on crowded trains.
(File photo)
A large increase in the amount of bicycles being taken on MAX trains has been a simmering problem for TriMet since the beginning of spring. That increase, combined with confusion over their policies has led to a situation in dire need of attention.
I heard from one rider who said a fare inspector told them they could not board a train unless there was a hook available (TriMet says you can, as long as you don’t block the aisles). Another person told me they received a firm lecture from an operator over the PA system that bikes were only allowed on hooks.
In order to address these issues and learn more about how bicycles are integrating with light-rail, TriMet is conducting a comprehensive survey of cyclists that they hope will lead to improved bike capacity and clearer policies.
The survey will be delivered on-board (download PDF) and online and will be directed at cyclists who bring bikes on MAX and those that bike to transit stations.
TriMet planning analyst Eric Hesse says they’ve started handing out the first of 3,000 on-board surveys (someone in the Forums already got one) and an online version should be up by August 17th. According to Hesse, they’re open to all ideas and nothing is off the table at this point.
“We’re pretty constrained on what we can do on the trains, but this survey might generate some ideas and we’re open to considering them. We know bikes are a big part of transportation in this city and we hope this survey gives us a better idea of usage rates. We want to know where people are riding from, what lines they’re on, and how many cyclists are using our system.”
Among the ideas TriMet has considered are:
- encouraging use of folding bikes,
- the Bike Tree,
- real-time, web/PDA based bike locker availability tracking.
Hesse sits on the Technical Advisory Committee for PDOT’s Bicycle Master Plan Update and he says TriMet will share survey results with city bike planners.
While the focus of this survey is on MAX trains, TriMet has plans to test a three-bike bus rack in the future.
With more Portlanders riding bikes every day, it’s clear that the bike/transit connection is key to the success of our transportation system and it’s great to see TriMet taking action. Stay tuned for your chance to participate in the online survey.
Thanks for reading.
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Maybe a solution would be to push forward those plexi-glass walls on one car per train in order to expand bike hanging capacity. I know it would reduce the \”sittable\” space. That could be overcome with hand straps or fold down seats on the wall that could be used if no bikes were there. As long as it doesn\’t infringe on the ADA accessible area I think this is the best solution.
Two bikes could be hung in the hook space if they were hung one up, one down. They\’d be tight, but it\’d work I think.
I got one yesterday morning on an eastbound Blue Line MAX at Beaverton Transit Center. It was kind of odd – a TriMet employee ran up to the doors of a low floor car and yelled out \”Who has these bikes hanging here?\”. The girl with the bike hanging across from mine said one was hers, and he handed her a folded piece of paper, then he yelled out the same thing again, pointing to my bike. I said it was mine, and he handed me the same folded up piece of paper. I opened it up and it was the survey, along with a free all-zone day pass.
I\’m glad that TriMet is handing out these surveys – even without the free all-zone day pass, I\’m happy to fill it out survey in hopes that TriMet will add more bike spots on MAX. Let\’s just hope they\’ll actually do something with the survey results instead of just sitting on it.
I was looking at the metro train cars in Brusells recently and noted that for every two-car train, half of one car was just floor space.
Didn\’t see any bikes using them, but I don\’t think their tube is bike accessible.
Anyway, why not just give us some space and let us figure it out on our own?
I thought that bikes were also allowed in the handicapped seating areas as long as the area wasn\’t claimed by a disabled person.
The simplest and least costly solution is to remove seats. In all honesty, westside trains have no seating left after the stops at Beaverton and Sunset Transit Centers and 50% of the riders stand already. Take out 30% of the seats and there are still enough chairs for elderly and infirm riders. Keep the ADA areas for wheelchairs and everyone can be resonably served.
Better yet, put a low-floor car on the rear of each train, remove all seats, and designate that as the bike/wheelchair/standing only car.
I\’ve got a basic problem with only allowing bikes on hooks. Between a lack of upper-body strength and not having a top tube to grab onto, I can\’t actually get a bike up there.
