Trimess

Friday, July 31, 2015

Classic tweets

It's 2015 and this is how transit buses 'cool off' in hot weather

A Trimet bus driver writes

Here we go again. Started this week on AM's, nice work, out early enough to spend time with wife and sons. Now it's my Thursday and I have a 3pm report. EXACTLY why I'm leaving the Extra Board. This is insane, terribly unhealthy, and I'm tired of it. I'm not complaining about hard work... I've done that all my life.

Thursday, July 30, 2015

Trimet taking complaints directly off twitter

They're getting it! 
No need to make people fill out anything additional if they give all the info right over twitter! 
There's hope for Trimet yet!

All they gotta do now is get rid of Mcfarlane&get someone in the top job that cares about
riders not capital projects.


Always jobs available at the Trimess

And as usual the  best paying jobs are the ones that don't actually help the citizens and are non union
Click on the pic for better viewing

Trimet is hiring

You too can be part of the Trimet 'team' and meet interesting people you would have never had the opportunity to had you not worked at Trimet

Thanks for the memories

Where's the mainstream news story?


Why does Trimet insist on lying to the riders about MAX delays

For a short while there it started looking like Trimet officials (twitter) were actually telling people the truth about MAX delays. Now all of a sudden they are back with their same old bullshit

Tuesday, July 28, 2015

The truth about Trimet

They serve corporate interests


Behind the scenes at the Trimet twitter desk

This post is reprinted from GOVERNMENT EXECUTIVE
How Public Transit Agencies Deal with All Your Angry, Mean, and Terrible Tweets

The Inequity of Federal Transit Funding

Yes its the CATO institute. Believe it or not the CATO people are the ONLY folks who do any research to debunk the behemoth tax funded public transit industry. Pubic transit agencies pretty much have free reign of the media and all their high profile publicly funded 'consultants' in pushing forth their agendas. CATO has done some really excellent work on the subject on light rail in the United States

The Dangers of Operating A Trimet bus

This post is reprinted from THE DRIVERS SIDE blog. Its truly an excellent essay on the stresses and injustices that Trimet bus drivers face.

The best Trimet 'news release' I have ever seen

The day a missing 5-year-old girl was found on a TriMet bus

Monday, July 27, 2015

Trimet taking a beating on Reddit

Trimet live scanner back on line

Things have been a little bit spotty with the live scanner since I have been called out of town but at the moment we have it back on line again. Click the link
(thanks to Lane Jensen for getting this going again)

Sunday, July 26, 2015

Bus drivers need to protect themselves

Up in Seattle a bus driver got into a confrontation with the cops. We all know that cops lie routinely about everything, its part of their culture. Low and behold the bus driver was wearing eyeglasses (google glass?)that record interactions. That video saved the driver from discipline.

When I was working at Trimet I used to keep a hidden audio recorder going through my entire shift. I was subjected to numerous phony complaints which made it clear to me that I needed to protect myself. I would encourage all bus drivers everywhere to protect themselves by carrying recording devices.

Remember you are out in the public constantly and anybody can make up anything they want against you! Bus drivers need to be proactive about protecting themselves from false complaints. Notice that Seattle Metro has 'banned' drivers from doing that. I say to them F*K you! If the shit hits the fan you will have the evidence to protect yourself!

The joys of working at Trimet

They really abuse their front line personnel in a myriad of ways

Trimet drivers are ripped off on road relief pay

Friday, July 24, 2015

Trimet twitter officials try to be cute and it backfires

God love these Trimet twitter people. 
"They" (whoever they are) are trying to be cutesy but it keeps backfiring on them.

What they don't understand is that people are angry when they tweet Trimet. All they need to do is take the complaints (without making users fill out additional forms) and do what they can to provide answers. Do Not be cute! People are angry and don't want cute.

Today the tweeter used the shrug emoticon in an answer to an irritated Trimet rider!


