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Label:
Traffic advisory
Published
Updated
Workers atop a Portland Aerial Tram rope tower during the haul rope replacement maintenance project in 2016. Photo courtesy of Randy Glary.
(May 19, 2026) The Portland Aerial Tram will close for scheduled maintenance from 7 p.m. on Thursday, May 21, reopening at 5:30 a.m. on Tuesday, May 26. The work is scheduled for the Memorial Day holiday weekend, when the tram experiences lower than normal use and also closes for the national holiday.
The closure will allow crews to shorten the tram's haul rope, which is used to propel the tram cabins from one station to the other. The haul rope stretches over time and must be shortened every 18 months and replaced every six years.
During this time, shuttle service will be offered. Go By Bike services will temporarily move to Zidell Yards on Wednesday, May 20.
For safety reasons, the upper tram platform and tram elevator will also be closed during the work. The pedestrian bridge through the OHSU Kohler Pavilion garage will remain open for access into the main hospital buildings from OHSU Casey Eye Institute and lower Campus Drive.
Shuttle hours
You can catch a tram shuttle at the Whitaker Lot on the South Waterfront and OHSU Kohler Pavilion turnaround on Marquam Hill. See a map of the shuttle route.
The shuttle hours will be:
- Thursday, May 21: 7 to 9:30 p.m.
- Friday, May 22: 5:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m.
- Saturday, May 23: 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
- Sunday, May 24: No service
- Monday, May 25: No service, normal holiday closure
Fare will not be required to board the shuttles. Even though shuttles will be available during the Tram's normal hours, please plan to add as much as 30 minutes to your time in transit and expect to wait 10-15 minutes at each stop.
Shuttles are ADA accessible. However, anyone needing ADA access and transport should speak to an attendant to coordinate assistance.
Alternative routes
Alternative routes between Marquam Hill and the South Waterfront are available on gobytram.com.
Go By Bike operations
Go By Bike will be temporarily relocated just north of the base of the Tram, at Zidell Yards, on Wednesday, May 20, to facilitate the required Tram maintenance. Go By Bike will be closed Monday, May 25, in observance of Memorial Day. Normal Go By Bike operations will resume on Tuesday, May 26 at the base of the Tram. Should you have any questions, or need to discuss alternate accommodations, please reach out to commute@ohsu.edu.
About the Portland Aerial Tram
The Portland Aerial Tram is owned by the Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) and operated by OHSU. It opened to the public on Jan. 27, 2007. The cabins, named Walt and Jean, travel 3,300 linear feet between the South Waterfront terminal adjacent to the OHSU Center for Health & Healing and the upper terminal at the OHSU Kohler Pavilion on OHSU's main campus. Traveling at 22 miles per hour, the tram cabins rise 500 feet for the three-minute trip over I-5, the Lair Hill neighborhood and the Southwest Terwilliger Parkway. Visit GoByTram.com or find the tram on Twitter and Facebook and Instagram.
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