TriMet, more formally known as the Tri-County Metropolitan Transportation District of Oregon, is a public agency that operates mass transit in a region that spans most of the Portland metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Oregon. Created in 1969 by the Oregon legislature, the district replaced five private bus companies that operated in the three counties; Multnomah, Washington, and Clackamas. TriMet started operating a light rail system named MAX in 1986, which has since been expanded to 5 lines that now cover 59.7 miles (96.1 km), as well as a commuter rail line in 2009. It also provides the operators and maintenance personnel for the City of Portland-owned Portland Streetcar system.
In addition to rail lines, TriMet provides the region's bus system, as well as LIFT paratransit service. There are 610 buses in TriMet's fleet that operate on 80 lines. In Fiscal Year 2013, the entire system averaged almost 316,700 rides per weekday and operates buses and trains between the hours of approximately 5 a.m. and 2 a.m. with no "night owl" service. TriMet's annual budget for FY2014 is $489 million, with over half of revenues coming from a district-wide payroll tax. The district is overseen by a seven-person board of governors appointed by the state's governor. In 2014, the agency has around 2,500 employees.
TriMet (stylized as TRIMET) is an outdoor 1977 aluminum sculpture by American artist Robert Maki, installed on the Mount Hood Community College campus in Gresham, Oregon, United States. According to the Regional Arts & Culture Council, which administers the work, "TRIMET serves as an excellent example of how Maki's technical background is reflected in his work. The sculpture is built of geometric shapes that evolve and morph as the viewer moves around it, using negative space to help define the mass of the sculpture itself." It measures 8' x 9' 3" x 4' and was funded by TriMet and the United States Department of Transportation.
Woo hey! Uh uh - no way
No way complain huh
I'm not your doormat, your floormat
So don't wipe your feet on me
I'm not the only Garibaldi
Well there's more fish in the sea
I'm not your puppy, your goldfish
So don't treat me like a pet
Hey I'm not your butterfly
So don't chase me with your net
I'm not your kneaded eraser
So don't you wear me down
I'm not your sledge, uh sledge hammer
I'm no tool, that you pound
I'm not your blacktop, for hopscotch
So don't jump all over me
I'm not the place where the dogs roam
At the bottom of the tree
Don't you treat me like I have no feelings
Don't you treat me like that, I have feelings
Don't treat me like that
Don't you treat me like that
Don't treat me like that
Don't you treat me like that!
Uh yeah yeah oh oh na uh uh
Woo hoo ooh ooh
I'm not your carefree, nor sugarless
Like the gum on your shoe,
I'm not the ring 'round your finger
Nor am I wrapped around you
I'm not your shoe string, your rope thing
So don't tie me in a knot
I'm not your asphalt, with oil spots
So don't use me as a parking lot
Don't you treat me like I have no feelings
Don't you treat me like that, I have feelings
Don't you treat me like IEhave no feelings