KATU hatchet job

You can watch the bullshit fly HERE! 
On the heels of the the anti union oregonian story.
As if any of this has anything to do with the bus driver.
Sounds like a TRIMET plant story. 
That would happen if they have some issue with the new ATU757 leadership.
Trimet executive assholes take this stuff out on their front line employees.
"Do the right thing" means "fuck with our employees"

Oregon's Answer to the H-Bomb

A Day Called X, which documented a large scale evacuation of Portland, Oregon, under the threat of a fictionalized H-Bomb attack, was one of the most widely distributed civil defense films during the Cold War.  Originally aired in December of 1957 as a CBS television special, the film is narrated by the late actor Glenn Ford and blends testimony from city officials and townspeople, with stock footage of Operation Greenlight.  A massive evacuation drill, Operation Greenlight was conducted in September of 1955 after years of state planning set up a defense plan focused on Portland.  Operation Greenlight sought to highlight the preparation Oregonians had put forth to ensure a safe existence for the population of their primary target city.

Neil Mcfarlane is no hero

In less than two months time the vaunted MLR orange line will open. 
After spending $1.5 Billion dollars the 7 mile line to Milwaukie will become reality. 
This new MAX line will help some people and hurt others.
 Bus 33 riders who had a one vehicle ride to downtown will now have to transfer. 
Transfers is what makes public transit a horror show.

All this ongoing hoopla  about this new line will attempt to canonize Neil Mcfarlane. 
Mr Neil Mcfarlane is the man that broke 40 years of past practice that lead to the breaking of our union.

Neil Mcfarlane had no problem breaking promises that were made to current Trimet retirees. We get cut he gets a bonus.

Thursday, July 23, 2015

Tin foil hat time

All of a sudden the mainstream media runs a bull shit anti Trimet union employee story about some 5 year old that takes off from their home and gets on a Trimet bus AND John Charles comes out with more bullshit about Trimet Union benefits THEN I end up in a debate with VICTORIA TAFT on Twitter about benefits !

There is a coordinated propaganda campaign underway!

The question is: Why now?


Child gets on Trimet bus and Trimet investigates

WTF is the point of this story? An obvious attempt to vilify yet another bus driver who has done nothing!
Now lets put on my tin foil hat and think why would this story even appear in the mainstream media?
Nothing at all happened to the kid!
Something is rotten 

John Charles blasts Trimet and says employees still to expensive

He's talking out his ass on the employee benefits part. We have substandard benefits now especially when compared to PERS employees. Have no way to verify the rest of his claims against Trimet.

Tuesday, July 21, 2015

Another misguided TriMet management decision



TriMet management has a track record of making poor decisions time and time again, while operating the largest public transit system in Oregon.  In recent years, the Oregon Secretary of State issued a scathing report about TriMet leadership with recommendations to improve management of the agencies transit system.  Just when TriMet claimed it had cleaned up its act, another management decision  leaves you scratching your head.

Over two months ago, TriMet received information that one of its transit operators had criminal convictions, and that he lied about his name and convictions when he applied for work at TriMet in 1989.   It was also reported that in 2006, the operator, Daniel Martin, had been convicted of defrauding the federal government of $78,000 for three years while he was employed by TriMet.  TriMet tried to brush off the allegations about Martin’s criminal past claiming it was a “union” dispute and chose to do nothing.
But when the Oregonian and Willamette Week broke stories about Martin’s criminal past, TriMet finally decided to at least appear as though it was doing something, and is why the decision they made, has caused a great deal of controversy.  Once again the wisdom of TriMet management’s decision is being questioned.  The firestorm began when TriMet management issued Daniel Martin a notice of proposed five (5) day suspension without pay and conditions for continued employment dated June 23, 2015.  This is the punishment TriMet deemed adequate for Martin’s lying about his name and felony conviction when he applied for work at TriMet.
TriMet confirms that Daniel Martin lied to Executive Director Shelley Lomax on May 12, 2015 when Martin claimed that he never went by the name of Daniel Overby and that he was not convicted of any sex abuse crime in the 1980’s.  TriMet confirms that on May 13, 2015 Martin again lied to Executive Director Lomax when he denied ever going by the name Daniel Overby.  On June 18, 2015 however, Martin admitted to Powell Garage Transportation Manager Lyle Pereira that his given name was Daniel Overby and that he changed his name to Daniel Martin in 1993.
Daniel Martin was shown his 1998 TriMet job application and asked why he failed to disclose his real name  and why he wrote “no” to the question….have you ever been convicted of a criminal offense other than a traffic violation?.  Martin said that not reporting his true name and his felony conviction for Sexual Abuse in the 2nd degree in 1986 was an oversight.  Martin claims that he had disclosed his name and conviction to TriMet Director of Transportation Clyde Earl and TriMet Labor Relations Director Mike Savage during the hiring process in 1998 and that Savage told him “This is the last that we will speak about this.”  This is why Martin claims he lied to Executive Director Shelley Lomax on May 12 and 13, 2015.
Clyde Earl and Mike Savage left TriMet many years ago.  Did TriMet management contact both Earl and Savage to confirm that they knowingly covered up a felony conviction for sexual abuse for a prospective employee, Daniel Martin?  Obviously the answer is that no one from TriMet management attempted to confirm the veracity of Martin’s claim.  And a question for TriMet management would be “why not?” 
Page two – TriMet misguided decision

