Worth every penny.
(Photo © J. Maus/BikePortland.org)

Ciclovias, the global term for what we call Sunday Parkways here in Portland, are nothing short of a revolution. Started in Latin America in the 1960s and made widely known by Bogota, Colombia, the events have spread like wildfire across North America in the last decade.

But with city budgets being very tight these days, programs like Sunday Parkways aren't likely to survive the axe. Now, a new study, Do Health Benefits Outweigh the Costs of Mass Recreational Programs? An Economic Analysis of Four Ciclovía Programs, published in the Journal of Urban Health will help make the case that they're worth the investment. (more...)

Sheets of rain didn't stop big crowds from showing up to Sunday Parkways Northeast.
(Photos © J. Maus)

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It was Southeast Portland's turn to enjoy the Sunday Parkways splendor.
(Photos © J. Maus)

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People enjoying carfree streets at the 2010 Sunday Parkways Southeast.
(Photo © J. Maus)

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Portlanders jumped at the chance to enjoy sun and carfree streets.
(Photos © J. Maus)

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The scene on NW 13th during last year's event. Expect bigger crowds if the sun holds out through the weekend.
(Photos © J. Maus)

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Record crowds.
(Photo © J. Maus)

Last night I went out on a limb and said the North Portland Sunday Parkways was the largest ever. Well, turns out that it wasn't much of a limb.

According to PBOT's official count, an estimated 31,600 people were at the event yesterday.

Linda Ginenthal, a Program Manager for the Transportation Options Division within PBOT said she did the number twice, just to make sure they weren't mistaken. "But this is the real number," she exclaimed via email a few minutes ago, "This is amazing! Wahoo!" (more...)

Huge and delighted crowds swarmed the streets and parks of North Portland today. More photos below.
(Photos © J. Maus)

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Sunday Parkways got off to a solid start in outer East Portland yesterday.
(Photos © J. Maus)

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Now that's what I'm talkin' about.
(Photos © J. Maus)

PBOT has once again decided to create a loop of streets in East Portland carfree for five hours this Sunday. This crazy scheme to force people out of their cars and into the streets to meet their neighbors and enjoy their community is called "Sunday Parkways". Not satisfied with simply making streets carfree, PBOT has also invited organizations, food vendors, and entertainers to set up in the parks and streets. (more...)

Just one month away!
(Photo © J. Maus)

The City of Portland has five Sunday Parkways events starting next month and the routes are now public. PBOT has also launched a fundraising effort on Kickstarter to help bridge some gaps in their budget.

First, the routes.

East - May 22nd (more...)

A scene from Portland's first
Sunday Parkways in June 2008.
(Photo © J. Maus)

The other day, a friend of mine who works at PBOT emailed me a link to a video I made way back in June 2008. It was from Portland's first-ever Sunday Parkways.

That first event will always hold a special place in my heart. Not only did it happen right in my North Portland neighborhood, but there was such a sense of pride and excitement that our City could pull it off.

With the hugely successful CicLAvia in Los Angeles and Sunday Streets in San Francisco last weekend, and with Portland's first event of 2011 coming in less than seven weeks, it seemed like a good time to share the video again. (more...)

This year's kickoff event for Sunday Parkways will be in East Portland on May 22nd. Last year, one of the highlights of the East Portland route was supposed to be a freshly repaved Springwater Corridor Trail; but unfortunately, pavement crews weren't quite ready for the traffic and PBOT had to make a last-minute route change.

This year, not only will the Springwater Trail be prominently featured in the route, but PBOT has significantly expanded the East Portland loop — from a dinky 4.5 miles last year to a full 7 miles this time around. (more...)

Sunday Parkways in Northwest
Portland last year.
(Photo © J. Maus)

The Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) has just announced dates and locations for their five Sunday Parkways events. PBOT has also announced that the routes will be longer in length this year.

Sunday Parkways will begin this May with an opening event in East Portland. See the dates and locations below:

• May 22 – East Portland
• June 26 – North Portland
• July 24 – Northwest/Downtown Portland
• August 28 – Southeast Portland
• September 25 – Northeast Portland

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Sunday Parkways as captured by Google. Scene shows a crowd crossing SE 39th on Lincoln.

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NW 13th Avenue was flooded with people on bikes and on foot during Sunday Parkways today.
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(Photo © J. Maus)

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This mister in front of
Citybikes was very popular.
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(Photos © J. Maus)

PBOT's carfree extravaganza, Sunday Parkways, made its fourth of five stops this month and Southeast Portland welcomed it with open arms. Thousands pedaled and walked along the six-mile route that stretched from SE 52nd in the shadows of Mt. Tabor to SE 16th near Colonel Summers Park in inner southeast.

Here are a few highlights from my trip around the loop.

Bike Temple continues to outdo themselves. They set up a pop-up bike church at SE 16th and Ankeny, complete with an upright organ, a pulpit, and a blessing wall. Buddha Bill, Pasture Ted, Deacon Amos, and other believers held two full sermons where people stopped, had their bikes blessed and listened to selected readings from the 2030 Bike Plan.
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Smiles for miles at East Portland Sunday Parkways.
-Slideshow below/Gallery-
(Photos © J. Maus)

The Portland Bureau of Transportation's Sunday Parkways event traveled to uncharted territory over the weekend with its first every foray into outer east neighborhoods. Thousands turned out to walk and bike on 4.5 miles of streets that were (mostly) closed to motor vehicle traffic. This was the third of five Parkways events PBOT is putting on this year.
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The woman behind Sunday Parkways,
Linda Ginenthal.
(Photo © J. Maus)

Everyone's getting excited about the Sunday Parkways event coming up in East Portland this weekend. Despite a change to the route due to a repaving project on the Springwater Corridor, it will still be an excellent opportunity to enjoy carfree streets and explore neighborhood parks with thousands of fellow Portlanders.

However, unlike previous Sunday Parkways events that rolled through areas where people on bikes are common, the East Portland edition reaches places where biking -- or the infrastructure that goes with it -- is not nearly as established. I'm curious how the event will look and feel in a part of our city not known as a cycling haven.

To learn more, I asked PBOT's Transportation Options Division program manager Linda Ginenthal (she's the big cheese behind the event) a few questions (emphasis mine): (more...)

Revised route map for East Portland Sunday Parkways.
(Download full PDF)

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