Seattle or Portland, OR: Which city has the best public transit? Best for pedestrians?

[Steve Bowen]

Seattle's Transit Score is significantly higher than Portland's

[StealthRabbit]

There is nothing safe OR fast with surface street mass transit (as in Portland MAX).

There are dedicated routes along I-84 and I-205 that are fast and safe, but THROUGH Portland you ride the streets. Tough on businesses & auto / bus / bike / pedestrian traffic. MAX has a habit of running over people, wheelchairs, bicycles, fire engines... Not a favorite of mine. (I prefer Vancouver BC, an also Singapore MRT (where I live part of yr). Fast and safe people movers to hubs with frequent bus loops.

Seattle has not yet arrived.

[Jiff]

From yesterday's Times article about plans for light rail to Ballard:
" • Trackways could force lane reductions on Second and Fourth avenues, now used by suburban buses. Officials say that when Link reaches Northgate in 2021 and Lynnwood in 2023, North End commuter buses would shuttle riders to and from those outlying stations, instead of going downtown."

Just as I thought: north-end express buses to Seattle will be axed when rail gets to Northgate and Lynnwood. I'm also guessing that like the Tukwila P&R lot, the Lynnwood lot will be too small (as it is now with no plans for expansion) and commuters from Sno county will need to catch a shuttle bus to the Lynnwood Transit Center.

To further make it a pain to go to Seattle by car:
"• Seattle would build separated bike lanes known as “cycle tracks” downtown, even if light-rail tracks are also being contemplated. Diagrams show both train and cycle track on Second Avenue, for instance, after removal of one general lane and on-street parking."

[west seattle gal]

Rail should be a priority. You would need that AND a bus system (rapid and slower routes), but to argue that buses are more efficient is denying reality. Buses use the same congested roads as cars, and the HOV is useless in some sections. The fact that we are looking at "either/or" means the budget needs to be increased. Now if only the people of Seattle could make decisions without getting mired down in bureaucracy!

[509]

As someone who visits both areas on business trips.

Portland wins....no and if or buts.

Seattle talks and talks and talks and nothing happens. Portland actually builds mass transit.

Funny story....I had not been in Portland for about a year and was staying out at Loyd's Center. I hoped on an eastbound train in downtown without thinking or looking. I was reading a book on the train and then looked up and noticed that I was heading north instead of east!!! Seems like Portland put in another light rail line. Guess what...I had no small bills and ended up walking back. For a while there I was wondering how a train changed direction on rails!!

Seattle is still talking and talking and talking. I am sure one of these days they will have a modern transit system.

Seattle should just bag mass transit and work in incorporating the google car into their transit planning. Forget yesterday, plan for tomorrow.

[Native Transplant]

Planning for my trip this weekend to Portland, OR, I notice that Vancouver doesn't have any of the light rail that Portland has, and won't, I guess, until at least 2019. I wonder what the politics are behind that. Even buses. Vancouver has its own system, C-Tran, which spurs out to Portland, but Tri-Met doesn't "return the favor".

Also, having skimmed articles on Max and the Portland Streetcar, the two seem kind of redundant to eachother. They use the same brand of vehicles, as far as I'm aware. Are they just run by different funding districts?

[HandsUpThumbsDown]

Streetcar and Max serve different purposes. Streetcar distributes folks around a small area around the CBD, Max is high capacity light rail transit that serves different corners of the city and metro area. The equipment might be the same, I don't know, but that's not really an indicator of the type of service it provides.

If C-Tran goes to Portland, presumably it comes back, too, and does not operate only one-way. Why would Tri-Met "return the favor?" Wouldn't that just be duplicating service?

[StealthRabbit]

Originally Posted by Native Transplant

... I notice that Vancouver (WA) doesn't have any of the light rail that Portland has, and won't, I guess, until at least 2019. I wonder what the politics are behind that. Even buses. Vancouver has its own system, C-Tran, which spurs out to Portland, but Tri-Met doesn't "return the favor". ...

Search Columbia Crossing for more than your fill of Politics regarding MAX extension to WA. Not sure it will ever happen or even should. It is too bad Vancouver (Clark County) did not implement a plan to use Chelatchee Prairie Line to NE County as a mass transit trunk line, as there is LOTS of traffic generated from the lack of options.

BUT... I'm all for intelligent options and not at all excited about MAX, especially the NS Interstate line that is supposed to reach Vancouver. It is a perfect example of poor route / infrastructure. It takes 40 minutes to cover what takes 7 minutes in a car (via parallel freeway rte... non-traffic (available at least 18 hrs / day). NS Interstate MAX line should have been elevated with only a few stops, while feeder busses could handle distribution from regional transit centers. (Similar to 'planned' mass transit such as Singapore, Tokyo, Vancouver, BC).

As it is... MAX and the street cars really mess up commuting and commerce on Portland streets (coming from a 30+ yr commercial driver who has had to weave semi-trucks around town doing deliveries, and I also own commercial properties that rely on EZ accessibility from customers from various modes of travel). MAX can come over I-205 and still be faster to downtown Portland then NS Interstate Line... BUT the 'City' of Vancouver will not support that route. so... politics (as usual) will stall and raise the prices, while the public goes unserved.

Mass transit... Do it right, do it once (with expansion plans in place)