Month: April 2011

Salem Watch: School transportation bill could impact biking/walking

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

A bill introduced in Salem this morning, HB 3622 (PDF), is being watched by biking and walking advocates for its possible impact on school transportation funding.

Authored by Rep. Betty Komp of Woodburn, the bill seeks to revise the method of calculating transportation block grants from the State School Fund distributions by allowing “district school [boards] to determine distances for which school [districts] will provide transportation. […] Allows Superintendent of Public Instruction to impose sanctions on school district for failure to maintain safe school buses and school activity vehicles.”

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Two reasons to check out First Thursday this week

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

It’s the monthly First Thursday Art Walk in the Pearl District tomorrow and two items have come across my desk that might make the event extra special if you’re bike-inclined.

First up is the Spring Kickoff Party at Kalkhoff. Kalkhoff USA is a bike retailer that sells top-notch, electrified rigs made in Germany. Roll over to their showroom on NW 11th for a special get together. They’ll have a wood-fired pizza cart, wine, cupcakes from St. Cupcake and of course some tasty German beer. If you get tired of talking about e-bikes, Kalkhoff is featuring the art of Eva MacLowry.

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A conversation with radio show host Victoria Taft

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“A motorized populace is a productive populace… The motor vehicle has done more for liberty and more for prosperity, and more for productivity than any one thing that’s ever been invented.”
— Victoria Taft, radio talk show host

Victoria Taft is the host of a talk show on KPAM 860, a local radio station here in Portland. Her perspective is strongly on the right and she is a vocal supporter of the Tea Party.

When bike issues get in the news, KPAM often calls me up to chat about them. Back in January, I got a call to be on Victoria’s show. She wanted to talk about two legislative proposals that were making waves — the infamous Mitch Greenlick, no-babies-on-bikes bill, and a proposal that would have made it illegal to wear audio headphones while bicycling.

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Job: Assistant/Associate Planner – Pedestrian & Bicycle Planning (City of Eugene)

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Job Title: Assistant/Associate Planner – Pedestrian & Bicycle Planning
Company/Organization: City of Eugene

Job Description:
Eugene, Oregon has a reputation as one of the best cities in America for bicycling and also has a world class bus rapid transit system. The Eugene Public Works Department seeks an Assistant/Associate Planner who will build on this legacy in the areas of pedestrian and bicycle planning and development of multimodal transportation facilities. This position plays a critical role in the completion and implementation of the Pedestrian and Bicycle Master Plan, implementation of the Pedestrian and Bicycle Strategic Plan, promoting alternatives to single occupancy driving, identifying improvements to pedestrian and bicycle facilities, and applying for grants to fund such projects.

Key responsibilities include:
• Manages development of Pedestrian and Bicycle Master Plan and other bicycle and pedestrian planning initiatives.
• Leads implementation of the Pedestrian and Bicycle Master Plan including project development and city code updates.
• Develops project-level plans and conceptual designs for transportation projects with an emphasis on pedestrian and bicycle facilities and streetscape projects.
• Coordinates the Transportation Options Team within Transportation Planning.
• Develops and coordinates public participation strategies for transportation planning projects; makes presentations and facilitates meetings.
• Manages consulting contracts for special projects/studies.
• Works with other City departments, governmental agencies, citizen groups, and local businesses to implement transportation projects and policies.

Qualified candidates should have:
• Bachelor’s degree in planning, or a related field;
• Master’s degree is desirable for the Associate Planner position; and
• One year of planning experience for the Assistant Planner and three years for the Associate Planner position, with an emphasis on transportation planning and development of pedestrian and bicycle facilities.
The annual salary range for this position is $49,961 to $67,912.

How to Apply:
To see full position description and apply, please go to http://www.eugene-or.gov/jobs. Application deadline is April 29, 2011, 5:00pm.

Vancouver Avenue Bridge opening pushed back to mid-April

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

The bridge, a vital north-south
link in the bike network, has been
closed for over 10 months.

The Vancouver Avenue Bridge over the Columbia Slough in North Portland has been closed to all vehicle traffic since last May for a rehabilitation project. PBOT initially planned to have it open by December 2010, but project delays caused them to push back the opening until the end of February.

Unfortunately, the bridge remains closed. After several readers got in touch with us wanting to know an update, we found out that PBOT now plans to have it open by April 16th. Among the reasons for the delayed completion of the project is the wet weather which has made it difficult to do concrete work.

