Advocacy groups will join forces for a rally on November 7th at the location where a man and young child were critically injured by a driver while they crossed the street earlier this month.
The collision happened on October 2nd in a marked crosswalk on SE 122nd Avenue just outside Midland Library. That location also happens to be where the Portland Bureau of Transportation has an open house scheduled on November 7th for their 122nd Ave Plan: Safety, Access and Transit project. As we reported back in July, PBOT has partnered with TriMet for a suite of updates on the High Crash Corridor. The idea is to bring 122nd Avenue up to a higher level of safety from Marine Drive to Foster Road so TriMet can boost transit service without worrying that their customers will be in harm’s way.
Some elements of the project have already been completed and at a press conference last month PBOT Commissioner Chloe Eudaly said she’d like to use the street as a model of “transportation done right.”
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But as we saw on October 2nd, there’s a lot of work to be done. It’s also not assured that the plan itself will be robust enough to tame traffic in the corridor.
The Street Trust, Bike Loud PDX, Oregon Walks and Rosewood Initiative want to create more urgency around the project and remind PBOT and TriMet that the community will hold them accountable.
Here’s the description of the event:
122nd Avenue is a high-crash corridor. The incidence of pedestrian crashes on 122nd is about 50% higher than the citywide average. The Portland Bureau of Transportation is re-designing 122nd, but it has not clearly stated that the protection of vulnerable road users is paramount. To achieve Vision Zero (the end of traffic fatalities and serious injuries), we need road designs that protect people. Come rally at an open house for the 122nd Avenue redesign on Wednesday, November 7, 5:30 pm at Midway Library, 805 SE 122nd Avenue.
Check out the Facebook event page for more details.
— Jonathan Maus: (503) 706-8804, @jonathan_maus on Twitter and jonathan@bikeportland.org
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East Portland Action Plan, Opal and Bike Loud are also sponsors of the rally. Can’t make the rally? Sign our petition https://www.thestreettrust.org/122nd-petition/
The more people that show up to support sane streets, the better. Ms. Lewis and I live out here and for a split second we were on Next Door. Anytime anything transportation anything is brought up, good god, you quickly realize how many absolute maniacs you live near. Gah. Someone not in a car gets hit and it was all; GOOD THEY WERE PROBABLY JAYWALKING AND THE OTHER DAY I SEEN THIS GUY ON A BIKE RUN A STOP SIGN AND WHAT THE HECK DON’T YOU DRIVE FOR ANYWAYS?? GETTING HIT BY A CAR WILL LEARN YA UP REAL QUICK. So anyway, we are gonna go and will be all in on any ideas floated that reduces traffic amounts, traffic speeds, increases walking and biking ease, etc. Please come be all in with us.
NextDoor is like that here in Foster-Powell and I’ve heard it’s the same everywhere. I didn’t last very long on there. But I’m pretty sure I’m known as the local cranky parking guy.
This sounds fantastic! And maybe Ted Wheeler could come out for another photo op to show how much he cares,
Do we know what happened to the people who were hit in the crosswalk? Were there any charges or citations filed against the driver?
Funny enough, I was just rear ended by a trimet vehicle in my car while waiting at a stop light near there. Oh TriMet…