. Currently, trains do not stop here and the platforms remain fenced off. From here, the tracks enter into an open cut nicknamed "the Trench" by MAX operators.

As trains emerge from "the Trench", riders pass the Ruby Junction Rail Control and Operations Facility. First built for the original alignment, this facility was significantly expanded during Interstate MAX construction. Ruby Junction is also the dispatch center for the all of TriMet's bus and MAX operations.

The East Burnside section begins at the Ruby Junction/E 197th station. This station serves the Ruby Junction Yards and is often the point where MAX operators switch shifts, or trains returning to the yards terminate, according to their roll signs.

This long stretch travels down the center of East Burnside Street, also once part of the former Mt. Hood line. This section has seen many residential projects pop up around the MAX line, but is mostly single-family homes.

Other stations are located at Rockwood Transit Center-E. 188th, E. 181st, E. 172nd, E. 162nd, E. 148th, E. 122nd, and E. 102nd. Including Ruby Junction, these stations are staggered side platforms, sitting on either side of the cross street. These stations look very similar in appearance.

West of E 102nd Avenue, Burnside Street meets I-205, and the MAX tracks curve north. The tracks follow the shoulder of I-205, ducking under Glisan Street to enter Gateway/NE 99th Ave Transit Center. This station is one of the most heavily used on the entire system. Gateway's Park and Ride lot fills up rapidly in the morning. The MAX Red Line also joins the Blue Line south of Gateway TC. Another branch off the Eastside MAX segment will continue south on I-205 from here. It will be known as the Green Line.

Gateway has three tracks and platforms. The westbound platform is used only by Blue Line trains. The center platform is shared between the eastbound Blue and Red Lines. The eastbound platform is where one transfers to the Airport-Bound Red line trains. The entire platform area is surrounded by bus stops. These lines serve east and outer northeast Portland.

Gateway was the first Eastside MAX station to receive public artwork. Three feather wind vanes were installed as part of the Airport MAX public art project.

The layout may be confusing, as Gateway is oriented north to south. Trains going west head north while Airport and eastbound trains move south.

When trains continue west from Gateway, they head north, then veer to the east as they cross the I-205/I-84 interchange flyover bridge. This takes trains onto the north shoulder of the I-84 Banfield Freeway. Tracks are located between the Union Pacific Mainline and the freeway as the route meanders through Sullivan's Gulch.

MAX trains reach the highest speeds on the system through this section. Three "island" stations serve this section, connected to the streets above by stairs and elevators: NE 82nd, NE 60th, and Hollywood/NE 42nd Transit Center. All are similar, however Hollywood contains a pedestrian bridge across I-84 and bus bays to the north.

From inside Sullivan's Gulch, tracks rise into the Lloyd District. Often considered an extension of downtown, the Lloyd District contains several large office buildings. Tracks run along NE Holliday Street on paved tracks. Stops become closer together to serve the offices and attractions through Portland's city center. This also marks the beginning of Portland's Fareless Square, a ride-free zone covering the downtown core of Portland.

Lloyd Center/NE 11th serves the popular Lloyd Center Mall. The shopping center is a one block walk across Holliday Park to the north. There is a short spur track here that takes the Portland Vintage Trolley into the trolley-only Doubletree Hotel station. When not in use for the trolley, TriMet uses this siding for storage and for reversing some trains terminating at the Rose Quarter.

NE 7th Avenue serves the the large complex of state government and other office buildings nearby.

Convention Center serves the Oregon Convention Center. The twin spired building was built in this location specifically because the MAX line was routed here. The building's main entry faces the light rail station instead of a parking lot.

One block to the west of the Convention Center stop, the Rose Quarter Transit Center is the last station on the east side of the Willamette River. It is located underneath the I-5 overpass. This area also houses car barns for the Portland Vintage Trolley.

The Rose Quarter is the premier entertainment and sports venue in Portland. The complex includes the Rose Garden Arena, Memorial Coliseum, and retail space. These events generate large crowds on MAX trains and buses through here. The layout utilizes two side platforms, and a pocket island platform and track for train storage. Recently, retractable fences were installed on the platforms for crowd control.

Bus service through this station connects into downtown and North Portland. The new Yellow Line stops at the Interstate/Rose Quarter station on the other side of the complex. Riders transferring to the Yellow Line here can either walk 200 yards or stay aboard and transfer at the next station west.

