Part of NW Portland Week.
Here’s what cycling — and the people who do it — look like in northwest Portland.
I have always believed that you can learn a lot about a city’s bike culture by taking a close look at who rides, where they ride, what they ride, and how they ride. That’s why this past week I’ve been lugging a big camera through the streets of northwest on a hunt for bicycle riders in their natural habitats.
I’ve broken this photo essay up into two parts. The first part shows people riding in a certain context on the street. With these images the point is to show what the bikeways are like in northwest and, more importantly, how they look while being used by people on bikes and in cars. As you look at these, ask yourself if you would feel comfortable riding in that environment. Try to notice if the person is in a bike lane or not and how it changes the feeling of the image. How does someone using a buffered bike lane change your perception of their experience versus someone using a standard bike lane, a sharrow, or just sharing a standard lane?
The second set of images stays in the tradition of past People on Bikes posts: It’s all about the rider. By freeze-framing on each person we can take a closer look at their bike set-up, their apparel choices, and so on.
Enjoy the photos and feel free to reference the image numbers in your comments.
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If you want to see more people who bike in northwest Portland stop by our Get Together tonight at the Corsa Cafe inside Western Bikeworks at NW 17th and Lovejoy. We’ll have free munchies and fairly priced drinks for you from 5-7:00pm. Hope to see you there!
— Jonathan Maus, (503) 706-8804 – jonathan@bikeportland.org
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