pick her daughter up from school.
(Photos © J. Maus)
There has been a lot of talk and action around bicycle boulevards lately.
The term is used to describe low-traffic streets where bicycles are encouraged and supported through a number of engineering measures. They’re all the rage in the bike planning world and they’re one of the top priorities of the City of Portland in moving forward with its “transportation transformation.”
But lately I’ve noticed more and more non-bike and non-auto traffic on our local streets (skateboarders mostly) and have realized that the bicycle-centric term doesn’t quite do them justice.
Far from being just for or about bicycles, streets that are engineered to minimize motorized traffic (and to make it calm and predictable when it does happen), benefit everyone. Perhaps they should be called “People Streets”, “Safe Streets”, or “Healthy Streets”. After all, who could argue against either of those? (Not that bike boulevards have faced much opposition).
from the bars.
The reason I bring this up today is a woman named Marcella Red Thunder. I met Marcella, a 44-year old of Native American descent, as she pumped her Trikke scooter back and forth down NE 9th Ave, just south of Irving Park.
She rode in the middle of NE 9th (not technically a bike boulevard, but nice and calm nonetheless), undeterred by the threat of oncoming cars. I pulled alongside her and complimented her mode of transport. “Thanks!,” she said with a smile, “It saves me $99 a month plus initiation fees.” (A reference to the gym membership she doesn’t have to buy.)
I noticed Marcella had another scooter hanging from her bars. She was going to pick up her daughter from school. Marcella lives near N. Failing and Mallory and she was scooter-ing to Irvington School (at NE 14th and Brazee).
“I love riding my scooter,” said Marcella, “I’m feeling good, and it keeps me in the moment.”
If Portland can continue to improve its network of safe, efficient, and traffic-calmed streets, it’s not just people who ride bikes that will benefit. More people like Marcella will get to enjoy the satisfaction of being self-propelled and we’ll all be healthier as a result.
Whatever happened to the cities plans to lessen car traffic on SE Clinton. Even though it’s a “Bike Boulevard” I always encounter a lot of in a hurry vehicles using it as a cut through.
I love it that people walk, jog, skate, or whatever as well as bike down the middle of Tillamook. The problem is “cheaters”…folks in motor vehicles
avoiding Broadway, cutting thru, going too fast. The City has failed to post any signage that would signal that Tillamook is a different kind of street. Oh, there are the “bike dots,” but those are a secret known only to bicyclists, who are indeed the most frequent indication that the street is different. Portland has no true Bike Boulevards or People Streets or whatever.
I think some bike boulevards are better implemented than others. Tillamook doesn’t strike me as one of the better ones — it was a long time before I even realized it had been so designated — and I usually take Brazee instead. But SE Ankeny is nicely done and doesn’t get much traffic that isn’t local, which is great considering it is so close to the very busy Burnside. The speed bumps and diverters are well-placed to make it unattractive to drivers looking to avoid Burnside traffic.
I share the sentiment that bike paths should be open to all human-powered usage, and to disabled persons using powered scooters or similar rigs. But I have also seen in the last few weeks gas-powered scooters and mopeds on bike paths, and the city needs to post clear signage indicating that powered rigs are off-limits.
Once people riding powered vehicles get used to bike paths, they will become an entitlement, and we will never get them off.
Also, it is amazing that I don’t see any other cyclists than myself bothering to inform the mopeds that they are breaking the law. I think if cyclists were to show a little backbone it would help.
While I’m sure the speed bumps do decrease the overall average speed of cars driving through them, I do frequently see a lot of “slow down for the speed bump, then slam on the gas” by drivers who are obviously not honoring the intent of the road.
I think the main element that makes bike boulevards work well are the traffic islands that force cars to turn off the streets so they can’t just cut all the way across them. We may need to get more of those installed on Clinton, for example.
RE; #1
Yeah, stretches of Salmon can sometimes get a lot of cars at times too.
Why can’t the city actively discourage motor vehicle traffic on bike boulevards?
