Reader proposes solution for tricky Hayden Island bike crossing

This tricky intersection on Hayden Island
has one reader dreaming of solutions…
See his below.

If you’ve ever biked across the I-5 Bridge from Portland to Vancouver, you are aware of the annoyingly serpentine route you’re expected to take once the dedicated bike path ends and you’re forced to cross N. Tomahawk Island Drive (map).

Reader Dave B. (whose day job is “Transportation Design Engineer” for a private firm) is a regular I-5 bridge bike rider. Earlier this month, while biking across the crosswalk at N. Tomahawk, he got yelled at by a man driving a large SUV. “I get halfway across and have to brake to a halt as the driver of a suburban decides not to stop for me,” shared Dave via email, “Then he brakes to a halt and proceeds to berate me for not getting off my bike and walking across the crosswalk.”

Of course Dave doesn’t have to walk his bike. Not only does Oregon law allow people on bikes to pedal in crosswalks, but the crosswalk is the designated bike path and is signed specifically as a bike crossing (see photo at right).

Beyond that one interaction, Dave feels the intersection is just inherently problematic:

“The crossing is incredibly unsafe because of the speed of the vehicles exiting the freeway [it’s an offramp] and the difficulty they have seeing a bike from around the corner. Also, it’s in a mid-block location which drivers don’t anticipate and the sight lines are horrible.”

As someone who has crossed here many times, I can vouch for Dave’s experience and frustrations with this intersection. So, what can be done about it? Dave sketched up one possible solution which would only require a re-striping of the lanes.

Here’s his sketch:

Dave’s sketch on how to improve the intersection of N. Tomahawk
Island Drive. I-5 is in the upper right.

The key part of Dave’s solution is to move the crossing to the corner, instead of mid-block.

“I think it could be done pretty cheaply and could make this crossing a lot safer. I just wanted to throw it out there and hope that something could be done about it. I would love to see something change there as it really could use a fix.”

What do you think of Dave’s solution? What are your experiences at this location?

Jonathan Maus (Publisher/Editor)

Jonathan Maus (Publisher/Editor)

Founder of BikePortland (in 2005). Father of three. North Portlander. Basketball lover. Car owner and driver. If you have questions or feedback about this site or my work, feel free to contact me at @jonathan_maus on Twitter, via email at maus.jonathan@gmail.com, or phone/text at 503-706-8804. Also, if you read and appreciate this site, please become a supporter.

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beck
beck
12 years ago

Good solution.Possibly a sign on the off ramp warning of bike/ped crossing with some type of flashy warning light doodle might be helpful too.

Spiffy
Spiffy
12 years ago
Reply to  beck

I’m generally against more signs cluttering up the landscape warning you about things you should already be looking out for…

Spiffy
Spiffy
12 years ago

there’s a sidewalk so technically isn’t there already an unmarked crosswalk right at the corner? that seems safer than the marked one…

Todd Boulanger
Todd Boulanger
12 years ago
Reply to  Spiffy

Typically you would be correct, except where there is already a marked crosswalk very close to such a potential crossing point, as this location has.

…Per ORS 801.220:

“Whenever marked crosswalks have been indicated, such crosswalks and no other shall be deemed lawful across such roadway at that intersection.”

http://www.oregonlaws.org/ors/801.220

J-R
J-R
12 years ago

I ride this regularly as a commuter and I don’t find it to be a problem. Traffic volumes are moderate and there are plenty of gaps. Sight distance is good if you take the time to look. Motorists often stop for me when I am crossing southbound (toward Safeway). I’ve not had a motorist yell at me here.

Riding northbound I often jump the curb on my mountain/commuter bike so as to make a left onto the path at the next signal. Even if I go to the crosswalk, I seldom have to wait for more than one car.

Southbound I have started using a new route. (I ride on the bridge sidewalks with the traffic.) Instead of using the tunnel, I go through the ODOT lot to Center Ave and continue south to Jantzen Drive. Use that to get to the east side of I5 and use the Hooter’s lot to reconnect with the two-way path on the east side of I5 bridge over N Portland Harbor.

