Portland will contribute $17.7 million to TriMet's proposed project to add high-capacity express bus service between downtown and Gresham.

The City Council unanimously supported the plan to fund a share of the $175 million transit project. TriMet hopes to receive $87.3 million in federal funds for new transit stations and buses to serve a 15-mile stretch of Division Street.

The transit agency hopes to begin building the new high-capacity bus service in late 2019 and open the transit line by 2022.

The project calls for new 60-foot articulated buses to carry more riders, add more buses to run every 15 minutes or more frequently during rush hour, and give buses signal priority at traffic lights. Most of the project costs come from new buses or passenger platforms along the route.

Portland will also begin work on filling sidewalk gaps on a three-mile stretch of outer Division Street, which is one of the most dangerous roads in the city.

The city construction project includes 13 new signalized pedestrian crossings, more than 57 new street lights and nearly five miles of protected bike lanes.

In a statement, Portland Bureau of Transportation Interim Director Chris Warner said the transit project fits into a larger suite of investments in east Portland funded by a voter-approved gas tax and the 2017 state transportation package.

"East Portland doesn't have the public transit service, bike routes and sidewalks that many Portlanders take for granted," Warner said in a statement. "We have been working to change that, and the City Council's commitment to the Division Transit Project marks a key milestone that will improve public transit. The Division Transit Project and our upcoming safety project on Division will make it safer for thousands of people in East Portland to bike, walk and take public transit to work, school and shopping destinations."

According to TriMet estimates, the transit project will reduce travel times by 15 to 20 percent.

The majority of the city funds, $15.7 million, will come from fees charged to developers for new construction projects.

-- Andrew Theen

atheen@oregonian.com

503-294-4026

@andrewtheen