The MAX enforcement officers and drivers are very inconsistent with their enforcement on the trains. I\’ve been riding MAX for about a year now.
It seems to me the only people who are annoyed with the excess bikes are the yuppies who use MAX to head into downtown in the evening.
Quoting Donald: \”Anyway, why not just give us some space and let us figure it out on our own?\”
I used to bike-MAX-bike commute from Irvington to Beaverton before they installed the hooks. It sucked. No matter where you were, you were in someone\’s way, and they resented you for it. It was this elaborate dance to maneuver around every time someone wanted to get on or off.
The hooks have clarified and legitimized bike use on MAX, and I\’ve been much more comfortable since then. Of course, when they\’re all full, we\’re back to square one…
The survey also asks how you as a bike rider would react to bikes being outlawed on the MAX during commuting hours. So this is clearly one of the solutions being considered. Everyone PLEASE fill in these surveys and express your displeasure at this particular solution—bikes outlawed during commuting hours would make life really hard for a lot of people.
I vote for removing seats. Alot of people with or without bikes like to stand during the rush anyway. It makes for a subway-like thrill.
Ali#7, I rarely \’hook\’ my bike either, I usually just leave it on it\’s wheels and hold it in the marked bike area under the hook.
Per#10. Outlawing bikes during peak hours could be a real possibility. This would be similar to how systems like BART and others operate, so there is already a national precendent. In London, I believe most multi-modal cyclists use folding bikes, that may a requirement there.
We buy a ticket just like everyone else. We should able to ride the train like everyone else. Bikes take up floor space when not on a hook but so does a stroller. Nobody would ever talk about banning strollers from the MAX during rush hour. That does not make sense anyways, because if you are on the MAX with a bike during rush hour then you are very likely a commuter. If the MAX is trying to encourage alternative transportation, banning bikes from trains is antithetical. People have their bike in the train because there is a bike commute on both ends of their train commute. Most people who take the MAX heading to or from Beaverton are doing so to avoid a 500\’ change in elevation (a BIG hill) with street routes that do not have bike lanes.There is a bike path but depending on where you are coming from it will add about 2 miles to your trip just to get to it\’s entrance. Unless you are in shape and willing to dice it up in rush hour traffic,taking the MAX is the best bet over the West Hills.
Separate infrastructure keeps gnawing at my brain…Wind-shielded, elevation-traffic-controlled, HPV-specific infrastructure…Even if we only started with I84>Gresham, it would advertise itself to all of the motorists and transit users automatically (We would be the only ones smiling! :F)
Most folks think this kind of talk is nonsense. Nevertheless, it is cheaper to build and more efficient than light rail. End of Story.
In Philadelphia several years ago, they tried having a separate car for bikes to hang in. Problem was that other folks tried to jump on and steal the unattended bikes. As far as I know they\’re no longer using the bike-hook cars. SEPTA (Philly\’s transit system) has always banned bikes on inbound trains during the morning rush hour and on outbound trains in the evening. Which means that between 6 and 9 am, you cannot take your bike into the city via the train.
Lately there\’s been a guy who comes on the MAX train and if both hooks are full he asks you to move so he can use a home-made S-hook to hang his bike next to yours. I always refuse him because I insist on standing next to my hanging bike to prevent theft. The last time I refused he got quite angry, and I told him to get on at an earlier MAX stop to increase his chances of getting a regular hook. I\’ve already had three different instances of folks trying to steal my bike and will no longer sit away from it.
I think that banning the bikes from MAX would be like trying to put the genie back into the bottle. Too many people would be too angry, and there\’s no telling how some of them would act out their displeasure.
I am pretty sure the guy with his own s-hook would keep an eye on your bike if you asked him to. Maybe you should be friendlier to your fellow cyclists. He might have a pump or a spare tube if you get a flat and aren\’t prepared yourself.
All us cyclists are in this together.
