TriMet to start testing new Orange Line trains

The Tri-County Metropolitan Transportation District of Oregon (TriMet) will begin running test trains along the MAX Orange Line light-rail route starting Aug. 30.

Orange Line trains will operate on regular schedules on the 7.3-mile route connecting downtown Portland, Ore., and north Clackamas County, but no passengers will be picked up, TriMet officials said in a press release.

Trains will run from 5 a.m. until midnight on weekdays and 1 a.m. on weekends. TriMet's other light-rail routes — the Blue, Green, Red and Yellow lines — will undergo minor scheduling adjustments to accommodate Orange Line trains.

Testing will continue through Sept. 11, TriMet officials said.

The Orange Line will run across the new Tilikum Crossing Bridge, which is available to MAX light-rail trains, streetcars, buses, bicyclists and pedestrians, but not cars. TriMet officials said the bridge is the only one of its kind in the United States.

Slated to open to the public Sept. 12, the $1.49 billion Orange Line includes 10 new stations, two park and rides, and two secure bike-and-ride facilities.