The Transit Czar 'salutes' us

A bit belated – but I wanted to offer my own Labor Day salute to the employees of TriMet. You offer a great service to our customers and our region, and you do it in circumstances that are always changing and often challenging. We ask a lot of you, and you deliver. I am proud to work at TriMet with such a dedicated and talented work force. We have grown an amazing public transit system together – now carrying 100 million rides a year. We’ve grown from 15 million riders annually when TriMet was formed. We’ve grown with strong partnerships and community support. And we’ve grown to be a strong ‘can do’ organization. The good service we offer every day may be taken for granted by some – but I know it is key to our continuing success over time. I thank each of you for your contribution to our success! We all know the contract between ATU 757 and TriMet remains unsettled – currently headed for arbitration. There are inevitable stresses and strains between the Union and TriMet management. We are all living through difficult times – pundits are calling it the ‘new normal.’ I hope that’s not the case, and that economic growth returns to our region in the future, and that threats to our funding diminish over time. Until then, we have some real financial challenges to overcome. I know the local union leadership is working hard to represent its members during these difficult times, and I highly regard that responsibility. Similarly, there are responsibilities we in management have to our taxpayers, to our riders and all of the communities we serve -- and certainly to all of our employees. We’ll come to a balance point in time. For now, I just want to offer my salute to the great job our TriMet employees do and the challenges you overcome daily. From getting a safe and reliable fleet out on the street to the operators that safely transport thousands of people each day to the friendly service from our customer service staff – as well as all those in payroll, facilities and all the other behind the scenes functions – each day you’re there to make TriMet work! Thanks for the work you do every day. Best Neil

{I wish I could believe him!}