Agreed on the traffic islands. I take Harrison/Lincoln on my return commute and it really aids in getting traffic off the street. Though I do worry about the bus returning soon, though I’m more worried that the stop in front of my home will return and I will be subject to the constant litter and vandalism of the past.
In Seattle, they used to have some streets marked with the signage “Bicycles have the right-of-way.”
Some “cut-throughs” using boulevards may actually live in those neighborhoods. As long as they are motoring at a law-abiding speed and not being aggressive toward cyclers, they should be able to use the blvds.
Wow!
Marcella is one of my DEAREST friends! (Jonathan: her last name is Red Thunder, not Feather). My Ellie and her Josette are best buds and have known each other for 7 of their ten years. It was at Marcella’s house that Ellie first learned how to ride her bike!
Not only is she a very passionate, loyal community member, but she’s also a super inspirational mom who both fiercely protects her child, but also seeks the healthiest (for mind, body and soul) solutions for raising her child. I’m glad to see that for her (and so many more of us moms!) the convergence of those two needs lies in the use of bike boulevards.
Thanks Jonathan!
— Wow. thanks for catching that mistake Angela. An embarrassing one. Read my notes wrong. I’ve fixed it. — Jonathan
I live very close by the Irvington school, and I am continually amazed at how few kids walk or bike to school and how many SUVs line up to drop off and pick up, motors running, horns sounding. The entire attendance area is within about a half mile radius of the school building, and with the exception of 7th and 15th there really are not any very hazardous crossings (and of course if a handful of parents pitched in to act as crossing guards, even these would not be an issue). So far as I know, the school has not participated in Safe Routes to Schools in the past and is not slated to participate this year.
[footnote, according to the map, http://www.pps.k12.or.us/schools-c/map/IrvingtonMap.pdf, NE Failing and Mallory is not within the Irvington attendance area.]
Ladd is a delightful bike boulevard… the islands make it so that it’s just not worth it for people to take Ladd when they could race up and down 11th and 12th. And there are a ridiculous number of bikes~!
the bike boulevards work well and are non-offensive because they passively discourage traffic. It is the non through intersections every so often that do the work. they make it slow to drive far on the street, so motorists avoid them. They are a little slower to ride on and have more stop signs, but it is worth it. It is more relaxing.
The name is nice. On my bike or skateboard I like to honor those who have worked for what we do have. People on bikes are the ones who make it happen… mostly.
I wonder if Marcella knows her front wheel is on backwards. If she turns it around she will get more drive from her Trikke 3 point carving vehicle.
The biggest problem on bike boulevards are not cars, but too many stop signs and uneven/potholed pavement. Ankeny and Lincoln are two of the only bike boulevards that are useful to me, as they have flipped most of their stop signs and streets that are reasonably smooth. Davis/Everett and Salmon are total crap — potholes, warped pavement, stop signs every two blocks. Until they fix this problem, I’m using Burnside, Stark, Belmont, etc.
Marcella has indeed found one of the best low-impact exercise/transportation vehicles around; the Trikke, carving vehicle. She should be applauded for passing her healthy and wise practices onto her daughter. One thing that may make her rides more ‘enjoyable’ is to turn her front wheel (or handlebars) around, since she has her front wheel installed forward (not ‘trailing’ as intended) which makes her ‘carving’ much more difficult. Trikke~~On.
Feeling good, living in the moment – Rock on Marcella!
I love this!
I see joggers and rollerbladers and skateboarders and moms with strollers all the time just in the middle of salmon street on the bike boulevard there.
car drivers make so much more of an effort to slow down for them than they do for cyclists.
it seems incredulous that the bta hasn’t partnered with local running groups, skate groups et al to strengthen citywide support for family-friendly routes.
every frickin’ person in portland runs, it seems. with their support behind the bike boulevard concept, it couldn’t possibly fail.
“Perhaps they should be called “People Streets”, “Safe Streets”, or “Healthy Streets”. After all, who could argue against either of those?”
They could say, “Cars are driven by people”. I always thought the “people, not cars” catchphrase was pretty week, unless you are talking about self-propelled cars that don’t transport humans.
These are not a Razor brand product, these are made by Trikke Tech, Inc.