Powell Garage Manager Lyle Pereira claimed in his notice of proposed five (5) day suspension that because of Martin’s many versions of the truth, it was clear to him that Martin lied and intended to deceive TriMet about his criminal history.  Manager Pereira also wrote that because of Martin’s lack of credibility, he seriously questioned whether Martin ever had any conversation with TriMet officials about his convictions during the hiring process in 1998.  Manager Pereira also acknowledged that because Martin lied on his TriMet application, it may have prevented him from being hired by TriMet in 1998 because obviously, TriMet would not hire a new employee to be a transit operator who had a felony conviction as an adult for sexual abuse.
Because Martin kept his real name and felony conviction a secret from TriMet, but, because of Martin’s reported 17 years of  service and overall job performance, manager Pereira decided to give Martin a three day unpaid suspension and permit a convicted sex offender to continue driving bus for TriMet.  Unfortunately, manager Pereira in citing Martin’s 17 year overall job performance, forgot to mention that Martin was convicted in 2006 of defrauding the federal government of $78,000 over three years while employed with TriMet.   And of course Martin claimed management was aware of this conviction in 2006, which not surprisingly, TriMet has been unable to find any manager that would admit to Martin’s disclosure.
The problem for TriMet is they have terminated a number of employees dating back to 1989 after determining that the employee made false statements on their application.  And one can assume that these employees were terminated for making false statements, most likely much less severe than failing to disclose a felony conviction for sexual abuse.  TriMet needs to answer the question, “why were those employees terminated, and what false information did they provide?”.   Another problem for TriMet is that now they are setting precedent by permitting a known sex offender to continue driving a bus, not to mention an employee who lied to get hired in 1998, and the same employee convicted for defrauding the federal government as recent as 2006 while employed by TriMet.
So the question begs, has TriMet really learned from repeated bad management decisions for which they were criticized in the recent Oregon Secretary of State report?
(Shirley Block-President ATU 757)

Trimet good guys retirement!

Breaking Trimet news: "we are not pagan gods' says trimet official


Saturday, July 18, 2015

The "Don" of the Portland light rail mafia to speak at Trimet beer festival

This guy's 'act' is unreal
U.S. Congressman Blumenauer takes over “Transit on Tap” on Monday, July 20. TriMet’s “Transit on Tap” is a fun and informal monthly speaker series that combines experts dishing on everything transit-related, from service to history to sustainability with the opportunity to enjoy some world-class beers!
What: Congressman Blumenauer will talk about how our region became a leader in transit and livability, (aka crony capitalism) and about what the future might hold.
Where: Hassalo on Eighth – Outdoor Plaza
1088 NE 7th Avenue in Portland
http://news.trimet.org/2015/07/join-congressman-blumenauer-for-transit-on-tap/

3 excellent current Trimet bus driver twitter feeds

T.M Driver has become the most prolific of the latest crop of Trimet drivers on Twitter.Actually he is the most prolific EVER. He tweets like a mad man. There has been some discussion between us Trimet critics as to the genuineness of this guy but I think he's for real. Some of my fellow tweeters think he is a plant. God knows Trimet will do anything to manipulate public opinion and they have definitely made changes to their social media procedures which most likely include 'plants' but I don't think this guy is one of them.