I like #4\’s idea. Make one of the 2 cars half floor. I use to commute via MAX but I got tired of the hasle. I get on in Gresham and lots of times there would be a newer car with hooks and one of the old cars with no hooks. I hate the old cars and wont even try to get on with my bike. I wont ride MAX in the afternoons due to all the kids and dope heads riding, so if I do commute via MAX I have to plan on riding back out to Gresham. Its a good ride but takes to long.
SKiDmark: THANK YOU. While I\’ve become a lot fitter since I\’ve started cycling, there\’s no way I could haul my fat self over the west hills and be in any condition to go to work afterwards. Even if I could, I wouldn\’t feel safe enough to go over on Cornell (even though it would deposit me right at work at Good Samaritan Hospital) or Burnside. Multi-moding on the MAX is really the most efficient way for me to get to work.
Banning bikes during rush hour would be asinine – I wouldn\’t be able to take my bike on anymore. One of the questions involved whether adding more bike parking/storage at MAX stations would not make me bring my bike on the MAX. I answered NO because I use my bike in the evenings and weekends, and I\’m not going to lock it up in a locker so I can only use it once I get off the MAX to go to work and then to get back to the MAX station. Urgh. TriMet needs increased bike capacity on the MAX, not increased bike storage at MAX stations. And the idea of only allowing folding bikes is ludicrous. I\’ve been riding MAX for over four years now and have only rarely seen a folding bike. I have no plans on shelling out a bunch of cash to buy a folding bike just to use on MAX when I have a perfectly good road bike.
They should take away the folding seats directly in front of the hook (not the perpidicular ones) and make the bike rack deeper (rotate the hooks so they sit against the windows). You could probably fit at least one more hook, maybe two in that space (each side would double occupancy).
The handicap space is usually occupied by some jerk who doesn\’t move for the handicap spot anyways.
Banning bikes during rush hour would be an unpopular move since I primary take the max in the morning out to hillsboro. If the NW Portland had a decent bike path to climb over the hill I would probably work towards doing that. In any case, my commute by car (when I drove about a year ago) was 35 miles to forest grove.
I\’d really like to know who complained, sure its crowded sometimes but for the most part it\’s not that bad, its bad enough we devote the majority of our resources to car infrastructure.
1. The amount of area for hanging bikes is inefficently used. Two to three bikes can be hung in the space of one. There has to be a better design that could acomplish this. ps The extra \”S\” hook idea is brilliant.
2. In London, the tube is so crowded that at most times you could not get a full sized bike on to it. A bike on the ground takes the effective space of 2 additional people. Folding bikes are a inovation of necessity. Not only do they permit you to take your bike with you, but you can also easily put it in your cube, office, Locker etc. No Parking required.
3. Analyize your commute. I can ride to a Max stop in 4 miles and then get off down town (30 min.). I recognized the obstacle of getting a large bike onto the train and bought a road bike-based commuter and just ride the the extra 5 miles. Considering waiting time for the train, my direct commute is only 5 to 10 minuets longer (35 to 40 min). I did consider a folding bike but this is more fun. I use the bus as a back up when I need to be home faster or in really bad weather.
Final: All in all, some of the resources dedicated to bikes on Max could be more effectively used, but in the long run the cost benefit ratio of more trains to accomodate fewer people just does not support adding even more squre footage when there are practicle work arounds such as folding bikes.
The design options in totality:
– flip up seats parallel to the train sides (Berlin)
– remove the row behind the hooks
– add another hook (or use a small u lock)
– add an adjustable hook rack system like Amtrak uses (Capitol Line to Sacramento CA)
– remove all seats (replace with bars and straps) on one train car and add side hooks (Caltrain bike car)
– add small shelf bins for Brompton folding bikes to use (Amtrak Cascades)
– remove the flip up seat in the ADA space and replace with bike hooks (bike would then have to leave if a wheelchair user came aboard)
– improve bikeway network and bike parking, so that peak hour bike use of transit can be minimized (perhaps even add a \’bike escalator\’ up to Overlook)
A Brompton folding bike completely changed my MAX commute from a frustratingly stressful and awkward shuffle to a peaceful journey. I\’d recommend looking into folding bikes if you plan to ride during peak hours for the long term – it\’s only going to get more crowded as Portland grows, gas prices go up and bicycle ridership increases…
I agree with above comments that bike hanging area is terribly designed. Better hooks allowing additional bikes would help a lot, but it seems like a short term solution as soon those will be filled up, too.
