TriMet Gateway North MAX Station Opens in March

Courtesy of TriMet

PORTLAND, Ore. – The Gateway North MAX station will open March 4th. This will be the first new station in nine years for TriMet.

On March 4, 2024, TriMet’s Gateway North MAX Station will open. The opening marks the first new station in nine years. The second phase of the A Better Red Max Extension and Reliability Improvements Project will finish on that day. TriMet says the second of three phase completion will improve “how riders move through a main connector for the MAX system.”

With a winter storm disrupting the end date by a week, TriMet reports crews “have been working around the clock for the past three weeks to finish construction just north of the Gateway Transit Center.” As of reporting, the service for the MAX Blue and Green lines are disrupted. The MAX Red Line service is temporarily suspended, and it encourages its riders to use alternative modes of transportation.

Additionally, crews have been replacing rail, upgrading ties, and cleaning stations along I-84 to make improvements to TriMet’s oldest section. The six-week disruption is “necessary” in “preventing the need to disrupt service in the future.” 

TriMet says it expects the MAX Blue, Green, and Red Line trains to go back to regular service in March. The Gateway Transit Center, since opening in 1986, has grown 4x in size, and the work is needed to meet the increasing demand of the MAX system. Over the next several weeks, crews will work to install hop readers, ticket machines, lighting, and shelter glass as well as add finishing touches to the concrete pathway.

According to the report, the remaining work now involves tying the Gateway Transit Center into the existing system. With the improvements and an extended MAX Red Line (set to be finished in the summer), TriMet expects it to improve reliability and add capacity. 

On the west side, crews are working on the Fair Complex/Hillsboro Airport at the end of the MAX Red Line. They will finish a new pedestrian crossing and a signals and communications room. These improvements are set to be finished by the end of March. Then, the Red Line extension will open this summer, “along with a new break building for operators.” As of reporting, 90% of A Better Red is done. TriMet still needs to finish the current disruption and add final touches on the 10-station Max Red Line extension to Hillsboro.