Fate of traffic calming on Lincoln-Harrison hangs in balance at open house tonight

This is what PBOT wants to install on both sides of SE Lincoln at 50th.

I’m sensing a disturbance in the Force. Various respected sources and a general feeling of uneasiness in my bones tells me that tonight’s open house for the City of Portland’s Lincoln-Harrison Neighborhood Greenway Enhancement project will be very consequential.

In other words, there’s auto traffic diversion on the table — specifically a duo of semi-diverters on Lincoln on both sides of 50th — and a lot of very loud and very angry people are opposed to them. Yes, there are lots of people who support the diverters at 50th, but from what I’ve heard the nos have it.

As we reported last month, the Mt Tabor Neighborhood Association voted 45-5 against the diverters at 50th. And that opposition has continued. Yesterday someone went door-to-door and passed out this flyer:

Flyer drafted by Molly Cliff Hilts, Mt Tabor N’hood Association traffic committee chair.

As you can see, people are afraid. They think the diverters will unleash havoc in their neighborhood and they just can’t fathom being told they can’t drive in certain directions on certain streets.

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Regardless of how you feel about how the project and claims being made in that flyer, the fact remains that PBOT is hearing this opposition loud and clear. And even though we might wish that PBOT could simply lean on one of their many adopted policies that support the diverter at 50th, the reality is that politics matters. And in Portland, the loudest voices often shape the politics. City hall and PBOT staffers have memories like elephants when it comes to controversy and anger from neighborhoods. That’s partly why they are so fearful of making major changes to the automobile-dominated status quo: Because it brings back fraught memories of angry people yelling at them at council meetings and open houses. When there’s opposition from a neighborhood that’s not counter-balanced by support, PBOT can’t present the project to City Council with the all-important “supported by the community” stamp-of-approval.

We need to fix that political/PBOT dynamic, but that’s a conversation for another day.

Right now, if you think the diverters at 50th are important and you want to see them in the final design, you should make your presence known at tonight’s open house.

There’s also an open house for the Sullivan’s Crossing project tonight. Since that one is earlier, BikeLoudPDX is leading a ride that will leave Metro HQ on NE Grand at 6:00 for the five mile trek to the Lincoln-Harrison open house which takes place at Atkinson Elementary School at SE 58th and Division.

— Jonathan Maus: (503) 706-8804, @jonathan_maus on Twitter and jonathan@bikeportland.org

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Jonathan Maus (Publisher/Editor)

Jonathan Maus (Publisher/Editor)

Founder of BikePortland (in 2005). Father of three. North Portlander. Basketball lover. Car owner and driver. If you have questions or feedback about this site or my work, feel free to contact me at @jonathan_maus on Twitter, via email at maus.jonathan@gmail.com, or phone/text at 503-706-8804. Also, if you read and appreciate this site, please become a supporter.

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Phil Richman
6 years ago

Advocates who live in the impacted neighborhoods would be wise to thank this poster and post more of this logical support on Nextdoor.

Phil Richman
6 years ago
Reply to  Phil Richman

Also, the poster should be made aware the people who wrote it provide their names and contact information on the flyer so he/she might correct the post and/or contact Molly & Dave.

maxD
maxD
6 years ago
Reply to  Phil Richman

The authors of the flier and petition are well-known nimby’s who simply want to keep traffic off of 55th.

CaptainKarma
CaptainKarma
6 years ago
Reply to  maxD

Names please.

dan
dan
6 years ago

I am perfectly happy with photo radar with auto-ticketing for those exceeding 20 mph. Failing that, huge speedbumps (like the ones on Stark going over Mt. Tabor) would be just fine.

paikiala
paikiala
6 years ago
Reply to  dan

The bumps on Thorburn are fire friendly 14-foot standard profile bumps, called speed cushions.

Josh G
Josh G
6 years ago

The flyer is signed by a couple of homeowners who signed the petition (Her comments here: http://www.gopetition.com/petition-comment.php?cid=21882374 ) The petition was signed by Wade with the same last name.

I'll Show Up
I'll Show Up
6 years ago

There’s a long conversation on Next Door happening on this thread right now. The flyer maker is involved in the conversation and it has been clarified that there is a name on the flyer. That issue is now moot in the conversation. The debate is about the substance of the misleading flyer and the merits of the project. Phil is right that it’s time for folks in the neighborhood to stand up.