Even better would be a single dedicated bike area or car, instead of a spreading bike areas out over the train (nothing like the fun of commiting to a particular entrance when the train pulls up to find there\’s no room and the doors are about to close). I used to ride CalTrain in the Bay Area with and they had a dedicated bike car at a predictable end of the train so you knew where to wait for it. You put a tag on your bike showing your destination and cooperated with other bikers to bungie your bike to wall racks according to your final destination, with more distant destination bikes buried behind those getting off first. There was a lot less shucking and jiving and irritation for non-bikers as bikers and walk-ons didn\’t have to mix except at the exit. So I guess I\’d like to see a move towards better designed, dedicated, purpose built bike cars or at least half a car dedicated in this fashion.
I love my Dahon Speed folder!!!!! I rarely get a hook on my commute home these days. It\’s so nice to be able to fold up my bike and sit!
If you are riding trimet and its getting full, balance your bike on one wheel. It saves alot of room and makes it easier for everyone to get on and off the train.
Aren\’t there areas any longer that allow you to stand with your bike by the operator/kiosk end? That\’s what I have done when riding MAX.
On another note: I have a co-worker that rides a folding Dahon on occasion – he has been refused service by bus operators who told him he could not carry his folded bike on.
What do I think they should do? Run more trains. It isn\’t (just) bikes that are causing this problem, the problem is that the trains are full. Imagine that, people actually use our mass transit system. A few extra trains at rush hour is actually quite cheap in the big scheme of things.
Quoting Jessica Roberts:The hooks have clarified and legitimized bike use on MAX
Not only that, but I feel totally within my rights making somebody move out of the bike area when I come on board and they\’re in my way. An assertive \”excuse me\” is all I\’ve ever needed to get some space.
+1 for Matthew…
I was thinking that while reading all of these responses. TriMet is a business…and business must (if they choose to survive) meet demand with supply. Blaming overcrowding on cyclists is a ridiculous and short sighted approach. Why are these survey only going out to cyclists? Shouldn\’t everyone be asked how they would best receive a solution to the problem? As much as PDX tries sometimes, this city often falls short in its approach towards alternative transportation solutions…
I like #4\’s idea. Make one of the 2 cars half floor.
Absolutely. But the bike space still needs to be marked out as bike space, because as Jessica observed, the current hooks have clarified and legitimized bike use on MAX.
Also seconded: More trains at rush hour.
I look forward to being able to complete the survey. To ban bikes from the MAX during peak hours would put my job in jeopardy, and I\’m not going to be able to afford a second bike anytime soon.
In addition to the more trains for rush hour (within their ability to run trains into the downtown bottleneck) how about:
– a new train car design (Hong Kong Style double deckers: bikes and ADA on bottom and peds and tourists on top)
– a new style of station platform (consolidate stations and close off street intersection to cars to double platform length.
– a combination of low cars and cars with steps (4 total): leave intersection open at stops and board last 2 cars in street with steps, like the old PCC cars – with ADA + bike access would be on the front cars at platform.)
I have a copy of the survey as well.
It is VERY OBVIOUS that TriMet is looking for an excuse to BAN bikes from Trimet during \”rush hour\”. (It\’s also clear they think more bike parking at the stations is the solution). They specifically ask \”How would you make this trip if you could not take your bike on MAX during weekday rush hours (6-9am & 2-7pm)?\” \”I would have to quit my job because I couldn\’t get there any other way\” is not a listed optional answer.
