Science Oregon show.
CIty of Portland Bike Coordinator Roger Geller and noted PSU transportation researcher Jennifer Dill star in the latest episode of Green Science Oregon.
The 10-minute segment (watch it below) is a good primer on the current state of Portland’s bike network. It’s also a window into where Portland is heading in the future and how the city plans to reach their goal of 25% bike mode share by 2030.
Here are some quotes from Geller that stood out for me:
Geller says Portland has built, “… probably one of the best bikeway networks in the country for a large city,” but he qualifies it by adding, “If you are a moderately skilled cyclist and you’re somewhat tolerant of automobile traffic, you can easily ride a bike in the city of Portland anywhere you want to go.”
Geller adds that the key right now is creating “higher quality” bikeways with an emphasis on separation.
“The biggest change [in the future] will be what our main streets look like,” says Geller. “The five-foot bike lane is not going to appeal to the masses.”
Jennifer Dill gives a great overview into how research complements the City’s bike planning efforts, sharing insights from her GPS study that tracked the types of bikeways people preferred to ride on. She explains that the majority of people riding now are “young men, perhaps more willing to take risks.” “What type of facility is going to attract different riders? You’ll never get 25% of the people to ride if you’re only getting 18-30 year old men on bikes.”
Watch the video below…