Lime Gen4 scooters parked in northwest Portland. (Photos: Lime)
Lime can boast two million rides on their scooters and the company wants to show the City of Portland they’re ready for a long-term relationship.
As we reported last week, the Portland Bureau of Transportation is looking for one or two scooter operators to take over the existing pilot program and provide a larger fleet and other upgrades in exchange for less competition and a more stable contract. One of the major changes PBOT has asked prospective vendors to make is a locking mechanism that would allow scooters to be attached to designated parking stalls.
Lime says their new Gen4 scooters are up to the task. The company announced today they’ve begun to swap out their existing fleet with upgraded scooters that include a cable lock to encourage riders to lock them to bike racks and other designated parking spots. “This will decrease street clutter and promote safety, improving the micromobility experience for everyone in the city including non-riders and other pedestrians,” a Lime statement said.
With more scooters parked in racks, PBOT will need to work extra hard to make sure there are ample spaces available for bicycle users.
(Source: Lime)
The upgraded Lime scooters will also include swappable, interchangeable batteries. That means maintenance crews can re-charge scooters more efficiently in the field without having to round them up. This will reduce the vehicle miles traveled of Lime maintenance vehicles and lead to fewer carbon emissions.
Other new features of Lime’s Gen4 model are swept-back handlebars (“reminiscent of bike handles” the company says), an improved kickstand, better brakes, beefier suspension and larger wheels, and a lower deck.
Lime has operated scooters in Portland since the first pilot program began in 2018 and will soon announce riders have taken over two million rides. The company has over 1,100 scooters on the ground in Portland, more than any other vendor. They expect a full fleet swap to be completed in the next few weeks.
PBOT says all current scooter vendors can operate through fall 2022 until a new vendor (or vendors) are chosen.
After years of back and forth between the City of Portland and the Oregon Department of Transportation on the plan to widen I-5 at the Rose Quarter in Portland, a negotiation may be back on the table. At today’s Portland City Council meeting, the city will adopt an intergovernmental agreement (IGA) with ODOT to provide the state transportation agency with planning and design services for the controversial project.
With their updated plan for the expansion, some advocates feel ODOT has sufficiently addressed the equity concerns. But climate activists have not been satiated, and they’re calling on the city to call off their participation until ODOT shows they’re serious about tackling the climate emergency.
“The agreement coming to City Council is a big step for PBOT and the city. It marks a turning point for the project.”
– Dylan Rivera, PBOT
Activists have been concerned about the freeway expansion’s impact on the surrounding Albina area, which consists of historically Black neighborhoods in North and Northeast Portland that were decimated when I-5 was constructed in the 1960s. The nonprofit group Albina Vision Trust (AVT), formed in 2017 to advocate for restoring the Albina area, has put pressure on ODOT to ensure the expansion won’t recreate the past damage.
While AVT pulled support for the Rose Quarter project in 2020, they rejoined the conversation last year after Oregon Governor Kate Brown stepped in to orchestrate a compromise that would require ODOT to cap the freeway enough to create a street grid over I-5. AVT’s primary goal has been ensuring a robust cap system over the Rose Quarter freeway to create opportunities for Albina neighborhood restoration. Now that ODOT has provided capping plans they find sufficient, AVT is back on board, and the city is following behind.
Current PBOT Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty also signed on in support of this design (dubbed “Hybrid 3”) earlier this year, previewing this PBOT/ODOT Rose Quarter reconciliation.
The expansion and cap design AVT approved of.
Other freeway fighting groups, however, are still not pleased, and they’re asking the city to hold off on adopting an IGA with ODOT until they can more sufficiently leverage their power. Climate activists from groups like No More Freeways (NMF) say adding lanes to the freeway will encourage more driving and increase greenhouse gas emissions from transportation. Right now, ODOT is planning a potential road use pricing plan on I-5 in addition to the lane expansion. But climate activists say ODOT is being wishy-washy on pricing, and they could manage congestion simply by adding road use fee requirements to disincentivize single passenger vehicle trips – no freeway expansion needed.
A June 20 letter to Portland City Council from NMF as well as Allan Rudwick of the Eliot Neighborhood Association and Mary Peveto from Neighbors for Clean Air asks Council to rethink adopting the IGA with ODOT until they analyze a pricing-only alternative to lane expansion. They cite the city of Portland’s Climate Emergency Declaration, adopted two years ago, as evidence moving forward with the project is in opposition with Council’s own goals.
“We are disappointed that the City is not using its leverage in returning to the table for this project to ensure accountability for the climate and environmental impacts of highway expansion,” the letter reads. “ODOT’s position on the timing of road pricing is plainly at odds with adopted city policy.”