If bikes were banned during these hours (hello, since when do we have EIGHT hours of \”rush hour\” in a day??), I\’m feeling pretty confident that I would immediately lose several members of my staff who commute from the east side of Portland out to Hillsboro every day. There would be no way to modify a person\’s work schedule to make a bike-max-bike commute workable with 8 hours a day of no-bikes-on-MAX and still have it make business sense for me as an employer. We, like most businesses, need staff during traditional business hours.
The simplest solution to MAX overcrowding is to run additional trains. Kicking bikes off MAX is not going to solve the overcrowding issues (though I would happily support banning all those gargantuan strollers during \”rush hour\”. After all, the stroller set is not typically trying to get to work in the morning). We need to be encouraging MORE people to get out of their cars and ride MAX, not throwing up barriers to mass transit users.
Yeah, yeah, I know…preaching to the choir.
Susan
It is VERY OBVIOUS that TriMet is looking for an excuse to BAN bikes from Trimet during \”rush hour\”.
If that\’s the case, an issue we should be taking up with the Metro Councillors who represent us AND oversee Trimet.
Hurray! I got a survey today!
more bike parking at stations is also needed, but is not a solution. what TriMet needs is BOTH more bike parking at stations (which, BTW, they strongly resisted in the past), AND more bike capacity on the trains.
To everyone that want\’s them to run more trains, I don\’t think they can. The steel bridge and the area around Interstate and the Rose Garden are the limiting factors, as anyone who\’s every waited for the traffic signals there knows.
To everyone that want\’s them to run more trains, I don\’t think they can. The steel bridge and the area around Interstate and the Rose Garden are the limiting factors, as anyone who\’s every waited for the traffic signals there knows.
Is that something that can be addressed through changes to the intersections and/or lights there?
Lets not discount the concept of trying to get SOME bikes off the train as part of the solution. The ONLY reason I bring my bike on the train is that there are no lockers available at one end of my commute. For the 3 closest stops to my workplace, there are over 50 people waiting for as many lockers. I\’m told it may be years before a locker is available. So where do the 50 bikes go that aren\’t in those desired lockers? Taking up space on the train, even though the owners would prefer to park them. Trimet can purchase literally a couple hundred lockers for the price of a single MAX car, so I really think its worth exploring as one of the possible solutions to crowding. For many of us, leaving a bike in a locker at one end of our commute and using a combination buses or trains for the rest is quite manageable. It also leaves room for others who really need to bring bikes on the train. Its a very capital-friendly approach for Trimet when considering the alternatives of additional cars or trains. I would urge any survey respondents to consider the value of additional lockers as one part of a broader solution strategy.
Someone mentioned TriMet should operate more like a private business, and meet demand with greater supply. The problem with applying business principles to the MAX or just about any transit line in Portland (or the US for that matter) is that every additional train or bus running during peak hour requires a huge subsidy. There\’s no such thing as profit in the US public transit industry.
If TriMet increases service during peak hours, they should charge higher fare for peak hour service. While they\’re at it, they should charge more for longer trips. This sort of pricing system allows riders to be more responsive to the costs of providing higher quality transit (more frequent service) during peak hours. Some discretionary trips (non-time dependent) might shift to other times of the day to make room for others and the higher ticket prices could support the operations and purchase of more trains running at that time. Washington DC has a system like this in place as do a few other systems. Trimet would need to update it\’s ticketing/payment system (which is already in the works) to make this work.
So before people start saying \”more trains, more trains!\” or \”make way for bikes!\” you need to ask, \”how can Trimet afford better service when every train runs at a deficit\” This is a huge challenge, especially in an expanding system with visions of Milwaukie and Vancouver light rail extensions in the horizon. Economic studies have repeatedly shown that increasing transit prices (especially at peak hour) results in more overall revenue for the system (meaning that the revenue from the few riders turned off by the increased price are offset by the increased revenue for the whole system).
I\’m all for paying more if it means better service. When compared to the price of a taxi, a $3 or $4 trip to Hillsboro or Gresham doesn\’t seem so bad.
