Orchards resident Bryan White says ‘we must support the candidates who will fight to keep light rail out of Clark County and tolls off of our freeways’
Editor’s note: Opinions expressed in this letter to the editor are those of the author alone and do not reflect the editorial position of ClarkCountyToday.com
For the last decade, it was rare to see a single-car MAX train. This summer, I’ve seen them as often as I’ve seen two-car trains.

This is Portland quietly admitting that TriMet’s ridership is too low to be worth running full-capacity trains. With the most recent trains and FX line buses, TriMet locked themselves into vehicles that cost more to run, when they could save money and better serve their paying ridership using vans.
And now they want to send their trains into Clark County?
What’s their actual goal in taking their empty trains across the Columbia? Easy: make Clark County’s citizens pay for their poor planning. It’s the same thing they hope to accomplish in adding tolls to the freeways: stick it to the people in the next state.
Every reason Portland wants to “serve” Clark County is bad. They want to give their criminals free rides out of state and shift hidden taxes to us.
We must support the candidates who will fight to keep light rail out of Clark County and tolls off of our freeways. Please join me, depending on your legislative district, in voting for John Ley, Brad Benton, Lucia Worthington, Chuck Keplar, and Joe Kent when your ballot arrives.
Bryan White
Orchards
Also read:
- Opinion: Portland’s War on Cars Part 4 – A smarter automobile strategy to end gridlockO’Toole argues fuel wasted in Portland-area congestion has sextupled since 1982, generating 250,000 tons of extra greenhouse gases annually.
- Opinion: Transit ridership trends are dismal but regional plans are obliviousPuget Sound transit passenger-miles fell 31% from 2015 to 2024 despite a half-million-resident population increase.
- Interstate Bridge Replacement Program seeks qualified firms for bridge replacement contractThe CRBR project is backed by $5.7 billion from state funds, federal grants, and future tolling.
- Opinion: Bankrupt – A $3.5 billion Rose Quarter Freeway widening projectJoe Cortright argues ODOT’s Rose Quarter project has grown from a $450M approval to a $3.5B estimate, with a $2B funding gap.
- Opinion: Portland’s War on Cars 3 – Ending the war on automobilesO’Toole argues Portland should add toll lanes, fix safety hazards, and redesign TriMet routes to end its anti-auto policies.






