The Bicycle Transportation Alliance (BTA) reports a victory over SK Northwest after SK’s development application appeal was denied Friday by the City of Portland Hearings Office.
At issue was whether or not SK Northwest has to include a bike/ped trail along their proposed riverfront development.
According to the BTA, SK’s most recent appeal was shot down because […]

Phil made posters (like this one) to encourage support at his trials.Poster photo by Dat Nguyen(File photo)

Just over a year ago, while holding up traffic on W. Burnside for hundreds of cyclists during the 2006 World Naked Bike Ride, bike scene personality and filmmaker Reverend Phil got into an altercation with a motor vehicle (read […]

With the recent flap over stop sign enforcement, there is growing momentum to consider a change in the law. Idaho’s example is often held up as a model Oregon might seek to emulate.
Since 1982 Idaho has had a law in the books that allows cyclists to treat stop-signs as yields. In […]

A scene from yesterday’s enforcement mission in Ladds Circle. Neighbors complained about bicyclists and the Police Bureau responded with motorcycle officers.Photo: Aaron Tarfman

The recent enforcement mission in Ladds Circle has created a fervor of action and discussion. Twenty-four hours after the incident and comments are still coming in.
Here’s a quick recap of what […]

UPDATE (4/12, 9:50am): According to a commenter, this bill did not pass committee yesterday. It was only considered and was not voted on yet. I picked up the story from an OPB story that ran with the headline, “House Committee Approves Cyclist Memorial Signs Bill.” I regret the error and will keep you posted on […]

A bill that would require transportation departments to erect a memorial sign whenever “a cyclist is killed in an accident involving a motor vehicle” will get a hearing at the state capitol in Salem on Wednesday (4/11).
So far, 14 lawmakers have signed on as sponsors of House Bill 3020, which was created […]

Now that I’ve been at this for a while, it’s fun to take a look back at stories from the past. One year ago today I brought you the inspiring story of Mike Reuter.

Mike was struck by a car and spent the night in Intensive Care. However, even though witnesses saw the car […]

BTA lobbyist Scott Bricker reports that Senate Bill 729, which seeks to amend the brake requirement for bicycles, passed through the Senate in Salem today by a landslide margin of 22-6.

A no hand-brake fixiespotted downtown last week.File photo: 3/30/07

The bill, which passed through committee just one week ago, would create a performance standard for […]

Mark Ginsberg and Hazel Gross arrive at the State Capitol to testifyin support of the fixie bill.

Senate Bill 729, which intends to clean up Oregon law regarding the brake requirement for bicycles and add an exception for fixed gear bicycles, took a step toward becoming law today.
The bill received a hearing in front of the […]

On Friday, a friend of mine was riding into downtown via the Hawthorne Bridge. As he approached a red light at First Street he came to a stop, but his feet did not leave his pedals (this is known as a track stand).

When the light changed he rolled away and was nabbed by a […]

This coming Tuesday, Salem lawmakers are holding a public hearing on Senate Bill 729. SB 729 is the “fixie bill” that is being proposed to clarify the legal language and shore up confusion around how the bicycle equipment requirement (ORS 815.280) should pertain to fixed-gear bicycles.
Since Ayla Holland’s seminal case last July there has […]

Wednesday was the inaugural session of the new Share the Road Safety Class. This new class can be completed in lieu of paying fines for certain bicycle, pedestrian and motor vehicle infractions.
BikePortland reader Lev Tsypin, who runs Level Online Strategy, was in that first class and wrote up an account of his experiences (edited […]

The City of Portland is holding a media event today (right now actually) for their “innovative” Share the Road Safety Class, the new diversion program you have already heard of.
Today’s event marks the inaugural class session which happens tonight from 7-9 pm at Legacy Emanuel Hospital in north Portland.

According to PDOT’s press release, the goal […]

Proposed development area.Click to enlarge graphic

SK Northwest, a Portland-based retailer of jet-skis and personal watercraft, has submitted another proposal to develop a key parcel of Willamette riverfront land.
The proposal was submitted to the Bureau of Development Services (BDS) on March 1st and once again, it does not include plans for a trail.
You might […]

What red light?

Just a word of caution… this Wednesday (3/14) is the inaugural “Share the Road Safety Class.” This is the diversion class hosted by Trauma Nurses Talk Tough, that was recently made official and has been in the works since last June.
It was set up to educate cyclists (and others) about traffic laws […]

A bill that would allocate $3.5 million in state lottery funds to the construction of two new velodromes in Oregon is kicking into high gear.
Republican Senator Jason Atkinson is holding a round table strategy discussion today at the capitol building in Salem. Invited to the table are a diverse list of movers […]

The front page of today’s Metro section of the Oregonian has perhaps one of my favorite headlines ever; “In Oregon, bike culture isn’t partisan.”
The story, by the O’s Salem staffer Harry Esteve, is about how Republican Senator Jason Atkinson is behind a bill that would re-word existing bicycle equipment requirements to exclude fixed-gear bicycles from […]