Recent from talks
Greater Portland Metro
Knowledge base stats:
Talk channels stats:
Members stats:
Greater Portland Metro
The Greater Portland METRO is a regional public transportation system, established in 1966, in Southern Maine. Operated by the Greater Portland Transit District, a transit district comprising Portland, Westbrook, Falmouth, Yarmouth, Freeport, Brunswick and Bath, the system also covers downtown Gorham and South Portland.
METRO is Maine's largest public transportation agency. The transit system's annual ridership was 2,104,150 in 2019, up 13.7% from 1,850,686 in 2017.
As of 2016, METRO operated a fleet of eighteen compressed natural gas (CNG) buses and fourteen diesel buses. It operates and maintains the only CNG fuel station in the state of Maine.
The ancestor to the METRO, the Portland and Forest Avenue Railroad Co., began operating horse-drawn lines in 1860. They were upgraded to streetcars in 1891, which operated for fifty years before the company switched to buses. The company's new parent, Central Maine Power, sold the buses to Portland Coach Company in 1944.
Concerned about the viability of transit in the region, the Greater Portland Transit District was created in 1966. Three years later it purchased the struggling Portland Coach Company, which became METRO in 1976. Several municipalities serviced by METRO withdrew during an age of contraction; service to Yarmouth and Cape Elizabeth ended in 1978, South Portland withdrew in 1983 (although METRO continues to run select buses to the city), and the Portland School Department began operating its own buses in 1985.
The system began to turnaround in the late 1990s, and in 2004 it expanded to Falmouth, which later joined the Greater Portland Transit District. Portland Public Schools ended yellow school bus transportation for all of Portland's high school students and entered into an agreement with METRO to provide each student with a free unlimited METRO pass starting in 2015. The program has generated 250,000 boardings for the agency while allowing Portland Public Schools greater flexibility with school bell times and repurposing staff and equipment resources to other priorities. Portland charter school Baxter Academy for Technology and Science also offers METRO passes to students.
The METRO BREEZ express service started in June 2016. It serves Portland, Falmouth, Yarmouth, Freeport, Brunswick and Bath. Two new lines debuted in August 2018 serving Gorham and adding expanded service to Westbrook. New buses with USB ports and Wi-Fi were introduced around 2020, as were bus shelters.
In October 2024, it was announced that Greater Portland METRO would merge with South Portland Bus Service and incorporate South Portland's Routes 21, 24A, and 24B into METRO, effective December 29, 2024. The routes in South Portland are most likely going to remain the same, although METRO may suggest improvements over the next few years. All South Portland drivers were taken into employment at METRO.
Hub AI
Greater Portland Metro AI simulator
(@Greater Portland Metro_simulator)
Greater Portland Metro
The Greater Portland METRO is a regional public transportation system, established in 1966, in Southern Maine. Operated by the Greater Portland Transit District, a transit district comprising Portland, Westbrook, Falmouth, Yarmouth, Freeport, Brunswick and Bath, the system also covers downtown Gorham and South Portland.
METRO is Maine's largest public transportation agency. The transit system's annual ridership was 2,104,150 in 2019, up 13.7% from 1,850,686 in 2017.
As of 2016, METRO operated a fleet of eighteen compressed natural gas (CNG) buses and fourteen diesel buses. It operates and maintains the only CNG fuel station in the state of Maine.
The ancestor to the METRO, the Portland and Forest Avenue Railroad Co., began operating horse-drawn lines in 1860. They were upgraded to streetcars in 1891, which operated for fifty years before the company switched to buses. The company's new parent, Central Maine Power, sold the buses to Portland Coach Company in 1944.
Concerned about the viability of transit in the region, the Greater Portland Transit District was created in 1966. Three years later it purchased the struggling Portland Coach Company, which became METRO in 1976. Several municipalities serviced by METRO withdrew during an age of contraction; service to Yarmouth and Cape Elizabeth ended in 1978, South Portland withdrew in 1983 (although METRO continues to run select buses to the city), and the Portland School Department began operating its own buses in 1985.
The system began to turnaround in the late 1990s, and in 2004 it expanded to Falmouth, which later joined the Greater Portland Transit District. Portland Public Schools ended yellow school bus transportation for all of Portland's high school students and entered into an agreement with METRO to provide each student with a free unlimited METRO pass starting in 2015. The program has generated 250,000 boardings for the agency while allowing Portland Public Schools greater flexibility with school bell times and repurposing staff and equipment resources to other priorities. Portland charter school Baxter Academy for Technology and Science also offers METRO passes to students.
The METRO BREEZ express service started in June 2016. It serves Portland, Falmouth, Yarmouth, Freeport, Brunswick and Bath. Two new lines debuted in August 2018 serving Gorham and adding expanded service to Westbrook. New buses with USB ports and Wi-Fi were introduced around 2020, as were bus shelters.
In October 2024, it was announced that Greater Portland METRO would merge with South Portland Bus Service and incorporate South Portland's Routes 21, 24A, and 24B into METRO, effective December 29, 2024. The routes in South Portland are most likely going to remain the same, although METRO may suggest improvements over the next few years. All South Portland drivers were taken into employment at METRO.
Recent media