The BTA has issued the action alert that I alluded to yesterday.
It was posted to their blog by Executive Director Scott Bricker and emailed to their Portland members yesterday afternoon.
The “Safe, Sound, and Green Streets” funding package will be in front of City Council this morning. I’m on my way over there and will have an update soon.
Here’s is the full text of the BTA action alert:
Please email or call Portland Mayor Tom Potter to ask that he vote to enact Portland’s Safe, Sound, and Green Streets program. He is the only one on the City Council not yet committed to voting for it, and it’s very important that the Council vote be unanimous to make a fight against it unlikely.
Mayor Tom Potter
mayorpotter@ci.portland.or.us
503-823-4127This funding program would raise $450 million to repair Portland streets, pave potholes, and improve bicycle and pedestrian safety. Most notably for cyclists, it would fund:
* 114-miles of new low-traffic Bicycle Boulevards
* Safer Routes to Schools for elementary and middle school kids
* Safety improvements to dangerous intersections
* New sidewalks
* SmartTrips programs that promote sustainable transportation optionsYou can use the following text, or your own comments, in your email:
We strongly support Safe, Sound and Green Streets. We are willing to pay a modest fee today to make greatly improved neighborhood safety and livability a reality tomorrow, while also making a long-term investment in protecting our public infrastructure.
Despite last-minute efforts by a few monied special interest lobbyists to block it, we join a diverse coalition of citizens, community groups, businesses, and transportation leaders in strongly supporting Safe, Sound and Green Streets.
I just emailed the mayor urging him to support the proposal. A unanimous vote would send a powerful message that the elected officials of Portland believe this is good for our city.
My email to the Mayor:
=-=-=-
Mayor Potter,
I have written to you previously about how important the livability of Portland is to me and my family. The Portland Safe, Sound, and Green Streets initiative supports all modes of transportation, but very importantly includes critical funding for alternative modes, specifically walking and biking.
I am old enough to be able to say that as a young boy of 7 or 8, I could walk the over a mile to my school in southern California, and be completely safe doing so. Now, in a much smaller city, Portland, I cannot say that my child has the same ability. Many parts of the city still do not have routes to schools that are free of high speed traffic, including mine in North Portland.
Additionally, I am a full time bike commuter to my software engineering job in downtown Portland. I have worked hard to find a safe route to work from North Portland, but there are still areas where there are no safe bike lanes, where bike lanes are in dis-repair, and where cars speed by with little or no regard for my safety because laws are not enforced.
I moved here from the southwest United States because Portland has a track record for supporting the community first; the people and the environment.
I urge you to please vote with the rest of the council to enact this initiative, and send a strong signal to the people of this City that our government cares deeply about our health, safety, and well being. This is a vote that will have far reaching effects on how Portland continues to develop. We encourage more people to drive cars and consume fossil fuels, or we can make all modes of transportation, including driving, safer, while providing encouragement and support for alternative transportation options. I and many others are willing to invest our own time and money (the fees) in order to help make this a reality.
Respectfully,
Ron
I also emailed the mayor urging him to support this initiative and not let election politics get in the way. The street fee is such a great, concrete way to implement a huge part of the Vision that the mayor has worked so hard to get broad public input on. It would be a shame to see him working at cross purposes to it.
i sent him my letter for support:
These undeserved minority modes need support for
all the obvious reasons (I\’m sure I don\’t need to explain these to the
\”recumbent candidate\”)
thanks for bringing it to my attention