Trains cross the Willamette River at the Steel Bridge. This unique vertical-lift drawbridge has two decks which may be lifted independently of each other. This may be the only kind of bridge of this type in the world. MAX trains use the top deck's center lanes. The westbound lane was converted to exclusive bus/LRT use recently. However, eastbound auto traffic is still allowed to drive over the MAX tracks, the only section of the line where this is allowed.

Other than MAX, Oregon Department of Transportation leases the top section of the bridge as part of the State Highway system (Union Pacific owns he bridge). The lower deck contains two tracks for the Union Pacific mainline and Amtrak use. A recent retrofit added an outer bike lane to the lower deck to connect Waterfront Park to the new Eastbank Esplanade. The view can get pretty interesting when there are two types of trains using the bridge at once!

Trains descend from the Steel Bridge south onto SW First Avenue. This street served as the site of Portland's very first horse-drawn streetcar line in 1890. Many of Portland's oldest buildings line the route, providing an interesting streetscape when juxtaposed with the modern light rail vehicles and taller buildings on the skyline. Tracks through this section, downtown Portland, and Goose hollow are paved with Belgian blocks, further enhancing this experience. Stations in this segment are side platforms built into the sidewalks.

The first station, Old Town/Chinatown serves a redeveloping area adjacent to the trendy Pearl District. Although not the historic location of Chinatown, this area is now how to the beautiful Classical Chinese Gardens and many Chinese restaurants. Portland's Union Station and the Greyhound depot are nearby, about a 7 block walk.

Skidmore Fountain serves the popular Portland Saturday Market and Tom McCall Waterfront Park. This station was built under the west end of the Burnside Bridge and is connected to a bus stop above by stairs. MAX trains pass right in front of the station's namesake fountain, which dates back to the 1870's.

Oak/SW 1st sits near offices and art galleries. south of this station, tracks dip under the Morrison Bridge. A crossover track exists at the trough of the underpass, making a switch at this location difficult, but possible. This switch is sometimes used when MAX service is closed through downtown for parades.

Directly after emerging from beneath the Morrison Bridge, the tracks split at SW Morrison Street. The tracks continue west separately on Yamhill and Morrison Streets. Eastbound trains use SW Yamhill, westbound trains use SW Morrison. Platforms along both streets are paired, but named differently. Functionally, the westbound and eastbound platforms are one station. However, Rail Control, Local Law enforcement, and medical teams want specific names for each platform location, as not to confuse responders.

Each station is built into the sidewalk of the street. tracks were laid on the separate streets in order to provide a lane of auto access and limited parking through the Yamhill/Morrison corridor. The stations (moving from east to west, Yamhill platform-Morrison platform):

Yamhill District and Morrison/SW 3rd are near the historic heart of Portland, but have seen light rail bring in two new modern office buildings on Morrison Street. the curving Yamhill District platform takes up the entire width of Yamhill Street in order to make a tight turn onto SW First.

Mall/SW 4th and Mall/SW 5th serves the Pioneer Place Mall, shopping areas, and the Portland Transit Mall's southbound lines on Fifth Avenue.

Pioneer Square North and Pioneer Square South, are announced as Pioneer Courthouse Square in both directions aboard trains. The postmodern city square is the focal point of downtown Portland. TriMet's ticket office and a visitor's information center is located beneath the waterfalls under Starbuck's. The Fox Tower, a recently completed 22-story office building, sits across Broadway. Riders may also connect to the Portland Transit Mall's northbound lines on Sixth Avenue.

Library/SW 9th and Galleria/SW 10th are platforms on both sides of the Galleria's parking garage. These stations take their name from surrounding buildings. The Galleria building, is an old department store that now hosts the Western Culinary Institute. Library refers to the Multnomah County Central Library, which sits on the corner opposite the MAX station. Riders wishing to connect to the Portland Streetcar may transfer here on Tenth and Eleventh Avenues.

If an westbound train's roll sign ever states that it terminates in the "City Center", it means that the Galleria is the last stop. Shortly after this station, a looped yard allows trains not continuing west to lay over, or light maintenance to be performed. The 11th Avenue yard has three tracks and is now used by the Portland Vintage Trolley and Yellow Line MAX trains. This ends the original Eastside MAX alignment. Trains running on the full Blue and Red Line routes continue through to the Westside MAX alignment.