A man was hit and killed last night just two blocks from where young Bradley Fortner was nearly killed while walking to school last year.
Portland Police reported late last night that a man was “struck by a vehicle in the 7000 block of North Fessenden.” That would put it near the intersection of N Midway, which is relatively busy with a taqueria, a corner store, bus stops, and apartment complexes. We don’t know many details yet, but police say it was a hit-and-run and they’re looking for a dark colored sedan with front-end damage.
By our count, this is the 48th traffic-related fatality in Portland so far this year (the Portland Bureau of Transportation, who uses state and federal criteria to count fatalities, has the number at 43). There were 44 fatalities on our roads in 2016 and December is typically one of the deadliest months of the year.
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Last night’s tragedy is very timely because just a few blocks south at Roosevelt High School, Oregon House Speaker Tina Kotek will host a town hall on traffic safety tonight. The event will focus primarily on how to improve safety on N Columbia near George Middle School where Fortner was hit last year.
Columbia Blvd is on PBOT’s High Crash Network and neighbors have clamored for safety updates for many years. As we’ve been reporting, there’s an upwelling of transportation activism in St. Johns and other north Portland neighborhoods. This latest death will only make it stronger.
We hope to see a big turnout at tonight’s event. 5:30 pm at Roosevelt High School. More details here.
UPDATE: I failed to mention it in the original post, but PBOT has plans to install a new flashing crossing beacon at this location as part of their 2013St. Johns Transportation Concept Development Project. Here’s the page from the report that mentions Fessenden and Midway:
— Jonathan Maus: (503) 706-8804, @jonathan_maus on Twitter and jonathan@bikeportland.org
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