As Portland TriMet riders return to work Tuesday, they'll need to remember to take extra money for the fare.
Portland's transit agency is eliminating its free rail zone, cutting services and increasing a one way fare from $2.40 to $2.50.
Rebecca Galloway / OPB
A TriMet bus in SW Portland.
A one-month pass goes from $92 dollars to $100. TriMet is also eliminating zones -- so the price is the same wherever you want to go.
Teresa Keishi Soto is a TriMet commuter. She says the increase is going to cut into her income and TriMet should concentrate on keeping prices down on the transit system it has -- rather than continually adding trains.
She explained, "Many times we said to them "Stop all those MAXs you're building. Just because the federal government gives you money. You don't have to match it. Give us back our service." I mean you know, I get offers for credit cards all the time. But I don't take them."
Other commuters don't see a problem. Brandi Chatfield says it's a good service and she doesn't mind paying more.
She told OPB, "I'm all for that going up. I mean this is not a free service here. You know you either pay to ride or you don't."
For anyone used to jumping on Portland's streetcar for free, it now has a $1 fare.