Cost of the proposed fix would be more than you expect. It would all be thrown away when the CRC project provides a fully-separated route.

Try my suggested southbound route and see if that helps.

matt picio
12 years ago
Reply to  J-R

J-R, that presumes automobile traffic is at posted limits. I used to ride it regularly, and I’ve occasionally had issues, but none severe. It’s not a great crossing though, and the sight distance for 35mph+ traffic sucks. This would be a great engineering solution because the tighter turn radius would force automobiles to slow down. Ignoring for a moment the issue of bikes, how is the current crosswalk safe for the elderly and the disabled? Especially considering that many of them move much slower than the average pedestrian, may have balance or reaction time/reflex issues, or diminished senses. During high traffic times, there are sometimes a lot of user conflicts in this location. (I’ve witnessed a few first-hand)

Vangroover Commuter
Vangroover Commuter
12 years ago

J-R, I do it everyday as well and always use your Hooters route, even when it was the Waddles route it was great.

I say for the Northbound trip the answer really is a flyover elevated crossing over that entire off ramp directly onto the path to the bridge. But until that happens, I too use the bunny hop to left turn at the light method.

Chris I
Chris I
12 years ago

Not going to happen. They won’t make any improvements with the CRC looming…

Adams Carroll (News Intern)
Reply to  Chris I

Chris, did you see the story about ODOT installing a bunch of new bikeway signs? And one more thing.. the CRC is very very very far from “looming”… that’s just the impression its supporters want you to believe, but the project still has a long way to go before becoming a reality (in many ways).

Todd Boulanger
Todd Boulanger
12 years ago

I like it! It would make it much easier for me as a northbound cyclist to see turning [often speeding] traffic when I enter the crosswalk.

The current crossing has too many sight vision triangle problems along with a design that facilitates higher than ideal motorized vehicle travel speeds as they approach the marked crosswalk – these two problems create a scenario that surpresses compliance with drivers yielding to pedestrians in a crosswalk. (This site would be a great place for a crosswalk sting too.)

Todd Boulanger
Todd Boulanger
12 years ago

I had a friend who, as a daily bi-state bike commuter, swore by her Waddles Loop Bypass route until she got t-boned by a driver by McDonalds. She changed her route back to the ODOT crossing after that.

J_R
J_R
12 years ago
Reply to  Todd Boulanger

Being struck by a motorist pulling out of the McDonald’s suggests that your friend was on the east side of Center Avenue headed northbound. In my opinion, that’s a bad choice because for two reasons. First, sight distance is really poor at that driveway (due to it being a private street not subject to traffic design enforced by the city). Second, going northbound on Center Avenue causes one to use the west side sidewalk on the bridge for northbound traffic (or transitioning back to the east side of I-5 using the tunnel). I find it really annoying that people try to ride in the northbound direction on the west side of the bridge.

So, that’s why I recommend using the Hooters/Waddles loop only when travelling southbound.

Todd Boulanger
Todd Boulanger
12 years ago

And …Remember that most of the streets on Hayden Island are private, so their maintenance and [multimodal] design are often not very good.

Filmman
12 years ago

Maybe if bikes stopped before riding into the crosswalk it would help. Pedestrians and cyclists are quite different. The speed of a bike is so much faster that and when I cyclist doesnt even stop before crossing, its more difficult for cars to see them. Maybe the cyclists need a warning light.

jim
jim
12 years ago

I think he has a very good solution for a place that I always thought was problematic and poorly thought out from the start. I know that cars come around that corner faster than they should, the curve of the road lends itself to that and they already have the speed. Having a crosswalk on a curve is not only dangerous for the pedestrian but also for a car that has slowed or stopped, they can easily get rear ended in that unusual stopping position. I think it might be a good place to add those bright yellow strobes to let motorists know someone is crossing also

Kevin Wagoner
12 years ago

Great idea, I’ve ridden that section many of times to get to the Vancouver TT. I’ve not had much trouble, but cross walk is not awesome.

