This just in from Jessica Roberts (formerly of the BTA, now with Alta Planning):
I’m sure you know all too well how dangerous and unpleasant it is to ride a bike on Highway 43 between Lake Oswego and Portland. In fact, the BTA listed this project as one of the primary barriers to bicycling in our region in the Blueprint for Better Biking report we released last year.
The $4.7 million, three-year project to create three new bicycle and pedestrian bridges along the Springwater Corridor Trail is finally nearing completion.
 |
 |
 |
According to Metro Councilor Rex Burkholder‘s September newsletter, a ribbon cutting ceremony is scheduled for October 19th. Organizers are still working out details, but save the date for this historic event!
The graphic below (Courtest of the Parks Department) shows where on the Springwater these bridges have been constructed:
Turqoise green road bike with stripes of red, orange, yellow, and white which are scratching off in some places.
The handlebars are flat and black. The seat is black. The brake and gear-shift cables are white. The gear shifters are not a matching pair but one is slightly rusted. The bike also had a large basket attached to the back and a holder for a newer Kryptonite lock which hung vertically.
This Friday through Sunday, Portlanders will get a taste of Europe when a small section of downtown will be closed to cars. The occassion is the Portland Carfree Days, organized by an emerging group of advocates, who are working with local businesses and non-profit groups to promote alternatives to motorized vehicles in the city and to reclaim public space for people.
Traffic safety specialists at PDOT are working with Transportation Commissioner Sam Adams, the Portland City Council, the Bicycle Transportation Alliance, and the Willamette Pedestrian Coalition to beef up their legal toolkit with new laws that will make it easier to sanction motorists who are involved in fatal traffic crashes.
PDOT Traffic Investigations Manager Mark Lear said they are “currently reviewing potential options” to introduce bills similar to Washington state’s vehicular homicide laws in their legislative package for the upcoming session.
A local TV station recently ran a news segment on the notoriously tricky I-5 bike path. A bicyclist was interviewed. He sometimes has a rough commute, though overall he seemed fit and cheery and enjoyed his choice of transportation.
For some reason, the words “Bikes vs Cars” blared on the corner of the screen throughout the segment.
“Bikes vs Cars:” You hear it everywhere, though, particularly since the Randy Albright case against TriMet became public. One can question whether it’s anything more than a sound byte, but the idea certainly has galvanized media commentators and much of their audience, as we found during the 95.5 fiasco.
All-black, Kenda 2.3 rear tire, Crank Bros. Mallet-C pedals, black Yeti grips