Anti-freeway activists want ODOT to complete a lengthy Environmental Impact Statement of the expansion that meets their standards, which the state does not want to do. But they must comply with an environmental analysis requirement from the feds, which has set the timeline for this project back. According to a Council document outlining details of the IGA, the city will not be required to play a large role in the federal environmental review, but will “have an opportunity to review the supplemental environmental assessment” and provide comment to the state and the Federal Highway Administration on the results.
This could be an opportunity for the city to make requests of ODOT local climate activists are asking for.
“We urge you to withdraw the IGA from today’s agenda and renegotiate it to include a commitment to a full Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) including analysis of a pricing-only alternative,” the letter from NMF reads. “Anything less is willful neglect of your self-declared climate obligations and your duty to the community to ensure accountability for all the impacts of freeway expansion.”
“We urge you to withdraw the IGA from today’s agenda and renegotiate it.”
– No More Freeways
Portland Bureau of Transportation Public Information Officer Dylan Rivera told BikePortland via email this agreement is “a big step” for the bureau and the City of Portland.
“It marks a turning point for the project, enabled by the Hybrid 3 option that Commissioner Hardesty negotiated for the city in talks directly with the governor, regional leaders and community partners in the last year,” Rivera writes. “Everyone agrees that pricing is essential and that it is expected to be in place before the opening of the Rose Quarter project. With the agreement in place, the City will be able to engage and advocate for appropriate environmental study. Since Hybrid 3 is a new option, it requires a re-evaluation of the environmental assessment that ODOT did on the project.”
While the state could theoretically move forward with the project without city involvement, it would be a lot easier for ODOT if they could form a united front.
“At this time, the City of Portland’s participation is crucial to ensure a successful project that stays accountable to the commitments the State has made, and to ensure the interests and values of the City of Portland are represented,” the IGA ordinance impact statement says.
Given the widely-publicized controversy the Rose Quarter expansion project has attracted, it’s hard to imagine this IGA will slip under the radar without a hitch. Stay tuned for details about how the City Council discussion plays out today.
SE Stark Trunk Sewer Project vehicle detour and bicycle diversion map. (Source: BES)
Contractors working on a City of Portland Bureau of Environmental Services project in the central eastside want to spread the word about near collisions between bicycle riders and heavy equipment.
BES recently broke ground on their SE Stark Trunk Sewer Project, which will install a stormwater diversion structure to redirect combined sewer from a pipeline on Stark to the Willamette River during heavy rain events. Big pieces of material and heavy equipment are staged on SE 3rd near Stark. This is a relatively popular bike route that connects to SE Water Avenue.
We heard from a BES rep today that the contractor has reported some near misses with equipment operators and they’re worried about keeping the area safe.
One block of SE Stark between 2nd and 3rd, and one block of 3rd between Washington and Stark are closed during construction (which is expected to continue for five more months).
The detour is to use the sidewalks on Water Ave to get around the construction zone. Since sidewalks can be crowded, please consider walking your bike if you are unable to pass other people with safety and respect. “Cyclists must avoid riding on closed roadways even if it looks like there’s enough room for a bike to navigate around construction,” reads a BES construction bulletin sent out today.
The BES source we spoke to also said if the near misses continue, they might have to hire police officers to direct traffic.
The Hawthorne Bridge and the Morrison Bridge will close to motorized vehicles Monday, July 4 for the Waterfront Blues Festival fireworks show. Both bridges will close to cars and trucks from 7:00 p.m. to 11:30 p.m. Drivers will need to use alternative routes. The bridges will remain open for bicyclists and pedestrians. Multnomah County is closing the bridges during this time because crowds often fill the bridges and cars stop to watch the fireworks. This can cause safety issues. Multnomah County maintains the Morrison and Hawthorne bridges as well as four other Willamette River bridges. For information visit: https://www.multco.us/bridges
BikeLoud is looking for help coordinating our Sundays on Going event this summer. Sundays on Going is a mini Sunday Parkways every Sunday this summer. We are helping coordinate block parties and leading a community bike ride each sunday until the end of August. Coordinators would help out for up to 5 Sundays this summer and would be paid $100 per Sunday.
As a coordinator your role would be:
-Pick up block party supplies at NE 47th and Going and deliver to block parties along Going before 10am using our bike with a long trailer.
-Lead Slow Roll ride at noon from the King Farmers Market up to Kʰunamokwst Park and back
-Pick up supplies and return at 2pm.
Outgoing, can-do attitude a big plus. Must be able to comfortably lift and move supplies.
