Crews to revitalize section of TriMet’s oldest MAX line starting Sept. 22

TriMet will make vital upgrades to one of the oldest sections of the MAX system during September as part of the Gresham MAX Improvements project, which will stretch across more than two miles at the end of the MAX Blue Line from Rockwood/E 188th Ave Station to Cleveland Ave Station.

Crews will spend two weeks from Sept. 22, to Oct. 5, completing a series of upgrades, repairs and replacements that will improve the MAX system. When the project ends, MAX riders and motorists alike will feel the benefits with more reliable MAX service and a smoother drive over the tracks.

TriMet crews will make improvements at seven rail crossings, three stretches of restricted trackway, a one-mile section of the overhead power wire and four stations. The work will take place on sections of the original MAX alignment, which opened to rail service over 30 years ago. MAX riders traveling through the disrupted area should allow up to 15 minutes extra for their trips.

This is the latest in a series of major projects since 2016 to revitalize the MAX system, and it comes only a month after the Lloyd MAX Improvements project wrapped.

Gresham MAX Improvements

The Gresham MAX Improvements project will stretch from nine feet underground to 19 feet in the air. Upgrades to rail crossings are key to the project. They’ll not only make MAX rides smoother but will create a more even surface for drivers, bicyclists and pedestrians. Our crews will repair the track bed, replace rail ties and improve the roadway where it meets the rails by filling in asphalt gaps. Crews will also replace wooden railroad ties, installed in the 1980s, in some sections. They’ll install new wooden ties or, where possible, more durable concrete ties.

Underground, crews will be digging trenches to lay cables to a new signal system building that is under construction. They’ll also replace the overhead wire that powers westbound trains between the Gresham Central Transit Center and Civic Drive Station and replace four machines that operate the switches just west of the Cleveland Ave Station.

Altogether, the improvements will disrupt service to the five easternmost stations on the MAX Blue Line.

Shuttle buses running between stops near the closed stations will minimize the impact on riders. Shuttle buses will run on MAX Blue Line schedules for most of the service day and about every 5 minutes during morning and afternoon commutes.

Because the work is happening at the end of the line, there will be no service disruptions elsewhere along the Blue Line or on any of TriMet’s other MAX lines.

Traffic impacts

Seven intersections will be closed or have lanes reduced from Sept. 22 through Oct. 5 to accommodate improvements to the rail crossings. Repairs and upgrades at rail crossings will close the roads, in most cases, for two days each. That means motorists, pedestrians and cyclists will encounter some detours.

The Gresham MAX Improvements project is just one of the ways TriMet is working to improve its system.

TriMet is reinvesting in older sections of the MAX system that have been in use for over 30 years. Since 2016, it has made major improvements in Portland City Center, near Providence Park, in the Rose Quarter area and in Hillsboro to rejuvenate the MAX system.

Recent improvements to the overhead wire system and added anchors to rail ties reduced heat-related delays on the MAX Blue, Red and Yellow lines.