Portland’s transit agency is preparing to donate one of its “trailblazing” Type 1 light rail vehicles to the Oregon Electric Railway Museum. The donation coincides with TriMet’s retirement of the cars that helped establish its inaugural service back in 1986.

Type 1 101 has been chosen for preservation and is currently being repainted at TriMet’s shop in Gresham. This week, the agency announced it will host a “farewell” party at the Ruby Junction facility for invited guests on July 8. TriMet is holding a contest to give away eight spots to attend the event. The contest runs through June 27 at 9 a.m. 

TriMet purchased 26 Type 1 cars from Bombardier. The cars were based on cars used overseas. While Bombardier tried to market the cars elsewhere, they were the only ones ever built and became the backbone of TriMet’s fleet for nearly four decades. TriMet began retiring the cars a few years ago as new Siemens SD700s (known as Type 6s on TriMet) began to arrive on the property. Presently, there are 15 Type 1s still in service, although they are not always running.

—Justin Franz

Read more about TriMet’s “Trailblazers” in the September 2023 issue of Railfan & Railroad. Subscribe Today!