Captain SassyPants has a very enjoyable and thought provoking feed. I really enjoy reading his observations about Trimet and the people he drives around. 
Dan Christensen of course, the grand master himself. He's been around about as long as I have. Unlike me however, Dan is very well liked in the Trimet community. You may remember his excellent "Trimet confidential" blog. Trimet fascists made him take down the blog after he wrote that short story 'kill this bicyclist' which enraged the very organized bicycle community.



Thursday, July 16, 2015

Never ending pro light rail propaganda

It's a light rail line. 
It's public transit. 
It's not 'cool' or 'sexy'.
Anybody that has actually ridden on Trimet light rail knows its a trying experience at times, full of sketchy people, overcrowded trains and  trains that just don't show up.

It was a $1.5 billion dollar project that went 7 miles from Portland to Milwaukie.  That's $40,000 per foot! You'd think the mainstream media would write something about the absurd cost of this project.

Not a word of course. The mainstream media just does Trimet's bidding republishing Trimet press releases.

Look at this fluffy crap from the Portland Tribune aka mouthpiece for Trimet. The copious use of the words BRIDGE OF THE PEOPLE is almost enough to make me puke. Trimet has been pumping this crap out for 2 straight years now.



Those solar panels on top of the multi-story park-and-ride structure at the Park Avenue Station store enough energy to run the lights, elevator and mechanical functions for an entire year, Fetsch said.  

Not only that, but “70 percent of the whole site is dedicated to improving water quality and native habitat restoration,” Fetsch said. 

As the MAX train passed by the Southeast Bybee Boulevard Station, riders were treated to views of the Eastmoreland Golf Course and green spaces beyond.
At this site, TriMet, the city of Portland and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers collaborated to restore more than an acre of the Crystal Springs Creek wetlands. 

They are “safety ambassadors who are out when the trains are doing test runs, urging pedestrians and cyclists to be cautious,” Fetsch said.  

And then it was on to the OMSI stop, where riders had their first view of the pure white cables of the newly built Tilikum Crossing, Bridge of the People.

The bridge allows for breathtaking views of downtown Portland and the Ross Island Bridge. On this sunny day, sailboats headed for Ross Island, while traffic, the lifeblood of the city and beyond, traversed all the visible bridges.

But the Tilikum Bridge is practical, as well as beautiful, with pipes that capture and send stormwater off the bridge and into swales that filter it, before the water gets into the storm system.
The Bridge of the People is the first of its kind in the United States to carry light-rail trains, streetcars, bikes and pedestrians, but no private vehicles.


The plaza next to the station platform features benches made from local river rock, inside galvanized wire baskets, and a gazebo is under construction that will be decorated with over-sized metal oak leaves as an homage to Oak Grove.  

“You can’t see nature from McLoughlin Boulevard, but with this alignment, you get to see nature” at this stop, Fetsch noted, adding that at the highest point here, you can see downtown Portland in one direction, and all the way to Oak Grove in the other. 

As they waited to re-board, riders could see an art piece made of red “balloons,” the cables of the Portland Aerial Tram, one of the OHSU buildings, and in the distance, Mt. St. Helens, in the gauzy light of early afternoon.  

READ THE FULL FLUFF PIECE HERE!

Trimet bragged that they improved schedule reliability

 
They lied, as usual

Even Jonathan Maus understands the Trimet reality

Latest group to get pissed off at Trimess

The bicyclists

Trimet ridership plunges in June

Click on pic to expand
Portland area citizens continue  abandoning the Trimet system. 
June saw the biggest drop in ridership that I have seen in quite a while. 
MAX ridership plunged 6%! 
And Trimet's white elephant called WES continues its plunge down 8.9%!

By all objective measures the management at Trimet has been a dismal failure. 
Yet there they sit, firmly entrenched with their massive six figure salaries looking forward to nice easy retirements of luxury.

Trimet is truly a Trimess.
 And the public keeps eating shit day after day, week after week, month after month, year after year.

