A $206 million project that will improve service on TriMet’s Red light rail line will also come with significant benefits to bicycle riders.
The “Better Red” project will extend the Red Line further west in Washington County; but what we’re watching closely is how the improvements will impact the I-205 path in east Portland.
According to TriMet, the project will add a second track on two sections of existing single track between Gateway Transit Center and the Portland Airport. Adjacent to these new tracks and stations, TriMet plans to build multi-use paths. The project will also re-align the existing path.
Near the airport, a new path will be built from the PDX terminal to NE Air Cargo Road. The Air Cargo Road path will dump riders onto surface streets. (If you want to get to the I-205 path you’ll have to sleuth a route on a mix of streets, sidewalks, and paths until we get a path that connects all the way through.) Near the Gateway Transit Center (NE Halsey and 99th Ave) a new station will come new path and a direct connection to Gateway Green Bike Park via a new bridge over I-84. The existing path with will be re-aligned. (See images below.)
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Design of the project is currently underway and it’s scheduled to break ground next year. TriMet says it’ll open in 2024. (By that time, major updates to Gateway Green will be complete. Portland Parks & Recreation is working on Phase 2 updates now and the park has been closed since March.)
To learn more about Better Red, the project is on the agenda of next week’s PBOT Bicycle Advisory Committee meeting. You can attend the meeting online via Zoom starting at 6:00 pm Tuesday, July 14th. Full details on the BP Calendar.
UPDATE, 7/14: TriMet just shared new visuals of the bike path connection to Gateway Green at the monthly PBOT Bicycle Advisory Committee meeting. Check them out below…
— Jonathan Maus: (503) 706-8804, @jonathan_maus on Twitter and jonathan@bikeportland.org
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