I'll Show Up
I'll Show Up
6 years ago

Just reminding you that the last time you threw out this counterpoint, you were informed that state law does not allow photo radar on Lincoln. https://bikeportland.org/2017/11/16/mt-tabor-neighborhood-votes-45-5-against-diverter-at-50th-and-lincoln-254714#comment-6843582

Plus, it only works at 11 over per state law. Do you think we shouldn’t do anything unless everyone is driving over 31 on Lincoln? I know you’ll say just put in giant speed bumps that also don’t exist. Please stop dissuading people from supporting these improvements with your non-legal ideas. Your words are being used against the whole of people who ride on the street, like families with kids. This is not the time to start brainstorming a new bike plan for Portland. Your on the flyer as “Cyclists have come out against!” Not really helpful.

I'll Show Up
I'll Show Up
6 years ago
Reply to  I'll Show Up

This comment was meant as a reply to dan above.

paikiala
paikiala
6 years ago
Reply to  I'll Show Up

*fixed* photo radar is not permitted on Lincoln. The mobile, 2-hour time limit vans (2 for the whole city) can park anywhere they can park.

paikiala
paikiala
6 years ago
Reply to  paikiala

if there is staff to do so, which is very limited.

John
John
6 years ago

Thanks for the reminder. I live in the neighborhood and completely disagree with the flyer.

There are some very loud voices here… my voice isn’t as loud but I will do my best to show up and represent my perspective.

Support Greenways
Support Greenways
6 years ago

Showing support of the current plan to this incredible Neighborhood Greenway by going to the open house tonight is great. It is also important to email or call Dan Saltzman and project manager Shelia Parrot.
sdan@portlandoregon.gov 503-823-4151
Sheila.parrott@portlandoregon.gov

503.823.5817

Buzz
Buzz
6 years ago

This is a poorly planned project that does not provide any mitigation for the traffic it will force onto adjacent parallel and perpendicular neighborhood streets.

I’ll Show Up
I’ll Show Up
6 years ago
Reply to  Buzz

Ok. So you’re against improving our network for the most vulnerable because you don’t want to see a street with 200 cars a day wind up with 300 cars a day. That’s the biggest real threat on this project and that on Harrison between 50th and 47th. Are you for serious? There is no other through route other than Hawthorne and Division. Where is this threat you’re afraid of? Do you see Lincoln as an “artery” or “arterial” like many of the people scaring folks have been describing Lincoln? Should it just become a street for cars so they can travel more quickly through my neighborhood while they’re avoiding Hawthorne and Division? Has the world ended because of the diverters at Lincoln and 39th? No. Actually that diverter is one of the things that has made our neighborhood have a legacy of being livable and safe for children. Now that’s under threat and you don’t want to inconvenience drivers. Thanks!

Buzz
Buzz
6 years ago
Reply to  I’ll Show Up

I really don’t care about inconveniencing drivers, nor am I endorsing the flyer, I am simply expressing my own opinion as to why this project is controversial.

If you really want to keep this traffic off the greenway and out of the neighborhoods, you don’t put diverters only along the greenway, you attempt to keep the traffic out of the neighborhoods in the first place.

Since I’m more familiar with the SE 26th and Harrison location, what I will say is that, in my opinion, northbound traffic on SE 26th should be dealt with at SE 26th and Division and not at SE 26th and Harrison. By the time that traffic has reached SE Caruthers, it has already penetrated the neighborhood and it’s too late to do much about it.

The same goes for southbound traffic on SE 27th and SE 30th, it needs to be dealt with at Hawthorne if you don’t want this traffic to penetrate the neighborhood.

I'll Show Up
I'll Show Up
6 years ago
Reply to  Buzz

The only diverter at that location stops westbound traffic. There has been a lot of rumor mongering in the neighborhood about not being able to drive north-south. That is not, in fact, what the project is trying to do. The only impact at 26th is that it will not allow traffic to continue westward from 26th to 20th.

