TriMet has two of its new Siemens S70 light rail cars on the property and is currently testing them. Both were delivered to and are testing out of the Ruby Junction shops in Gresham, just east of Portland.

The agency will receive 20 more S70s over the next year as its gears up for the September 2009 opening of the Green Line between downtown Portland and Clackamas. Trackage in downtown Portland is essentially complete; the Steel Bridge across the Willamette River is currently closed to allow crews to connect the Green Line tracks to the existing ROW. A bus bridge is in place between the Rose Quarter and Old Town light rail shops; both the Red Line and the Yellow Line are stubbed on the east side. The trackwork is expected to finish Aug. 24.

Meanwhile, TriMet and Portland & Western are route testing WES DMU #1001 and cab trailer coach #2001 out of the WES shops in Wilsonville, south of Portland. I had the opportunity to recon the route and take photos Aug. 2 and have posted some ot them to my Rose City & NorthWestern web site at www.trainweb.org/mccann/wes.htm.

A unique feature found along the WES route is the track gantlets at the intermediate stops (Hall-Nimbus, Tigard, Tualatin) to allow P&W trains to pass the high-level platforms without fouling them.