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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 21, 2001)
I Page A3 February 21,2001 L lu r tlu n ò Cßbseruer ÿtarUanb (ßbseruer Business RLRCR RISTOftH ÌÌIOÌÌTR Tri-Met Adds Online Trip Planning to Website Newest feature makes riding transit even easier T ri-M etjust m ade planning a tran sit trip as easy as typing ww w.tri- m et.org on a com puter and clicking on its new online T rip Planner. A ny com puter w ith Internet ac cess can now create custom transit trips. It w ill soon be available in Spanish, too. “T he T rip Planner m akes riding T ri-M et easier than ever,” said Fred H ansen, T ri-M et G eneral M anager. “T he m ost requested T ri-M et infor m ation is now available anytime, any place you have a com puter w ith w eb access.” Filling out the online T rip P lanner is sim ple - ju st enter this inform ation: Y our starting point - ei ther by address, intersection o r land m ark; w here you w ant to go - by address, intersection or landm ark; w hen you either w ant to leave or arrive; and w hether to list options by the quickest tim e, few est transfers or shortest w alk. O nce entered, the pro gram gives several trip options and instructions, including directions to the nearest bus stop o r M A X station; w hen you need to board; w here to transfer o r get off; and w alking dis tances and directions, fares and times. For exam ple, som eone at N E O ne Stop C areer C en ter on N E M artin L uther K ing Jr Blvd heading to Sw an Island for a jo b interview or w ork could get this inform ation: W alk w est to W illiam s & M orris; board 4 -F essenden to St. Johns - get o f f at A lbina & K illi n g s w o r th ; b o ard 72- K illingsw orth/82nd A ve to Sw an Is land; travel tim e: 35 m ins., including 10 mins, walking and 10 mins waiting. I f you use a palm com puter, Tri- M et route an d schedule inform ation can be dow nloaded, storing every M A X an d bus schedule right in the palm o f y o u r hand. T ri-M et created the online T rip P lanner becau se it is the m ost re quested inform ation at its w ebsite, which gets over 100,000visits a month. People w anting help planning rides can still call 503-238-R ID E on w eek days b etw e en 7 :3 0 a.m .a n d 5 :3 0 p .m . new online Trip Planner. Tri-Met unveiled its new service at the NE One Stop Career Center in Portland. County Environmental Sewage to Columbia Services Has New Mission Slough Finally Stopped The Board o f County Com m ission ers has voted unanim ously to reorga nize and change the m ission o f the County’s D epartment ofEnvironm en- tal Services. The newly nam ed Depart m ent o f Sustainable C om m unity D e velopment will take a leadership role in developing and im plem enting sustain able practices. “This change highlights the County’s critical role as a regional partner in protecting the environm ent, developing sustainable operations and enhancing the vitality and livability o f the com m unity,” said County Chau- Beverly Stein. The County is estab lishing sustainable developm ent prac tices to im prove services and rescue waste and pollution in its operations. The change will include adding alter natively fueled vehicles to the County fleet, and constructing and m aintain ing County facilities in a sustainable manner. “This new departm ent will help us to use our resources more efficiently and reduce the C ounty’s energy consumption,” said Chair Stein. (A P )-F o rth e firsttim e in lOOyears, the city o f Portland has m anaged to stop sewage from flooding into the C olum bia Slough w hen it rains. Now the city says it’s tim e to do the same for the W illamette River. The river project is the second h a lf o fa $ 1 billion plan to restructure the city ’s sew er system to reduce the am ount o f sew er w ater that spills into local waterways during heavy rains. The city plans to build a series o f large pipes an d pum ps along the west side o f the W illam ette R iver over the next five years. The problem dates back to the 1950s w hen Portland built its first sewage treatment plant. At that time, the city installed a “combined system ” o f large pipes that earned w astew ater from homes and busi nesses, and storm-water runoff from city streets, sidewalks and parking lots to the plant. During times o f heavy rainfall, however, the pipes couldn’t liandle the increased flow and the “com bined” w ater backed up and spilled sewage into nearby waterways. DEEP INSIDE T h o m a s o n h e a d q u a r te r s , SPECIAL MACHINES sm ash car p ay me n t s INTO AN EASILY d ig e s ti b le p a s te . TH O M aSO N a u t o g r o u p