Buzz
Buzz
6 years ago
Reply to  I'll Show Up

Yes, and a good amount of that traffic will then either continue north on 26th to Stephens, which are both local neighborhood streets, or it will filter west into the neighborhood south of Harrison, and perhaps emerge further west on Harrison as cross traffic, which is actually a greater hazard to cyclists on Harrison than same direction traffic.

paikiala
paikiala
6 years ago
Reply to  Buzz

Buzz,
26th, Harrison, 30th is a Neighborhood Collector. Diversion is not permitted on such streets.

Buzz
Buzz
6 years ago
Reply to  paikiala

Yes, but things like speed tables are.

How come there are speed tables on 20th and roundabouts on 30th, but nothing on 26th between Division and Harrison?

26th north of Harrison isn’t classified as a Neighborhood Collector, why hasn’t diversion been proposed at this location to keep traffic from going north of Harrison on 26th as part of this project?

How come there still isn’t an all-way stop sign at the relatively busy three-way intersection at SE 26th and Stephens, nor is one proposed as part of this project?

SilkySlim
SilkySlim
6 years ago
Reply to  Buzz

How much planning do you need for this?

There is too much traffic cutting through a neighborhood, so place some sort of barrier in the way to keep people mostly on the nearby arterials. Yes, some of those cut through folks will find new cut throughs, but most will get the message.

I hate that they even ask for public input on things like this. Just do it. At least they aren’t convening to determine how to convene a committee to discuss possibilities for future meetings.

paikiala
paikiala
6 years ago
Reply to  SilkySlim

So, you would have the city ‘implement’ what it judges best, without input from the public. Works if their vision is your vision, not so much if not. Seems like many in this echo chamber would disagree with you based on feedback from recent stories.

bikeninja
bikeninja
6 years ago
Reply to  Buzz

The argument that we should not have a diverter on a certain street to keep people from speeding, and endangering people there because they will move to a different street and do the same thing is the same as arguing that a given neighborhood should not implement a neighborhood watch, improve lighting and other crime prevention tools because the criminals will move to other neighborhoods and increase crime there.

soren
soren
6 years ago
Reply to  Buzz

PBOT implemented side-street mitigation for both the Clinton and 50s bikeway diverters.

Do you have any evidence to support your claim that PBOT would not abide by its Neighborhood Greenway policy and offer mitigation, if it is needed?

GlowBoy
GlowBoy
6 years ago

Interesting that the flyer is careful not to take an anti-bike perspective – that wouldn’t fly in this neighborhood – so instead they’re saying “cyclists … have come out against!” as if that’s representative of most cyclists. Which I very much doubt.

Andrea Brown
Andrea Brown
6 years ago
Reply to  GlowBoy

I can tell you that at the last Richmond Neighborhood meeting, when asked about cycling habits, nearly every single person in the room claimed to be a cyclist and also, that they cycle to work. On one hand it’s cool that people consider themselves to be cyclists, on the other hand, judging by their attitude toward the Lincoln-Harrison project, I’d say the self-reported data is, shall we say, malleable.

John Liu
John Liu
6 years ago
Reply to  Andrea Brown

Are you saying they must have been lying when they said they were cyclists and bike commuters? Why do you think that?

Andrea Brown
Andrea Brown
6 years ago
Reply to  John Liu

Oh, I’m sure those who object to improved bike infrastructure are totally cyclists and regular commuters! Absolutely. The mystery is why they are so terribly, terribly concerned about inconvenient changes to other people’s driving habits. The mystery is why they insist there is “little traffic” on Lincoln yet if Lincoln is not accessible to all cars that there is going to be this bizarre spike from all that nonexistent traffic onto their own side street. How would I know if they are lying? I’m still just puzzling this all out.

John Liu
John Liu
6 years ago
Reply to  Andrea Brown

Cyclists can in fact have different views from each other. Just because another cyclist disagrees with you doesn’t mean they are lying about being a cyclist. Maybe they are more comfortable riding in traffic, or they have a spouse who is dependent on driving, or they commute at different hours.

We see those differing views here on BP all the time. One regular commenter insists that streets without a concrete barrier separating bikes from cars is too dangerous to ride, others disagree and don’t want to be walled off from the rest of the road.

Inability to comprehend others’ point of view isn’t usually a good thing.

X
X
6 years ago
Reply to  John Liu

“I’m a cyclist too and. . .”

