The voice of TriMet

As you are walking around Portland amongst the sirens, horns and other regular traffic sounds, you may begin to hear something new—you may be hearing voices. Certain bus lines are now testing their new sound system that talks to pedestrians outside of the bus.

TriMet bus lines 14 and 15 will be talking to pedestrians as they make their turns. The lines run through city center, northwest and southeast Portland. The alert is being tested on 10 buses. Other lines will eventually be tested during the pilot trial period.

When the driver goes to turn the wheel, a woman’s voice will be heard outside of the bus aimed at pedestrians clearly saying: “Pedestrians, bus is turning.”

The system is currently being tested in eight other cities, but the tipping point for Portland to test the system was after last April’s terrible tragedy, in which five pedestrians were struck and two were crushed to death after a TriMet driver made an illegal left turn.

The pedestrian alert system will be announced in both English and Spanish, and will cost TriMet $46,000.

Portland not only has many people using the public transportation system, but also has high pedestrian traffic. Obviously, pedestrian safety should be a priority for the city, but is a pedestrian alert system really better than honking a horn? Does TriMet really need to spend more money on this?

The biggest question is just how much money does TriMet have? Lines have been cut, stops have been cut, Fareless Square has been reduced to the Free Rail Zone and yet TriMet is spending more money and installing something that a horn can do just as well.

TriMet needs to stop spending money on more “extravagant” things and start putting its focus back where it belongs—on services for the people. Public services need to be the top priority for the public transportation organization.

If TriMet wants to spend money on extras, then it should first be sure to reinstall lines and stops that have been cut out rather than spending extra on things that are not necessities.

A loud announcement is not going to be any more powerful than a horn, and while a horn may be considered loud or rude, telling pedestrians that they need to get out of the way is not exactly the time to be timid and polite.

Pedestrians also need to take some responsibility and pay attention to their surroundings. Look both ways before crossing the street, pay attention to walk signs and pay attention to traffic.

Even though the funds being used for the pedestrian alert system may not entirely fund more stops, lines or reinstate Fareless Square, it could be the beginning to reinstating some of TriMet’s glory days.

While the pedestrian alert system seems like a good idea at first glance, it is important to realize that there are so many other services that TriMet can provide for the public that could be even greater than a talking bus. Reinstating lines, stops and even Fareless Square has the possibility of reaching out to more people than just a PA system on the bus. ?