I am fed up with this situation. Every time (and I do mean every time) I take the MAX, I encounter someone with a mental or hygiene issue or some other problem. Even in the middle of the day. Coming back from the airport a few days ago, there were two obviously disturbed and disruptive individuals in our car. Most people just ignore them, but what’s to prevent another stabbing incident like the one a few years ago? There is absolutely no security, and in 12 years, I’ve had my proof of fare checked only three times. This is absolutely unacceptable. Once I was on a MAX train and a rare group of fare checkers boarded. As soon as they started to board, half the people in the car hurried out the door. The reason was obvious. What do we have to do to get TriMet to pay attention to this problem? I am very angry and frustrated. Portland users of public transit — the ones who pay their fares — deserve better. Let’s get rid of the incompetent management at TriMet, which refuses to do anything about this longstanding problem.

Robert Cleveland, Portland