Dawn
Dawn
6 years ago

I’ve voiced my mildly anti-diverter stance here in the previous post, so I’m not going to get into that again (and yes, I’m a Richmond resident who bike commutes daily and uses a vehicle on an extremely limited basis – less then 3,800 miles per year primarily to do weekend trips or errands). But I do want to add that the biggest problem with traffic on Lincoln-Harrison and proposed diversion of this traffic either back to arterials or onto other neighborhood streets is due in large part to commuter traffic from east of this area (East Portland, Gresham, etc.). Unless we find a way to mitigate traffic flow with improved bus service, park and ride locations in East Portland or other creative solutions, we are going to continue to play whack-a-mole with traffic. People from east of these neighborhoods are just trying to get to their jobs or schools or what have you…they do not yet have any real incentive to get out of their personal vehicles. Making their route more challenging with slow traffic on Division/Hawthorne or increasing the difficulty by encouraging cutting through our neighborhoods is not going to be enough or a disincentive to driving…just add to their frustration.

I'll Show Up
I'll Show Up
6 years ago
Reply to  Dawn

Well, the Division Transit project is in active discussion. The same cast of characters has been showing up to stop that project as well. Are you saying that until there’s better transit and park and rides built in East Portland that you don’t support diversion in the inner-portions of our city? If that’s the case, will you ever support diversion while we’re alive? Not trying to be hyperbolic, this stuff just moves so slow and there are so many loud anti-voices that that would be the way it would work out if we waited for these other things first.

Dawn
Dawn
6 years ago
Reply to  I'll Show Up

I have supported diverters in the past and I fully support the Division bus project (although I feel it would have been better suited to Powell for long term benefits and I wish it wasn’t moving at such a slow pace). I just don’t really support these diverters on Lincoln-Harrison for a bunch of reasons that I’ve elaborated on before. I think we need to be doing more to encourage car sharing, park and rides and other options to get people out of their cars.

John Liu
John Liu
6 years ago
Reply to  Dawn

You must not actually ride your bike! Just kidding, see discussion above.

I’ll Show Up
I’ll Show Up
6 years ago
Reply to  John Liu

That’s not nice, John. I noticed you complaining that sometimes it feels like people target you personally. I’m not totally surprised. As the chair of the Laurelhurst historic district committee, you are working on one of the most classist efforts I’ve seen in my lifetime. Just like my bullying neighbors have done to diverted supporters, you’re doing everything you can to protect your privilege and not inconvenience yourself so that the less privileged have to contribute to solving big problems like housing – Laurelhurst specific-, safety, health air quality – Lincoln crew- and oh so much other problems that you’ll leave it to us commoners to solve. In the case of the substantive comment I left and you snarled at, Dawn was saying diverters are fine for others. Just not near her house. Congestion on Hawthorne and Division make it so it’s just not ok to create a street that’s safe for kids to ride on. The speeders on the long blocks will be our neighbors as there will no longer be a time advantage to cutting through our residential neighborhood. The speeders that all this fear mongering is about will be us.

maxD
maxD
6 years ago
Reply to  Dawn

Great point Dawn! Maintaining this route as a safe Greenway IS part of that solution to provide an alternative to bad traffic. There are also significant bus improvements coming for Division Street. I do think that the City should commit to monitor adjacent streets and provide additional traffic mitigation if it gets bad.

Dawn
Dawn
6 years ago
Reply to  maxD

The Division bus improvements are not planned to be in service until 2021 and I have serious doubts about Trimet’s projected service times in that corridor for 4 years in the future.

dan
dan
6 years ago
Reply to  Dawn

Yeah, I may be too dumb to understand this, but does anyone know why Division is set up so buses stop in the lane rather than pulling over to the curb and letting traffic go by? It just doesn’t make sense unless the intent is to encourage people to use Powell.

Adam L
Adam L
6 years ago
Reply to  dan

Trimet has the buses stop in lane to speed up the busses. When they stop in lane, once they are ready to leave the stop they can leave right away. If you provide pullouts to let cars go by, when the bus tries to leave the stop it often has to wait until a person driving a car to stop to let them in. Those 15 second delays waiting for people to let you in add up for a bus fairly quickly. It looks like the Division bus stops 15 times between SE 50th and SE 10th (2 miles). If the bus is delayed by 15 seconds at every one of those stops that 3 minutes 45 seconds added to every single bus trip for just that 2 mile section.

