NW 9th and Lovejoy.
(Photo © Jonathan Maus)
Local lawyer Ray Thomas, a tireless defender of bicyclist’s rights who most recently spoke at the We are All Traffic press conference, has released a new book to help educate that other group of vulnerable roadway users: pedestrians.
Oregon Pedestrian Rights is billed as a “legal guide for persons on foot.” The 96 page book includes several articles written by Thomas including basic dos and don’ts for pedestrians, what Oregon law says about pedestrians on bike lanes and sidewalks, and much more.
Here’s an excerpt from the introduction,
“…pedestrian deaths totaled one-third of all traffic fatalities in the City of Portland in 2006; eleven pedestrians are killed and more than 300 injured in Oregon each year while attempting to exercise their lawful right of way to cross the road within a crosswalk…While an argument can be made that these injuries and deaths would be reduced if pedestrian access were restricted by placing more humans into enclosed steel vehicles, the vitality of the human race mandates movement in the opposite direction – streets need to be made safer for pedestrians and humans need to use their bodies to transport themselves.”
The Oregon Pedestrian Handbook was produced by Thomas’ firm Swanson, Thomas, & Coon, and serves as a fitting companion to his popular Pedal Power, A Legal Guide for Oregon Bicyclists, and Action Pamphlet #1 (which details the “Citizen Initiation of Violation” process).
All three guides are available online. You can download a PDF of Pedal Power and/or read all the chapters from Oregon Pedestrian Rights at OregonPedestrianRights.com.