A bike path leads directly to the bike parking at PDX.
(Photo © J. Maus/BikePortland)

The Port of Portland wants your feedback on bicycling in and around the Portland International Airport (PDX). They're hosting an open house next week (3/19) to share information and hear your thoughts on existing facilities and what they can improve on in the future.

The impetus for this open house is an effort to update the Portland International Airport Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan (PDF). That plan was the first biking and walking plan ever created for a commercial airport; but it came out in 2003 and it's slated for an update this year.

There's plenty to talk about when it comes to bicycling around PDX. As we've written about several times over the years, the Port has some bike-specific routes, wayfinding signage, bike parking, and other amenities that make bicycling to the airport a viable option for some. A recent study about bike-friendly airports by the Institute of Transportation Studies at UC Berkeley held up PDX as an "exemplary" model of how to provide bicycle access. But while steps have been made, biking to the airport remains something reserved for the "strong and fearless" and much more can be done to make it as safe and convenient as driving or other modes. (more...)

We all heard the big news back in April when Frontier Airlines removed the flat fee for checked bicycles. Long before that, we'd floated the idea of having Portland International Airport (PDX) become something of a bikes-fly-free oasis. Imagine the symbolism (and huge win for PR/tourism) if PDX convinced all its local carriers to make a clear statement that bicycles (and their people) are welcomed with open arms!

Well, one reader who happens to be an employee of Southwest Airlines, has been pushing on that idea internally and he's made a bit of a breakthrough. (more...)

New bike assembly station at PDX Airport.
(Photo: Port of Portland)

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Riding in other cities can be fun
and fascinating -- like this ride in Baltimore.
(Photo © Elly Blue)

The holiday travel season is coming up. If you're leaving Portland, maybe you've thought about bringing your bike along for the trip this time.

A bike doesn't make sense for every trip or every destination. But if it does fit in with your plans, the experience of traveling with a bike comes highly recommended. A bike can give you independence, flexibility, adventure, and a surefire way to meet people wherever you go.

How you bring the bike, what kind of bike is best to bring, and how much it costs all depend on whether you're flying or taking the train. Here's the rundown: (more...)

On Wednesday, May 20th, Portlander Slate Olson was headed to Washington D.C. on a business trip when a woman working the United Airlines ticket counter at Portland International Airport (PDX) told him it would be $175 to take his bicycle along. Each way.

Olson wrote to me later that, "I know she wasn't responsible, but I was still tempted to ask her, 'how much are you charging for golf clubs again?" (Golf clubs fly free on United).

Olson's experience has put him on a mini-campaign to rid PDX of baggage fees for bikes.

Olson is the general manager for Rapha, a U.K.-based bike clothing company with its North American headquarters in Portland. The way Olson sees it, if Portland wants to continue to be the spot for bicycling and bike tourism, this issue needs to be resolved. (more...)

The main bike path at PDX
leads right into the
terminal (and bike parking).
(Photos © J. Maus)

After a comprehensive analysis of the nation's major airports, Health magazine and a panel of experts ranked Portland International Airport the ninth "healthiest" in the country.

Not surprisingly, the magazine listed several of the PDX's bike amenities as reasons for the top ranking. Here's the first paragraph from the blurb that runs on their website:

Portland doesn’t disappoint with a paved bicycle-and-walking path that links local hotels, businesses, and regional hiking and biking trails to the airport. The airport offers free covered bicycle parking adjacent to the terminal too.

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A bike assembly area -- like this
one at the Christchurch Airport in New Zealand --
might be installed at PDX by this spring.
--More images below--
(Photos courtesy Jason Gately/PDX)

The Portland International Airport (PDX) hopes to become the first airport in the United States to offer bike assembly areas and other services for two-wheeled travelers.

Already in existence at airports in New Zealand and British Columbia, the idea is to set aside a dedicated facility where people could re-assemble their bicycles before they hit the road, or take them apart and pack them up prior to getting on a plane.

According to PDX aviation planner Jason Gately, who I confirmed the plans with this morning, the idea (which sprang from a brainstorming session at the Oregon Bike Summit back in April) is to have the facility on the lower level near the MAX light rail station and baggage claim area. Gately says it would be placed outside (under cover) and would include at least two bike clamps and an air pump (bolted to the ground). (more...)

Travelers take in bikes at an exhibit at PDX airport.
(Photos © J. Maus)

An exhibit of Oregon-made bicycles currently on display at the Portland International Airport has proven to be so ppoular with travelers that it will be extended through the busy holiday season.

The exhibit, Handmade: Bicycles Designed and Built in Oregon debuted in April and was originally planned to run through September. But Keith Lachowicz, who handles public art collections for the Regional Arts and Culture Council (RACC, they helped organize the show) says it will now run through the end of December. (more...)

A passenger strolls by the new Handmade exhibit at the Portland Airport. (Slideshow below)
(Photos © J. Maus)

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(Photos © J. Maus)

This April, the work of Oregon's burgeoning crop of bicycle builders will be on display at the Portland International Airport.

The exhibit will be managed by the Regional Arts and Culture Council (RACC) and will run for six months (from April through September) and will feature a range of bikes in a 40-foot display in the airport's E Concourse.

Coordinator of the installation, Austin Ramsland (Sweetpea Bicycles), says he already has submissions from 18 different Oregon builders. Once the submissions are complete, a committee of framebuilders and artists formed by the (RACC) will select the bikes to be displayed. (more...)