Bike Gallery owner to speak at transportation engineering conference

Logo of Western
district of ITE.

This Sunday, over 600 transportation engineering professionals from all over the region will come to Portland for the annual meeting of the Institute of Transportation Engineers. The conference kicks off with an address by U.S. Congressman Earl Blumenauer.

Organizers have infused the schedule — which goes through Wednesday and includes talks on everything from signal timing to traffic calming — with a bikey theme that begins with a keynote address by Bike Gallery owner Jay Graves.

According to the official program, Graves’ talk will,

“…address the membership focused on how he has become involved in bicycle advocacy to support bicycle use both in Portland, but also nationally. He will speak about how businesses and the government can work together to make the world a better place for bikes.”

Organizers have also put together a Portland Bicycle Tour that will,

“highlight some of the innovative bicycle facility designs that make Portland one of the top cities for cycling in North America.”

The sold-out tour will start and end on the Willamette River near downtown, and will focus on bicycle facilities in Portland’s historic Eastside “streetcar suburbs.” The 40 participants will get an up-close look at our bicycle boulevards, pavement markings, way finding signs, bridge treatments and signalization.

According to organizer Peter Koonce, who works with local engineering and planning firm Kittelson and Associates, the Awards Banquet on Tuesday night will have a “Bikes, brews, and bohemia” theme.

Also speaking at the conference are Mia Birk from Alta Planning, Chris Smith of PortlandTransport.com, PDOT’s pedestrian coordinator April Bertelsen, and City of Vancouver (WA) transportation planner Todd Boulanger.

Learn more about the conference and download the official program here.