The Portland Streetcar
Reinventing Transit: report case study 
The Portland Streetcar is estimated to prevent 70 million miles of vehicle travel annually. Source: Portland Streetcar, Inc.
Portland, OR
Population (2007): 568,380
Population Density: ~4,000 /sq mi
Source: Portland State University, Population Research Center
Official Portland streetcar website
Streetcar facts
- Portland Streetcar ridership has grown steadily since opening in 2001 and currently serves 13,000 riders per weekday.
- The service began with a 2.4 mile line initially costing $54 million and has expanded three times since, adding 1.6 miles, bringing the total capital investment to $103 million.
- A new east side expansion has been proposed for construction in June 2009 to be opened in the fall of 2011.
Offering a convenient way to get around downtown, the Portland Streetcar has helped spur extensive development and is a central part of the city’s transportation network.
Together with Portland’s light rail and bus system, the streetcar is one reason why automobile use (measured in vehicle miles traveled per capita) in Portland has actually declined by 6 percent since 1990, in contrast to the average for U.S. cities which has grown by 10 percent.
In fact, the Portland Streetcar is estimated to prevent 70 million miles of vehicle travel annually, thereby avoiding more traffic and pollution.
Now Portland is poised to become the center of a new industry as local manufacturers have become the first in decades to build U.S.-made modern streetcars.
New manufacturing jobs
Streetcar manufacturing is creating a new source of local jobs. Building upon the Portland Streetcar’s success, United Streetcar (a subsidiary of Oregon Iron Works, Inc.) began manufacturing the first U.S.-built modern streetcar in 2008.
Previously, all the Portland streetcars were manufactured in the Czech Republic, but now the cars can be manufactured locally in Portland. With the help of congressional representatives from Oregon and Washington, the City of Portland (with help from Oregon Iron Works) secured a $4 million contract for a prototype modern American streetcar.16 This contract allowed the company to hire over 20 new employees for streetcar design and production and they plan on hiring additional employees as new orders for streetcars are secured.
Additionally many local and US suppliers are now supplying American-made parts for this streetcar, creating additional jobs and a new product market for many small businesses. Besides manufacturing and construction jobs, the Portland Streetcar also supports over two dozen full-time train operators.
Economic development
In addition to creating new jobs directly, the Portland Streetcar has helped stimulate $3.5 billion in new development in downtown Portland and revitalized old neighborhoods that were in decline.
Within a three block distance from the streetcar, real estate investment has surged, with density increasing over 40% in just a few years. The subsequent development surrounding the streetcar represents over 5 million square feet of new construction including 10,000 housing units.
View the report notes.
See more innovative projects included in the Reinventing Transit report. 
Posted: 22-Apr-2009; Updated: 05-Feb-2009
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