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Staples Inc. donates easement for Marine Drive trail

Now just an on-street bike lane, the Staples
donation will make it easier for Metro to
complete the pathway.

Metro announced today that office supply company Staples Inc. has donated the easement rights for future development of the Marine Drive trail.

Staples owns a distribution center that backs up against Marine Drive just east of the Portland-Gresham border (east of NE 185th, see map below). Marine Drive is a popular bicycling route and is part of the 40 Mile Loop. However, while much of Marine Drive is a multi-use path separated from high-speed motor vehicle traffic, there are still portions with on-street bike lanes where Metro would like to fill the gaps in non-motorized corridor.

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Event: BTA Alice Awards + Auction (4/23/11)

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Event Name: BTA Alice Awards + Auction
Event Start Date: 23 April 2011
Start Time: 5:00:00 PM
Web Site: http://www.bta4bikes.org/alice
Event Description: The Bicycle Transportation Alliance invites you to the 16th Annual Alice Awards + Auction: Alice Aloft!

Celebrate Oregon’s bicycle superheros!

  • Steph Routh
  • Kiel Johnson
  • Mia Birk
  • Danielle and Alex Amarotico

Get one-of-a-kind items generously donated by local businesses, restaurants, and artists!

Come join the community to celebrate bicycling and support the BTA.

For more auction, adventure, advocacy, and TICKETS, visit www.aliceawards.org

Contact Email: margaux(at)bta4bikes(dot)org

Grand Jury says no criminal charges for woman in SW Multnomah Blvd crash – UPDATED

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

A Multnomah County Grand Jury decided today that 63-year old Candice Palmer — the woman who told police investigators she reached into her back seat to tend to her dog and then struck and seriously injured a man who was bicycling on SW Multnomah Blvd — should not face criminal charges.

Palmer’s car swerved into 20-year old Reese Wilson while he rode home from work on the 6100 block of SW Multnomah Blvd on February 4th. Palmer had her dog in the car and reportedly looked into the rear seat where the dog was just prior to the collision. After hitting Wilson, Palmer’s car ran through a fence and came to rest on the side of a house.

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Gabe Klein in Portland for “Lessons from Capital Bikeshare”

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

Lots of buzz in Portland transpo circles about a talk and presentation being given by former Director of Transportation in Washington DC, Gabe Klein. See the details below:

Transportation expert Gabe Klein, former Director of the District Department of Transportation (Washington, DC), Co-Founder of On-the-Fly, and former Regional VP of ZipCar, will share lessons learned from the launch of Capital Bikeshare in Washington, D.C. He will be joined by Alison Cohen (Alta Bike Share).

When: Friday, April 8, 2011 at 3:00 p.m.

Where: Portland State University, Intelligent Transportation Systems Laboratory (Room 315 of the Engineering Building, 1930 SW Fourth Ave)

Who: The event is open to the public. The room holds approximately 50 on a first-come-first-served basis.

Webcast: A live webcast will be available. Windows Media Player required. The webcast will also be archived and available later via otrec.us

Mr. Klein is visiting Oregon as part of the UO Sustainable Cities Initiative’s Expert in Residence program and OTREC’s Visiting Scholars Program. He is spending Wednesday in Eugene, meeting with faculty, students and local partners, touring Eguene by bike and BRT, and giving a a public lecture as part of the LiveMove Speaker Series (5:30 p.m., Eugene Electric Station). On Thursday, is he visiting Salem where UO’s Sustainable City Year is focusing its efforts in 2010-11. In Portland on Friday, Mr. Klein is meeting with students in the morning and then presenting a public lecture as part of Portland State University’s weekly transportation seminar series (Noon, PSU Urban Center room 204 and on the web).

For more information about Gabe Klein’s visit to Oregon, please contact OTREC Communications Director, Justin Carinci.

Lobbying for walking and biking in Salem: A photo essay

A week may have already passed since the Oregon Active Transportation Summit down in Salem, but our news intern Patrick Croasdaile and I still have notes and photos to share. Of particular note was Patrick’s experience at the big “Lobby Day” on Wednesday.

Organized by the Bicycle Transportation Alliance, Lobby Day consisted of dozens of scheduled meetings between transportation advocates and state legislators. Patrick tagged along with a trio of advocates from the Community Cycling Center.

For a glimpse into the action, see his photos and notes below…

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