people in streets.
(Photo © J. Maus/BikePortland)
The Portland Bureau of Transportation says they’ll step up enforcement of illegal parking on SE 4th Avenue just south of Caruthers. On Monday, we pointed out that large trucks servicing industrial businesses along the street are parking in the bike lanes that connect the Springwater Corridor and Eastbank Esplanade. This gap between the two paths is very popular with people bicycling, walking, and jogging and the illegally parked trucks are forcing them out into the middle of the roadway.
Cheryl Kuck, a media spokesperson for PBOT says they will tell Parking Enforcement Officers to put this area on their regular patrols. In Oregon, it’s illegal to park a motor vehicle on a bike lane unless you are there only “momentarily” and actively loading/unloading. Kuck also encourages people to call the parking hotline to report issues:
“When bicyclists see a vehicle parked in a bike lane, we recommend they call our enforcement line at 503-823-5195 and report the particular location. We will send an officer out for enforcement.”
In addition to the bike lane law in the Oregon Vehicle Code, reader John C. found a Portland City Code that may very well apply in this situation. Chapter 16 of the code, “Off-Street Parking Required for Trucks,” reads:
A person owning or controlling any truck or truck trailer must provide at his or her own expense complete off-street parking facilities for the storage of all such equipment.
I’ve asked PBOT for comment about whether or not that code is applicable to the Caruthers situation and I’ll update this post when I hear back.
An employee with McCoy Millwork (which is located on the corner of Caruthers and 4th) didn’t want to comment on the issue but said they’re aware of the problem. The owner is out until next week and I’ll share his response to the truck parking concerns when he returns.
UPDATE, 3:45pm: PBOT says he code doesn’t apply. Here’s their reasoning as per Kuck:
The Code you cited does not apply to the SE Caruthers situation. Trucks and other vehicles that park in a bike lane can be cited for a “bike lane violation.” The bike lane violation is the pertinent violation in this situation regardless of other reasons a truck or other vehicles might be parked there.
Because there is no on-street parking in this area on SE Caruthers, vehicles cannot be cited for violating the on-street parking code you cited. The Code you cited is one of many codes that regulate time limits for trucks parking in commercial and residential on-street parking zones or areas.