Here’s what PBOT wants to do with $173.8 million in new transportation revenue

This morning in a conference room in the Portland Building, Bureau of Transportation staff laid out how they intend to spend $173.8 million in new revenue they hope to collect from residents and businesses in the first six years of the “Our Streets” funding plan.

While 42% of all the new revenue go toward paving (about $75 million), bike-specific investments are also on the list. A new carfree bridge over I-405 at NW Flanders Street and a protected bike lane on NE Broadway from 24th to the Broadway Bridge make up a list of about $7 million in projects that would dramatically improve biking conditions.

PBOT called this meeting to share an update on the funding plan to their various advisory committees. Among the 12 people in attendance at the meeting, six were city staff and the others were representatives from the City’s freight, bicycle, and pedestrian advisory committees. Members of the City’s Transportation Needs Funding Advisory Committee and Business Workgroup — both put together specifically to address the Our Streets plan — were also at the meeting.

It’s the start of a big day for the Our Streets effort, with City Council set to discuss the plan at their work session in City Hall from 3:00 to 5:00 pm today (you can watch it live online here).

At this morning’s meeting PBOT offered unprecedented specifics as to how they plan to spend new revenue.

Figuring in administrative costs and non-compliance (known by the unfortunate term “leakage”), the City expects to collect a total of $173.8 million over the programs first six years (based on an annual estimate of $40 million in new revenue split between an income tax and a flat fee on businesses). Of those funds, PBOT’s latest draft project list shows that 53% — or $92 million — would go to “maintenance” projects and 47% — or $81.7 million — would go to “safety” projects.

This 53/47 split would not meet the demands of a coalition of advcocacy groups that includes the Bicycle Transportation Alliance, Oregon Walks, Coalition for a Livable Future, and others, who say anything less than half the funds going to safety is “insufficient.”

Here are the three and six-year spending category breakdowns shared at the meeting (click to enlarge):

While improvements to cycling conditions would arguably come with nearly every one of those categories, the most eye-catching, bike-specific projects are under the “Protected Bike Lanes/Routes” heading. PBOT would spend $6.9 million in this category in the programs first six years (4 percent of the total Our Streets revenue).

If the Our Streets plan becomes reality, here are the two bike-specific projects PBOT would like to spend the money on in years one through three:

• PBL 1 – Central City; fill out the projected bike lane netwwork identified in the Multi-Modal project. Cost estimate: $3 million
• PBL 2 – 9th Avenue; perform a Type, Size and Location study for a bridge across the Banfield [I-84]. Cost estimate $300,000

And in years four through six:

• PBL 3 – Flanders; leverage SDC funds to construct the bridge across the freeway; improve other greenway elements. Cost estimate: $3 million
• PBL 4 – N/NE Broadway from 24th Avenue to the Broadway Bridge. Cost estimate: $3 million

PBL 1 would be $3 million in addition to an already-funded plan to create protected bike lanes in downtown. The City already has about $6 million set aside for that plan, which is known as the Central City Multi-Modal Safety Improvements project. As we reported in August, the BTA has launched a campaign to help hasten the completion of that project.

PBL 2 would only fund a study of a new carfree bridge over I-84 on 9th. This would be intended to fill a major lack of north-south connections between the central eastside and the Lloyd District. It’s not clear why PBOT favors 9th when NE 7th is the more obvious choice. 7th already has a wide bike lane through most of the Lloyd and it would provide a direct connection to the NE Tillamook bike boulevard (whereas 9th dead-ends into a park).

PBL 3 would resurrect former Mayor Sam Adams’ push to get a bridge over I-405 at Flanders. Years ago, NW Flanders was pegged as a bike boulevard, but it has languished in large part because of its lack of a freeway crossing. This project would build the bridge and bring Flanders up to current neighborhood greenway standards. PBOT Bike Coordinator Roger Geller says the $3 million from the street fee/tax would be leveraged with System Development Charges (SDCs).

PBL 4 is the biggie, and it’s also a top BTA priority: a protected bike lane on NE Broadway from 24th to the Broadway Bridge.

When it comes to bike access on residential streets, PBOT plans to use $5.2 million of Our Streets funding on neighborhood greenways over the next six years. Here are the specific projects they’ve prioritized:

Sidewalks, with a total of $18.7 million in Our Streets revenue allocation over six years, are the largest expenditure in the safety category (10.8% of the total revenue). But Safe Routes to School, with $17.4 million, is a close second.

The largest expenditure by far would be paving on busy streets. PBOT’s current plan would allocate $59 million — or 34% of the total revenue collected — on those types of projects.

I’ll share the complete project lists as soon as PBOT uploads them to their website.

Stay tuned for more coverage of the Our Streets funding proposal.

UPDATE: See detailed maps of where the city wants to invest in our latest post.