 Before I share with you what we've been up to at TriMet, I have some sad news. Aaron Deas is moving on. He's been a great employee for TriMet for 15 years, and he has made a difference for our agency and the state. We wish him the best and will miss him.
 After a year where record-setting weather seemed like the norm, teams across TriMet have spent months preparing for whatever this winter may bring.
We’re also working with our local transportation partners on a coordinated and strategic response to winter weather, to help keep our community moving safely when conditions get challenging.
We’ve expanded our safety presence with a new unarmed team trained in conflict resolution. Our 24-person Safety Response Teams will help people on and around our system, connecting them with local services such as health care, mental health and housing.
The Safety Response Teams are part of our larger efforts to Reimagine Public Safety on Transit.
Our new Reimagine Public Safety Advisory Committee will help TriMet move forward on efforts like this to ensure our transit system is safe, accessible and welcoming to all.
 Our new General Manager, Sam Desue Jr., brings to the job decades of varied work experience in the transportation industry .In a new video, Sam opens up about his childhood, early use of transit and what inspired him to become a bus driver.
 We’ve teamed up with FOX 12 Oregon to feature career opportunities at TriMet and show off our amazing employees! Good Day Oregon’s Joe V. talked with operators, trainers, supervisors and mechanics about why they love their job, the great pay and benefits and the service they proudly provide to the community.
Veterans are also finding a home at TriMet, including a bus operator serving as a medic in the Army National Guard. He explained how his military training and experience prepared him to thrive in the driver’s seat.
 Our electric bus program continues to expand. The first of three used diesel buses we converted to be 100% electric is back in Portland.If testing proves successful, a conversion program like this could cut time and cost as we move toward a zero-emissions bus fleet by 2040.
 Construction of the Division Transit Project is more than 80% complete! The high capacity bus service between Gresham and Downtown Portland will move riders up to 20% faster once it opens next fall..
Three landscaping businesses owned by people of color are working hard making the Division Street corridor more vibrant and colorful. They’re among the 35 Disadvantaged Business Firms (DBE) firms that have worked on the Division Transit Project.
 All year long, TriMet has been celebrating the diversity of the communities that we serve. For November, we debuted a bus honoring local Native American leaders, organizers and advocates. The bus will serve routes across Multnomah, Washington and Clackamas counties for the next nine months.
Take a look at our other celebration buses and people featured on them.
 Articulated buses will be running down Division Street starting in fall 2022, when the Division Transit Project opens. Despite being 20 feet longer than our “regular” buses, these articulated buses have almost the same turn radius. It’s true – check it out!
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