I wonder how much Trimet crony Carolyn Young made off this

Young was a Fred Hansen crony
People that follow this blog will remember that Carolyn Young left Trimet to become a partner in the  GlobeSherpa operation. GlobeSherpa was created completely by Trimet who basically financed the whole project. (about as clear an example of crony capitalism as you can get actually)

And now GlobeSherpa has been purchased by some other entity, someplace called RIDE-SCOUT. 

You know big money was involved which means all the principles (Young) made a killing.

And the light rail mafia marches on, the public doesn't get any of it either.  

Wednesday, July 15, 2015

ATU757 officers take the oath of office


This years "Trimet youth" program about to begin

This is the Trimet  version of Nazi Germany's  Hitler Youth

The Trimet Youth go around to the various transit centers preaching the wonderfulness of the cult of Trimet!

Bruce Hansen on Facebook!

I find it fascinating that Bruce completely abandoned Facebook while he was ATU757 president but now that he is trying to lead a Coup d'état he has returned to Facebook.

Why was it OK for him to ignore everyone of his Facebook pals (me included)when he was the president but now its ok for him to use Facebook for his Coup d'état?

Gotta love ATU757

ATU757 discord continues

We have been following the latest chapters in the never ending saga of ATU757 members VS ATU757 members.

 Losers never take their losses quietly like they do in American politics. Union officials virtually always challenge election results.

The lack of solidarity at ATU757 is pretty shocking actually. While the 2 factions in power continue to feud over who should run this union less than 50% of union members even bothered to return their ballot. That's a shocking statistic.

Currently there are six challenges to the latest election. I have information on three of those.

Tuesday, July 14, 2015

Stand strong Shirley

Shirley Block  took over one of the weakest transit unions in the country and is trying to rebuild the power that ATU757 once had.
The darts are flying fast and furious at the new president of ATU757 continuing the long tradition of union members attacking other union members. 

 Whining and complaining is what Trimet union members do best.

Shirley Block is now in charge. She will shake up the internal structure as she sees fit.

We (the majority) support president Block and whatever changes she thinks are necessary to get this union on the right path again.

Stand strong Shirley, we support you!
Use all the tools available to you to suppress the sore losers!

Trimet Station managers are just flunky hatchet men

It's those "HR specialists" that do all the work when it comes to discipline and harassing employees. The station managers just implement their orders.

Bruce Hansen supporters create minor ruckus at last nights union meeting

 So we have a newly elected president for our union and what's the first thing she ends up dealing with?

A subversive movement by the ex president and his little band of supporters. 

Wonderful, such solidarity at our union it makes one disgusted to even be a union member in such a dysfunctional union.

Some of us are finding it quite incredible how Bruce is mobilizing his troops to fight against his own union.

Not once did he mobilize his supporters to demonstrate or protest anything against the tyrants that run Trimet.

As a matter of fact he gave the Trimet executives EVERYTHING they asked for!
(hours of service, block signups, health care givebacks, Bruce really screwed us big time)

And so the truth about Bruce Hansen finally comes out, the only thing he cares about is himself.

Monday, July 13, 2015

Trimet anarchist Bob Cummings calls it quits

Good old Bob has been my 'partner in crime' for quite a few years now. 
A real fighter for justice  Bob produced and directed the PLIGHT OF THE TRIMET RETIREES , an excellent video production telling the true story of how the Trimet benefit cuts actually impacted current retirees.
 That story was never told in any other media.

In his parting photo he gives the Trimet salute!
He hit the magic 58 years old and bailed out of the Trimess!

Bruce Hansen refuses to accept his defeat

Bruce thinks that a new election will put him back in power.
I suppose this is part and parcel to the way unions work. People don't accept defeats gracefully. Unions are about people gaining positions of power and those in power don't give that up willingly. 

Bruce only garnered 35% of the total votes so he has no 'real' support.

The vice presidential election can be grieved because  Dan Martin wasn't technically eligible to run for office but the presidential election was totally on the up and up.
 Bruce lost fair and square. 