I say give the vehicle carrying 30 people every advantage it can get over the ones carrying one person.

maxD
maxD
6 years ago
Reply to  dan

I think the intention is to prioritize buses, streamline the stopping and loading of passengers, and eliminate bus /car conflicts from having to re-enter a lane.

osmill
osmill
6 years ago
Reply to  dan

And a side ‘benefit’ – at least from a politics-of-automobiles standpoint – is that having the bus stop in the traffic lane at an extended sidewalk *preserves parking*. The extended sidewalk only has to be long enough to extend from the front of the bus to the rear door, while a parking-lane stop requires enough space for the bus to swerve into and back out of the parking lane, in addition to the length of the bus.

(I suspect that the underlying rationale for implementing this on Division was to preserve some of the parking lost to rainwater treatment planters.)

osmill
osmill
6 years ago
Reply to  osmill

Although either the swerve-in or swerve-out maneuver typically takes place across a crosswalk and intersection, so it’s usually just one of those lengths, not both, at a given parking-lane bus stop.

paikiala
paikiala
6 years ago
Reply to  osmill

“rolling speed bumps”

John Liu
John Liu
6 years ago
Reply to  dan

Or to encourage people to use Lincoln.

Chris I
Chris I
6 years ago
Reply to  Dawn

There is a threshold of frustration and delays that will push people into alternate modes of transit. Unfortunately, there are too many potential alternate routes in inner-east Portland.

I'll Show Up
I'll Show Up
6 years ago
Reply to  Chris I

We’re talking about Lincoln-Harrison. Look at a map. Between 20th and 39th, there’s no other way through except Division and Hawthorne. Then, between 39th and 50th, you can not enter from either end of the segment. Some drivers will decide to go against the safety measures and wiggle, but it will be way less than currently use Lincoln as their “arterial”. From 50th to 60th, there’s no other way through except Division and Hawthorne.

I’ve seen a lot of your comments on here saying that bike projects don’t live up to modern designs. Are you now saying that we can’t apply those designs in inner-Portland because its got a grid street layout?

Laura
Laura
6 years ago

One of the concerns I have about this deal is that the City designated Lincoln as a low-traffic bike/pedestrian focus street (bike boulevard, Greenway, whatever jargon it was then and now is) many years ago. Some residents bought in this neighborhood because of the Greenway. The City, in my mind, has an obligation to maintain that facility within their rules or guidelines for a Greenway. Which includes providing mitigation for the 500+ new units on 50th between Hawthorne and Powell; in other words, protecting and improving Lincoln (and Clinton). Otherwise, they need to go through a process to remove the designation. I suspect many of the nay-sayers/nimbys are relatively new residents, many who probably failed to do due diligence on what it means to live on or near a greenway.

Doug Klotz
Doug Klotz
6 years ago

See you all there. Make sure you leave written comments, as they tend to get tallied up in “for” and “against” piles. And look for folks with petitions to sign in favor of the project ( not those Other petitions.)

Todd Boulanger
Todd Boulanger
6 years ago

Jonathan – please consider revising the description of the proposed improvement as a “rendering” or “simulation”…just so future readers do not get confused that it was already built etc.

Todd Boulanger
Todd Boulanger
6 years ago

Good luck tonight!

vs
vs
6 years ago

Just back from the open house on this project and I am shocked and disturbed by what was on display from the opponents of this project.

The opponents were well organized and angry. Dare I say belligerent. One person was assertively questioning a PBOT staff person about, ‘who thought up this thing, everyone who lives around here hates this project.’ A couple of us spoke up saying we live in the neighborhood and we think it’s a good project. We were curtly told that ‘bikers need to learn to share the road’.

The event was intended as an open house and the ‘no on 50th’ crowd demanded a person to speak. A city staffer was trying to explain the reason for the project (the greenway is failing and if we are to follow our plans as a city we need to lower traffic and slow it down) only to be shouted down. When he said, “as a city we decided we aren’t going to build freeways’ people shouted that down and shouted out, ‘who decided that?’