Similar note. I’ve been using the cross walk on Barber Blvd on my way home from work that is right before SW Nato and SW Lane, I am going South on the East side of the street. I’ve just come up SW 1st and use a short section of sidewalk to get to the cross walk to cross over Barber to continue going south on Barber. Jonathan, come ride this section with me at rush hour in the morning and I’ll buy you a coffee, ride it with me after work and I’ll buy you a beer. This part of Barber is not awesome and could use some coverage.

I’ve been wondering what kind of right of way or if I’m violating any rules by riding that cross walk lately….I should have looked that up, but based on your pose it looks like I’m in the clear here.

Paul Johnson
Paul Johnson
12 years ago

The conflict seems more like a driver education issue that the state licensing program should have weeded out before allowing him to take the wheel. That said, I’m not sure I like the idea of bikes having a crosswalk as opposed to a proper, signalized, vehicular style intersection there…it’s not like we don’t have low-angle signalized intersections with ramps already.

Dan Packard
Dan Packard
12 years ago

I’ll try the Hooters route southbound next time. However, I’m not too excited about riding thru parking lots. And what’s the transition like from Hooters to the I-5 trail? Aren’t there curb cuts to negotiate?

Art Fuldodger
Art Fuldodger
12 years ago

That’s a good design; much safer than the current hateful crossing. The street crossing to the north (to get to/from the I-5 bridge path) is also crappy.

One thing ODOT could do that wouldn’t cost much is pour some concrete pads to create larger waiting areas — it’s really awkward to get yourself turned correctly in the small area available to see the traffic. Widening the sidewalk would be a bonus, too. This doesn’t address the real problem of the crossings, but might help bicyclist & pedestrian convenience somewhat, & make it a bit safer in the bargain.

Is anyone from ODOT paying attention to this?

Dan V
Dan V
12 years ago

I would much rather not have to make a 90 degree turn into traffic (northbound) trying to see the traffic directly behind me. If this striping does go ahead, I expect the residents will scream themselves hoarse about the inconvenience. I cannot count the number of times I’ve had to pretty much lay my bike down to keep from being hit by someone trying to make the corner in their car…

Dave Thomson
Dave Thomson
12 years ago

I suspect the other sticking point with ODOT will be concerns about anything that would cause traffic exiting I-5 NB to back up onto the freeway.

Dave B
Dave B
12 years ago

Hey Jonathan,
Thanks for posting. I would like to correct you that it would probably require more work than just striping. It would probably require new curbs, sidewalk improvements and maybe storm drainage (plus ODOT would likely require a traffic study to ensure vehicles wouldn’t back up onto the freeway). So it’s not a slam dunk. I did have the same thoughts with regard to the CRC as some of the other commentors but I’m really not expecting to see the new bike path for maybe 5 to 10 years. And I’ve tried the Hooters route a few times going southbound and while it’s a bit quicker I don’t think it’s any safer.

I’ll pass on my sketch to the ODOT contact you sent me and see what happens. Thanks, Dave

Paul Johnson
Paul Johnson
12 years ago
Reply to  Dave B

Traffic leaving the freeway northbound to Hayden Island has a turn lane, so it’s not like the freeway isn’t built for a jammed exit there.

ScottB
ScottB
12 years ago

While I don’t see any issues regarding traffic backing up on the freeway, since the queueing space has not significantly changed, implying that roadway markings alone would achieve much is mostly a wish. Motorist, like many who travel by other modes, take the shortest path when possible. Only curb would compel them to slow down to make such a sharp corner.

Matthew Vilhauer
Matthew Vilhauer
12 years ago

this disscusion is stupid beyond all reason. do you folks have any sense???

please use the central ave. route through the DOT station going both north and south. exit & enter between the safeway & hooters. yes you have to take the road. how hard is that? it beats being forced to be a pedestrian at two crossings, one is a freeway exit/off ramp. i ride on the west side of the bridge going north & south and have done this for 20+ years. there are “bikes yield to peds” signs on both ends of each side so ya’ll can scream all you want about the “right” direction i should be riding….

so simple & easy.