The Portland city block bound by Southwest Morrison and Yamhill streets to the north and south and 6th Avenue and Broadway to the east and west had previously been occupied by various structures, including a school, a hotel, and a two-story parking garage. In 1969, block owner Meier & Frank requested a permit for the construction of an 800-car parking garage, which the Portland City Council rejected after a series of heated public hearings. The controversial proposal led the city and the local business community to pursue a comprehensive downtown plan that envisioned turning the site into a public space instead. After several negotiations with Meier & Frank, the city purchased the property and in 1980, announced a national design competition for a plaza that would be called "Pioneer Courthouse Square". Portland's first light rail line, which planners referred to as the Banfield light rail project, received federal approval for construction in September 1980. Just over a year later, TriMet published a conceptual design report of the project that outlined a 27-station, line, including a pair of light rail stations at Pioneer Courthouse Square. The plans called for a pair of platforms to be situated along the north and south ends of the square on Southwest Morrison and Yamhill streets. Construction of the line commenced in April 1983 in Gresham and largely progressed from east to west, with the downtown segment among the final sections to be completed. Street and sidewalk reconstruction work finally reached downtown in March the following year. While work continued on the line, the city finished building the square and dedicated it on April 6, 1984. By March 1986, major light rail construction work had ceased. Line testing in downtown began with the arrival of the first light rail car that May. On September 5, 1986, TriMet officially opened the light rail line, which it named Metropolitan Area Express, to the public. A three-day celebration took place across the route, including at Pioneer Courthouse Square, which hosted an opening ceremony and several concerts. More than 3,000 people gathered at the square to welcome the 11:45 am arrival of the first train from Gresham. Between 1986 and 1998, MAX service ran from Cleveland Avenue in central Gresham to 11th Avenue in downtown Portland, serving the Pioneer Square stations. In 1998, TriMet extended MAX service farther west to Hatfield Government Center in downtown Hillsboro in Washington County with the opening of the Westside MAX extension. On September 10, 2001, the Red Line, which connected downtown—and eventually Beaverton—to Portland International Airport, became the second line to serve the stations while the line that ran between Hillsboro and Gresham became the Blue Line. From 2004 to 2009, the Yellow Line, which runs to the Expo Center in North Portland, also stopped at these stations until TriMet rerouted it to the light rail tracks on Portland Transit Mall in August 2009.
Station details
The Pioneer Square stations occupy the sidewalks facing Southwest Yamhill and Morrison streets between Broadway and 6th Avenue in downtown Portland. Each station consists of one side platform. Pioneer Courthouse Square, commonly known as "Portland's Living Room", is situated between the two platforms. Amenities include garbage cans, shelters, and schedule information displays. TriMet's ticket office is located inside the visitor information center on the west side of the square between the water features. Fares may be purchased at the ticket office or from ticket vending machines on the platforms. Oregon's first Starbucks outlet sits adjacent to the western edge of the westbound platform. TriMet considers the square a transit hub. It is the only location in the MAX system where all five existing light rail services interconnect. The northbound light rail tracks on the Portland Transit Mall run along the immediate east side of the Pioneer Square station platforms on 6th Avenue; this provides a direct transfer to the MAX platform of Pioneer Courthouse/Southwest 6th station across the street, which is served by the Green and Yellow lines. On the opposite end of this adjacent block, which is occupied by the Pioneer Courthouse, is the southbound MAX station, Pioneer Place/Southwest 5th. This station is served by the Green and Orange lines. The Pioneer Square stations also facilitate transfers to buses serving the Portland Transit Mall.
Service
The Pioneer Square stations are served by the MAX Blue Line, which connects them to Beaverton and Hillsboro to the west and Gresham to the east, and the MAX Red Line, which connects them to Beaverton to the west and Portland International Airport to the east. From the stations, westbound trains take approximately 25minutes to reach Beaverton Transit Center and 50minutes to reach Hatfield Government Center station. Eastbound trains take approximately 35minutes to reach Portland International Airport station and 50minutes to reach Cleveland Avenue station. The stations together recorded an average 5,123 riders on weekdays in fall 2019.
