St. Johns Bridge dedication
Posted by Jonathan Maus (Editor) on September 15th, 2005 at 11:02 am
This weekend is the official re-opening celebration of the St. Johns Bridge (Sat 11-11, Sun 11-6)…but it will be hard for many in the bike community to celebrate. As you may recall, the folks at the Oregon Dept. of Transportation (ODOT) decided to provide zero bike facilities on the bridge. This was despite the input of both the bike community and an independent consulting group. It was a wasted opportunity to connect the peninsula to Forest Park and to make Highway 30 a more viable commuting route into the city. It also frustrated and angered many people in the bike community. and got the attention of the the Willamette Week.
I’ve heard some rumors that some shared lane markings (”sharrows“) might be coming soon…but I haven’t heard a confirmation.
Bottom line is that the bridge in its current state is simply too dangerous for bikes. I have heard from both experienced riders and weekend warriors that it is just a matter of time before someone is seriously injured or killed.
There will be representatives of ODOT on hand at the celebration and I think it’d be great to have a good showing of cyclists. If nothing else, just to remind them that we’re here and that they shouldn’t ignore us.
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September 15th, 2005 18:41
It would be cool if there were more bikers than drivers there. I'd like to sarcastically tell ODOT, "hey thanks for thinking of us!".