Remember, this is Mount Tabor in SE Portland. I felt like I was watching the Tea Party shouting down someone trying to talk about Obamacare. It definitely had a mob-like and hostile feel.

I am shocked by the way the opponents behaved. I was holding a bike helmet and had a few people angrily say, ‘you cyclists need to learn to share the road’. When we replied that we don’t think Lincoln is safe for kids, people said, in direct response, ‘well, I don’t want to have to drive on Division, it’s too busy.

Yes, in SE Portland, liberal mecca, where we all hate Roy Moore, a few minutes saved is more important than the safety of kids. I am extremely disappointed in my neighbors tonight.

That said, PBOT staff were great, super professional and they kept their cool despite treatment no one deserves.

Andrea Brown
Andrea Brown
6 years ago
Reply to  vs

I think you were the fellow we talked to as we were leaving. Fortunately at that point the Bikeloud contingent arrived, it was like the cavalry, they all hauled their bikes in there and we wished them well. The meeting being co-opted by the neighborhood was a big fail on PBOT’s part but they held their own well and I hope everybody here sends a short note of appreciation to their staff. I am really starting to think that the public comment venues are counterproductive. As somebody just noted on Nextdoor, “No stage, no drama.”

sami
sami
6 years ago
Reply to  Andrea Brown

How can a meeting with the neighborhood be co-opted by the neighborhood? PBOT’s job is to listen and respond, not carry out something like this in back rooms after hours with no input. Unfortunately, the way PBOT’s handled this to-date has not been as inclusive or informative as the neighborhood would expect.

Andrea Brown
Andrea Brown
6 years ago
Reply to  sami

If you’d like more details on how it was co-opted read Jonathan’s post from tonight. It was an open house, not a forum. An anti-diverter person took charge and that should not have happened. She only called on others of her cohort to speak. That’s how.

John Liu
John Liu
6 years ago
Reply to  Andrea Brown

Sounds like the meeting was not run as effectively as it should have been, by PBOT.

What’s the difference between an open house and a forum?

paikiala
paikiala
6 years ago
Reply to  sami

Sami,
Where do you get your information?
PBOT has previously met with all three neighborhood associations, the BAC, and had one previous open house. A full featured web site is available with more information than anyone needs to thoughtfully contemplate the project, including a survey with free-form section to ‘really tell us what you think”.
PBOT is meeting again with RNA next Monday.
The perception that PBOT is doing something in secret is false.

sami
sami
6 years ago
Reply to  paikiala

Hi paikiala, I get my information from PBOT directly. My comment about the “no input” was in response to a comment above that says “I hate that they even ask for public input on things like this. Just do it.” If you hold a neighborhood meeting don’t be surprised if the neighborhood has something to say. If you’re aware of the other project at the long blocks past 60th imo they’ve done a far better job of communicating and gathering input.

I’ll Show Up
I’ll Show Up
6 years ago
Reply to  sami

I was there, Sami. When your advocate asked for people to raise hands about who supported and who didn’t, somewhere less than half but more than a third of the room raised in support. Yet, during the question period, she literally only called on opponents to ask questions. When supporters tried to get attention, we were literally shushed and moved out of the way.

What explanation do you have for the fact that not one question was asked from someone trying to learn how to support the project? Not one.

John Liu
John Liu
6 years ago

Would it be possible to place the diverter at 60th instead of 50th? Would that address the point made above about wanting to divert cars before they get into the area of long blocks, rather than letting them get into the area and then sending them speeding up the long blocks to get around the diverter?. (Sorry if I’m misinterpreting you, Buzz.)

paikiala
paikiala
6 years ago
Reply to  John Liu

Possible yes.
Effective, no. Southbound transit turns west there, so it would have to be something like at 52nd north of Division.
It would also not reduce as much traffic as the diverter at 50th.
Then there is the oft heard comment from the meeting: “have you seen the back up on 60th at Division?”.

Crowsby
Crowsby
6 years ago

Judging by the percentage of “cyclists” at the Atkinson meeting, one would think we should make Division a bike-only street and let the cars have Lincoln.

On the upside, if it wasn’t for this goofy flyer I wouldn’t have known about the meeting. So that was nice of them.