I got one too, and Susan is absolutely right: The survey is heavily slanted towards justifying the outlawing of bicycles during crucial hours of the day, with the \”solution\” being more bike parking at stations. That this is infeasible for people riding significant distances from their end point station goes without saying. Folding bicycles may work for some, but there is a large section of commuters that can not afford them.
So what can we do? The first thing would be to try to get publicity for this, so that more people will respond to the surveys. The cracked out way that they are distributed now means that a lot of people ignore them; wild eyed people yelling \”whose bikes are these?\” and throwing papers inside trains (which I witnessed today) make people think it is some sort of sales pitch or weird advertising.
If you ride the MAX with your bike, please take the time to fill in a survey and let the powers that be know that banning bikes during peak hours would be bad!
I got a survey the other day. I suggested an incentive program like Santa Cruz where they give out $200 coupons for folding bikes and $70 off 2 bus passes.
http://www.santacruztma.org/folding_bike.htm
They also provide interest free bike loans for seniors, disabled or fixed income residents; or employees of companies that are members of the city transit organization. Does Portland have any similar programs?
You know, this sounds like just another \”Our town really isn\’t ready for Platinum status\” SNAFU.
I made copies of the survey, and I have several copies which I handed out at Roger\’s ride today. If you want one, just let me know. I\’ll see about putting a pdf online.
yes, please post a copy
Call me a pessimist on this topic. In the end, I think bikes will lose out. They will keep the number of hooks the same and ultimately ban bikes during peak hours. Forget about all the news about more and more people riding bikes in Portland, we are still a minority and when push comes to shove we will lose out on this one.
As for the survey, I will fill it out so my voice will be heard but I won\’t hold my breath.
I\’ve never had an issue with a fare inspector or driver but I continue to get plenty of hard looks from riders any time I take my bike from Beaverton into Portland and the train is even a little full.
just for reference, in the netherlands, a dense country where they take both bikes and trains VERY seriously (~40% of trips are bike, much of the rest train all over the country, every town, several times an hour), only folding bikes go on trains on a regular (free) basis. if you don\’t want/can\’t afford a decent folder, you buy as many cheap bikes as you have regular destinations and park them in the enormous bike parking facilities at all the train stations, so you have bikes at both ends of your journey.
I was completely honest on the survey saying I would rather drive than change my commute. I also begged them to not take away my ability to take my bike on the MAX. I work nights and in no way do I feel safe leaving my bike locked up overnight, even in the secured lockers. Can I take other ways? Sure, I can take a bus and walk. Sorry, after a 12+ hour shift, it is all I can do to stay straight on my ride home.
Can Trimet do anything to fix it? Sure. Will they? I\’m beginning to have my doubts. I\’m getting to feel that my days on the MAX are numbered. But we\’ll see.
Here is a PDF of the survey being handed out.
The other day I had two interesting experiences with my bike on teh max…
One when I got on the max, there was two available bike hooks. One shady looking character that made eye contact and looked away, but didn\’t move.. the other was blocked by two Trimet bus drivers, who I had to ask if I could hang my bike up.
Later while coming back to Portland, I went to get off the max in beaverton to get on the red line(since the blue one was extremely retardedly packed, which could have been do to the 30 minute wait on a thursday night that there was a baseball game), as I told people I was getting off, one guy said to my face, \”but I don\’t want to lose my spot\”.
I think in the old cars, they should take out some seats to accomidate bike parking, lately everytime I go to get on the max, they have a new and old car, and the new car is filled.
I once was yelled at by a driver for putting my bike up against the driver door on one of the old cars. He told me i had to move(it was during rush hour), i asked him where he expected me to move to, then I was told to get off.
I just try to avoid the max all together. The only times I use it are to go to the west side to meet up with my dad.
I rather doubt my definition of \”secure parking\” is what Trimet has in mind when it asks if I would use \”secure parking.\”