Notice his 'platform' is:
 HOW LONG BEFORE RON HEINTZMAN IS BROUGHT BACK AS A CONSULTANT?
(hopefully immediately)

That's Bruce's platform. Attacking another union man. Wonderful Bruce, just dandy.

He's also upset that Shirley fired the lawyer he hired . 
If I were Shirley I would dump everyone aligned with Bruce and get my own people in there.
 That's her right as president, just like Bruce did with Ron.

Who is it that is keeping this union divided now?
 That'd be Bruce Hansen.

I'm all in favor of having another election. Bruce can lose a second time. 
Maybe then he will get behind the wheel of his bus and leave the rest of us alone.

Shirley Block takes over the leadership of ATU757

Shirley is the 1st black female president of ATU757
 I am excited to see Shirley take over leadership of the ATU757.
Shirley has been a real fighter against Trimet tyranny and that is exactly what we union members need right now! 
No more compromises, no more concessions! We have a fighter at the helm now!
Beware Stedmen, Mcfarlane, and Lomax. We are not going to take your bullshit any longer 
 
Here are some of Shirley's past writings.

Friday, July 10, 2015

The dick head hob knobbing with insiders


Portland Light Rail Mafia

Trimet has always been a tool for the rich to get richer
 Willamette Week Here!
Dan Wieden recently did something few Oregonians can do: He bought a dollar for 75 cents.
Wieden, co-founder of Portland’s Wieden+Kennedy advertising agency, purchased a $1.8 million state income tax credit from TriMet in April. To get the credit, he paid only  $1.35 million—saving $450,000 on his taxes.

Mcfarlane is such as asshole

Rampant Lion


ATU International president on "hours of service"

If your employers are seeking to negotiate or impose new rules about the hours of service, be assured that this is their wish to get ahead of the federal government, NOT a directive of any kind from any government source.

ATU757 president says end the "block signups' NOW!


Thursday, July 9, 2015

Tuesday, July 7, 2015

"From the driver's side" tackles the new trimet animal policy

Not much of a change, per se, except they made it easier for passengers to lie about their pets being "service animals". And lie they do. Not only do they lie about Fido's status, but they encourage others to follow their lead. "Just say it's a service animal," I overheard someone say on my bus recently. "Then they have to let you ride."

One operator recently suggested a rider's pet had to be in a carrier. Another passenger immediately began berating the driver about not knowing the rules. Poor operator was trying to tell the lady she could ride but had to keep Fido on her lap. Snobby Sally insisted on their getting off the bus and threatened to complain about the driver, citing his "attitude". We can't win, it seems.

This new wording encourages more deception from the riding public. Some people bask in the glory of giving us grief at every opportunity. Now, everybody's dog can be a "service animal", and even if they're not they can sit in their lap or at their "handler's" feet. Riiiight. I've seen people struggling to keep their dogs under control on the sidewalk, then drag them onto my bus and insist it's their service, or companion animal.
Read the whole post: From the Driver Side: Service Animals, or Animal Service?

Erik Halstead calls out another Trimet lie


The truth

Trimet supervisor ran into a max train

https://twitter.com/HighonTriMet/status/618176130428698626

Monday, July 6, 2015

Run the water for 10 mins before drinking?

Bus drivers thinking they are fare inspectors will always lead to violence against bus operators

Lynn Bowersox, Metro’s assistant general manager for customer service, said at a recent Metro board meeting that bus operators under pressure often mishandle situations.
“Eighty times last year, our employees made the wrong choice,” she said. “They confronted a fare evader. And 80 times they were spat upon, slapped, punched and twice stabbed as a result of fare-collection disputes that escalated.”

 Bus drivers’ fears of assaults rise to the top of Metrobus challenges - The Washington Post

All local government workers can legally smoke pot but Trimet's

Sunday, July 5, 2015

Portland's world class transit agency


Friday, July 3, 2015

Trimet is a fascist environment

It's legal to smoke marijuana  for citizens of Oregon.
But employees of Trimet are not actually citizens of Oregon!
They are employees of Trimet first and citizens of Oregon second!

Sorry Trimet people

You're still being recorded. 
The feed is just not public at this time.