Coordinators will be joined by one of BikeLoud’s Sundays on Going leads for their first event.
How to Apply
If you are interested in helping please email bikeloudpdx@gmail.com with a paragraph about why you would like to help out and your summer availability.
Do you have any summer bike adventures planned with the little ones? Ready to put them in the trailer and go for a nice long ride?
There’s just one problem: those tots have lots of energy! None of which gets used during a trailer ride. Likely as not, they take a sweet nap in the trailer, leaving them with energy to burn when you’re ready for a rest. And as they get older, they’ll want to ride on their own, engaging actively alongside the rest of the family. Trail-a-bikes are a common option for this phase, but they might not work for everyone. Some folks have two tots to tote, which won’t fit a typical trail-a-bike or tandem. Also, what happens if a little one begins to nod off on the trail-a-bike? (Has that happened to anyone? I can imagine my tired kiddo just falling over.)
We recently discovered a happy, easy, and fun solution to this phase: scooters.
Our little ones are proficient scooter riders. They use lightweight three-wheeled scooters, which are easier for them to navigate than the “big kid” and slightly tippy two-wheeled options. They typically ride back-and-forth on the one block of sidewalk in front of our house. I rarely let them ride the scooters to the park because they are just too darn fast…it’s impossible to keep up with them walking, and I don’t like trying to coach them from a bike as they speed those little wheels past driveways, which pose a real danger to a two-foot-tall speedster. Thus, the scooter riding has largely been relegated to the sidewalk in front of our house, which gets plenty of daily use.
But I didn’t really appreciate how fast, far, and long my little guys could scoot, until we tested them on a family bike ride with their grandparents.
We planned a morning of family biking on a car-free path. Grandpa offered to stay behind and walk with the scooter boys. My mom had seen them in action and laughed. “You better get a bike to ride, or you’ll never keep up,” she advised. It was true! My three and four year old boys happily scooter at a leisurely bike pace. They are flying, while grown-ups do a comfortable pedal. My boys scooted approximately four miles with us (with snacks and play breaks). Grandpa pulled an empty two-kid bike trailer, which also fit snacks and water bottles.
When the little guys finally got worn out, we put them in the trailer for a ride, with their scooters easily tucked into the trailer’s trunk.
It was a fabulous, cheap, space-saving solution that allowed my boys to scooter to their heart’s content. They got to expend all of their energy (a benefit of incalculable value!) They got to enjoy the independence of propelling themselves on their own power. And when they got tired, it was easy to tow them and their scooters in the bike trailer.
This is now a good family biking option for us, which works great for visits to carfree paths like the Banks-Vernonia Trail. It could also be great for parents who need to tow kids through high traffic areas, but then let them get out and ride their own scooters around parks and pathways. For summer bike vacations, scooters pack down into small spaces. I’m even thinking this could be a good option for multi-modal rides, as big families like ours can’t easily take bikes on public transit, simply because there are so many of us.
The bike trailer + scooter option is a new favorite that we are excited to utilize this summer. Happy riding!
Pedalpalooza Bike Summer keeps rolling along. (Photo: Jonathan Maus/BikePortland)
Finally! It appears we have warmer, sunnier weather on the horizon. And it’s a good thing because Bike Summer is still going strong into its third (of 12!) weeks.
To help guide you through the fun options, every Monday (sorry, I couldn’t get to this yesterday) we choose one ride from each day that looks interesting and worthy of your attention. As always, check out our Weekend Event Guide and Calendar for more of our ride selections (remember you can filter our calendar to only show the Pedalpalooza category).
This week you’ll have a chance to make some noise with some fun music-themed rides…
Tuesday, June 21st
Sync It! – 7:00 pm at Woodstock Park (SE) Booming music makes group rides better. But a cacophony of competing crooners can be sound more like chaos than coolness. Leaders of this ride will sync up their devices and roll with a shared Spotify playlist that everyone can contribute to. More info here.
Wednesday, June 22nd
Bleeps and Bloops Ride – 6:00 pm at Holladay Park (NE) A different take on a musical ride, organizers promise a musical parade and encourage participants to, “Strap on your synthesizers, your noisemaking devices, your ring modulators and Gameboys…and your mini-xylophones, too,” as they pedal from park to park. More info here.
Thursday, June 23rd
Drum n Bass Ride – 8:00 pm at Powell Park (SE) If you’re looking for a dance ride, this could be right up your alley. Ride leaders say, “There will be plenty of jungle, breakbeats, bangers, new and old.” More info here.
