Bethany and Cedar Mill commuters who ride the MAX Blue Line to downtown Portland are marking a milestone on a shrinking system.

TriMet's light rail network turned 40 on Saturday, Sept. 5. The first MAX train entered service on Sept. 5, 1986, on what is now the eastern half of the Blue Line, KGW reported. The westside extension to Beaverton and Hillsboro opened in 1998, connecting riders at Sunset Transit Center to the rest of the rail network.

That connection still runs. But the system around it is contracting.

TriMet enacted the largest service cuts in its 57-year history on Aug. 22, trimming 34 bus lines, eliminating two and shortening the MAX Green Line so it runs only between Gateway Transit Center and Clackamas Town Center. It was the first time the agency had ever permanently cut an existing MAX line, according to OPB.

The reductions total $64.5 million in spending cuts, split between roughly $53 million in administrative savings and $11 million in service changes, Cedar Mill News reported. TriMet also eliminated more than 400 staff positions in July.

Locally, the cuts reshuffled bus routes near Sunset Transit Center. TriMet extended Frequent Service Line 76 to replace Line 20 service between Beaverton Transit Center and Sunset Transit Center. Buses between NW 24th Place and Sunset Transit Center now arrive about every 30 to 40 minutes, according to Cedar Mill News.

TriMet first disclosed a $300 million structural deficit in July 2025. The August cuts narrowed that gap to $158 million, but the agency's fiscal year 2027 budget still relies on $127 million in reserve funds, according to OregonLive.

Ridership has plateaued at about 70% of pre-pandemic levels. Roughly 65 million riders boarded TriMet buses and trains in fiscal year 2025, down from 96 million in 2019.

"Our reserves are almost gone, and we decided we need to take action now," TriMet media relations manager Tia York told OPB on Aug. 22.

Oregon voters offered no lifeline in May, when nearly 83% rejected Measure 120, a proposed gas tax that would have provided short-term transit funding. TriMet General Manager Sam Desue Jr. said at a May press conference that the spending cuts were among the hardest the agency had faced in 30 years.

The agency had planned a second wave of cuts for August 2027 but has walked that back. York told OPB that TriMet will study the impact of the current reductions before making further changes. The goal is to balance the budget by July 2028.

The anniversary also arrives days before a major test for westside commuters. All southbound lanes of Interstate 5 through Portland's Rose Quarter are scheduled to close starting Friday, Sept. 11, for roughly five weeks of seismic repairs, according to OregonLive. About 120,000 vehicles use that stretch daily.

Portland's City Council voted to give free TriMet passes to roughly 9,000 city employees during the closure, OregonLive reported.

Washington County is weighing the region's transit future separately. The county's Land Use and Transportation department has a Transit Development Plan survey open as of August for residents who want to shape local service priorities.