Portland to Test Stop Thinning to Speed Up Streetcars

"Portland Streetcar is planning to temporarily close five stops in downtown Portland and the Pearl District in an effort to speed up travel," reports Elliot Njus.

"The trial, expected to begin in February and last at least a month, targets places where frequent stops take a toll on travel time and where collisions tend to block tracks and take trains out of service."

According to Njus, the speed of the streetcar is the number one complaint of both riders and non-riders. The month-long trail will allow Portland Streetcar Inc. to collect data on the operation of the system to determine whether the measures were sufficient to improve the speed of the system.

The decision to consolidate—or "thin"—stops is also on the table in Los Angeles, where the county transit agency is considering a plan that would remove stops for the bus system in the hopes of speeding up buses as they travel along their route.