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Portland Aerial Tram Updates - City/OHSU Agreement on Operation of the Aerial Tram

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Here are the basic elements of a 20-year collaborative arrangement governing operations of the Portland Aerial Tram, agreed to by representatives of the City of Portland and OHSU and approved by City Council June 7 in a 4-to-1 vote..

 
  • The City will retain ownership of the tram. It will be responsible for “civil elements” of the tram, defined in the agreement as all components not supplied and installed by Dopplemayr-CTEC, Inc., the mechanical components contractor. Examples of civil elements are the upper and lower terminals, the support towers and other related infrastructure.
  • OHSU will be responsible for tram operations. It will let and administer the contract with a tram operator, provide security services at the upper and lower stations and, by a delegation of authority from the City, enforce public trespass laws on the tram, which will not be considered a public forum.
  • Eighty-five percent of the tram’s net operating costs will be allocated to OHSU and 15 percent to the City during the first two years of operation. Subsequently, the allocation will be adjusted based on the actual percentage split, as determined by ridership surveys, between the general public and OHSU-associated users.
  • A City project manager will oversee the City’s tram obligations, which will include routine and non-routine maintenance, repair and, if necessary, replacement of the civil elements of the tram. The City will hire an independent ropeway engineer to conduct yearly inspections of the tramway and submit written reports on its condition and also will hire an engineer to inspect all of the civil elements.
  • An OHSU project manager will oversee OHSU’s obligations under the agreement.
  • OSHU’s contract with a tram operator will require, among other things, that such contractor:
    • Operate the tram during at least the base operating hours of 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. on weekdays excluding holidays and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturdays excluding holidays.
    • Operate the tram as a public conveyance and not for OHSU’s exclusive business.
    • Perform all routine maintenance and janitorial duties on the tramway and at the tram stations.
    • Provide access to the general public to the upper terminal on Marquam Hill through the 9th floor corridor of the Kohler Pavilion for pedestrian traffic, and around the Kohler Pavilion to Sam Jackson Park Road for bicyclists.
    • Comply with the most current applicable American National Standards Institute (ANSI) standards in the operation, maintenance and testing of the tramway; develop a standard operating procedure manual, conduct ridership surveys and conduct at least one rescue drill annually.
    • Provide insurance coverage for the City, OHSU, the State of Oregon and their respective officers, employees and agents.
    • Indemnify, defend, and hold harmless the City, OHSU, the State of Oregon, the Oregon Transportation Commission and the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) and all officers, employees and agents of these entities from claims, suits and liabilities impacting them and resulting from the tram operator’s operation and maintenance of the tramway and of the tram.
    • Prohibit any visual distraction to motorists in order to ensure the safety of traffic on nearby highways.
  • The City and OHSU acknowledged in the agreement that the successful operation of the tram is contingent upon a close and effective working relationship between the parties, their employees, officials and agents. To that end, coordination will occur on a day-to-day basis between the City’s and OHSU’s tram project managers.
  • In addition, a joint, seven-member OHSU-City Executive Management Committee (EMC) will be responsible for oversight of tram operations, policy guidance and dispute resolution.
  • The City’s representatives on the EMC will be its chief administrative officer, the director of its Office of Transportation and the director of its Bureau of Transportation Engineering & Development. OHSU’s representatives will be its chief administrative officer, its chief financial officer and its South Waterfront project director. The independent seventh member jointly selected by the two parties will be someone experienced in commercial transactions or business operations.