On September 22, 2012 the award-winning Portland Central Loop Project opened for revenue service. The Central Loop is a 3.5 mile extension of the existing and highly-successful Portland Streetcar system. It provides service from Portland’s downtown to the Central Eastside Business District across the Willamette River in support of the City of Portland’s housing and land use goals outlined in its Central City Plan. The line also connects the Rose Garden Arena, the Lloyd District, Oregon Convention Center, and Oregon Museum of Science and Industry.

AECOM supported TriMet, Metro and City of Portland staff during all phases of the project’s development including Alternatives Analysis, NEPA clearances and preparation of the Small Starts Report. AECOM led all design work for the project which included 28 new streetcar stops, a new streetcar-only structure over the Union Pacific Railroad mainline, a new maintenance facility building and, the retrofit of tracks and OCS systems across the historically-eligible Broadway Bridge. The Loop Project marks a new era in the transit industry as the first streetcar project to receive funding from the FTA’s Small Starts program.

The project was awarded a Grand Award by ACEC Oregon for Excellence in Design.