Welcome to 2021!
In keeping with tradition, let’s start off the new week of the new year by highlighting some important stories you might have missed over the break.
Before we share a few links, don’t miss the three stories we published last week: an introduction of new Portland Bureau of Transportation Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty, an interview about traffic enforcement with legal expert and activist Scott Kocher, and our 2020 Year in Pictures.
Here are the most notable items we came across in the past seven days…
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ODOT lawsuit: In an email to supporters, the nonprofit No More Freeways said they plan to “sue the pants off” ODOT to challenge the agency’s federal environmental review of the I-5 Rose Quarter project.
Your new Parks Commissioner: Learn more about Carmen Rubio — who has been assigned the Portland Parks & Recreation bureau — in this profile from the Tribune.
Progressive proclamation: Portland resident Glenn Fee penned a guest column in the Tribune urging the state to take the $800 million planned for the I-5 Rose Quarter project and spend it on other projects throughout Portland.
Bike riders rampage: A video of a group of teenage bicycle riders in Manhattan thrashing cars in the middle of the street has gone viral.
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Covid biking bubbles: Tokyo Olympic organizers say they will require athletes to quarantine prior to competition — a decision that might throw a major wrench in the racing plans of many pros given the dates of the Tour de France.
Getting personal: Washington D.C. city transportation officials plan to push text messages to high-risk drivers to warn them about risks of crashes. Seems worth a shot.
Yamhelas project setback: In a blow to rail-to-trail advocates, the Oregon Land Use Board ruled that Yamhill County, who owns the Yamhelas Westsider Trail right-of-way, failed to prove that the project would not force adjacent landowners to make major changes in farming practices.
Video of the Week: The Oregonian’s “Peak Northwest” show took an inside look at the Salmonberry Trail.
— Jonathan Maus: (503) 706-8804, @jonathan_maus on Twitter and jonathan@bikeportland.org
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