(Photo: Adams Carroll)
It was supposed to already be open, but Multnomah County spokesperson Mike Pullen tells us that the long-awaited bikeway improvements on the Morrison Bridge won’t be ready until late February.
The project was originally slated for completion in mid-December of last year, but Pullen says the County’s contractor has submitted a revised schedule that pushes the opening date back to late February. Here’s a statement from Pullen in reply to our request for an update on the timeline:
“If the contractor meets this new schedule, we believe the path will open in late February. We are frustrated that the contractor was not able to complete the project in December, as originally scheduled. As with many construction projects, there were some elements of this project that had to be redesigned during construction to meet the actual conditions on the bridge… While this added time to the construction schedule, it will result in a better facility than the original design.”
Pullen added that the County appreciates everyone’s patience.
It’s taken 12 years, so I suppose another few months isn’t such a big deal. Here’s to hoping everything goes as planned.
For full coverage of this project, browse our archives.
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I can’t wait! That will be such a direct shot for me, and keep my tires away from all the glass they find on the Burnside Bridge.
Revised schedules are fairly common in the construction industry. When I was indirectly in that line of work, extended deadlines were a welcome relief.
Like you said, hopefully it will be worth the wait!
Since some of us already took a “preview ride” on the route during the Xmas day ride, I know how much work still remains. There are huge chunks of the deck that have no paving, etc.
My only concern is with the transition to the street traffic at the East end of the bridge. That section appeared to be complete, but poorly designed, and not just a little dangerous.
They should have extended the bike facility all the way to SE Grand, just like on the Hawthorne viaduct.
I have written and deleted at least ten snarky comments in this box.
Deep breath.
I look forward to the opening of this facility.
“They should have extended the bike facility all the way to SE Grand, just like on the Hawthorne viaduct.”
How does this work currently? I don’t recall a bike lane…
For all the folks telling “them” how to do it, without my being snarky, I’d suggest being involved in the process, the public comments, the technical advisory committees, the public meetings, etc.. A lot of people work hard to design things for cyclists, with cyclists in mind, and snarky “they should have done X” type comments don’t add anything, and usually (as these today) come far to late to affect anything.
BURR: How would you go about doing that? One lane has traffic exiting I-84 trying to get to Grand merging with traffic trying to get over to the 99e exit ramp. That’s a hard section of bridge to drive, nevermind bike. Other than closing the I-84 exit ramp and 99e exit ramp, I don’t see how you’d be able to safely bike on that part of the bridge.
@ Mark G., #7: Really now, those comments were made repeatedly years ago during the ‘process’, and were routinely discounted and ignored.
@ cyclist, #8: All the least safe intersections for cyclists involve an interface with the interstate highway system (e.g. 14th at West Burnside, NE Broadway at Williams, etc.).
PDOT suffers from an ingrained cars-first mentality and a severe lack of imagination if they can’t figure out how to provide safe access for cyclists near these facilities.
re. the Hawthorne Bridge – PDOT successfully managed to get the bike lane past the northbound Naito Pkwy entrance ramp and the 99E exit ramp in the eastbound direction, and closed the northbound Naito Pkwy exit ramp and the southbound Naito Pkwy entrance ramp at the west end of the bridge.
BURR (#9) – There are ways to provide safe access, but all of them require funding well in excess of what was available for this project. Providing access across a high-speed Interstate exit ramp is not practical in that location at any reasonable cost.
My recommendation would be to close that ramp completely (avoiding the need to provide access across it), but that carries its own set of problems, and probably isn’t politically tenable at this stage of the game.
FWIW, the Morrison viaduct itself is a local street that cyclists have every right to use, only the exit and entrance ramps themselves are restricted access.
Having ridden the Morrison viaduct several times, it’s really not that hard to do as long as you pay attention to the merging traffic.
One thing that would make it a lot easier would be enforcing the speed limit, I’m pretty sure it’s posted 35 MPH.
Morrison Bridge bikeway project delayed until late February http://ow.ly/WR1w
Morrison Bridge bikeway project delayed until late February http://ow.ly/WQZn
http://ow.ly/WQWD Morrison Bridge bikeway project delayed until late February
New blog post: Morrison Bridge bikeway project delayed until late February http://bit.ly/4sSlor