Friday, June 24th
Better Naito Forever Celebration Ride – 5:00 pm at Salmon Street Fountain (SW) The new protected bike lanes on Naito Parkway that opened last month are a huge deal. Just as important as the lanes themselves is how the project came about. This ride will be led by activists from Better Block PDX who were there at the beginning. They will regale you with tales of pushing the limits of PBOT and will share what it took to get this project over the finish line. More info here.
As always, check the official calendar for details on every single ride. And be sure to check official event pages for latest updates and cancellations before you roll out. Have fun out there!
“Most chop shop operations are not threats to legitimate bike shops, as the customer base is completely different – our customers are too poor […] to shop at any normal bike shop.”
Welcome to the Comment of the Week, where we highlight good comments in order to inspire more of them. You can help us choose our next one by replying with “comment of the week” to any comment you think deserves recognition.
Regular readers of BikePortland know David Hampsten as a frequent commenter on our posts. His comments take a lot of different tones, but the ones I like best are informative. He can often fill in useful background on a range of topics from his long years as an east Portland transportation advocate.
David lives in North Carolina now, but his comments in response to our post about a new ordinance in Los Angeles banning “chop shops” were not only colorful vignettes, but also added depth to my understanding of the “chop shop” world. David helps run something similar to a chop shop in NC. He writes from personal experience with a world-weary voice which can be hard to pull off, but which coming from David seems authentic.
Here’s what David wrote:
I help run a (barely) “legitimate” nonprofit chop-shop operation here in Greensboro NC. We collect and process about 600 donated bicycles per year from other nonprofits, the police, individuals, churches, and so on. This year we gave away about 75 bikes to Afghan refugees plus other bikes to the homeless, the nearly homeless, inner-city black kids, and to the working poor. We also typically sell about 25 used bicycles and scrap about 200 bikes.
From my experience in working with our volunteers (I’m a volunteer too) and in meeting with other chop-shop operators (including other nonprofits but mostly illegitimate back yard operations), I’ve come to some basic conclusions about the chop-shop industry at least in pleasantly mediocre cities like Greensboro (as we are clearly not on par with lofty Portland):
— Most chop shop operations are not threats to legitimate bike shops, as the customer base is completely different – our customers are too poor […] to shop at any normal bike shop, all of which are too far away from where our customers live – in what you might call bike-shop deserts.
— Nearly all chop shop mechanics and volunteers are too inept to ever work successfully at any local bike shop – either they are too slow at fixing stuff, don’t know how to fix even basic equipment, or worse yet cannot tell the difference between high quality equipment from junk – if it’s shiny then it must be good. It’s a serious challenge training our mechanics.
Unfortunately our customer base similarly knows next to nothing about bicycles and cannot tell the difference between total junk like Next or Magna from a used Trek with all its original parts still on it – they always prefer the shiny Next. And they don’t have bike tools nor a pump at home.
Velotech, Inc. is a locally owned business that has operated in Portland since 2002. Velotech is the parent company of BikeTiresDirect, Western Bikeworks, and Trisports.
This position is responsible for picking, packing and shipping customer orders. Qualified Shipping Specialists also execute product put-away, clean their work area, execute physical counts, and available for general physical and/or minor administrative labor.
Starting rate is $17.25 per hour.
ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS INCLUDE BUT ARE NOT LIMITED TO:
Pick incoming web orders and warehouse pick up orders
Pack and ship orders according to supervisor’s guidelines
Maintain accurate inventory through regular cycle counting
Assist receiving department with put away of new items
Maintain a clean and organized workspace
Assist with any projects, or assist in other departments as instructed by supervisor
Perform all duties in a safe manner and report all safety concerns immediately to supervisor
MINIMUM JOB REQUIREMENTS:
Wear closed toe shoes at all times in warehouse
Be able to lift 25 lbs above your head without assistance
Stand for long periods of time
Be able to lift 50 lbs without assistance
KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, & ABILITIES:
Excellent communication and organizational skills
Solid knowledge of cycling products
Ability to work in a high volume, fast-paced environment
Ability to work independently or with others to manage multiple task with minimal supervision.
BENEFITS
Generous Employee Discounts
Flexible Schedules
Medical/Dental/Vision for all full & regular part-time employees
Paid Time Off – up to 15 days your first year
Quarterly ‘Get Outside’ days
PHYSICAL/MENTAL DEMANDS:
The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. While performing the duties of this position, the employee is regularly required to talk or hear. The employee frequently is required to use hands or finger, handle, or feel objects, tools or controls.
While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to stand; walk, reach with hands and arms, stoop, kneel, crouch and sit for extended periods of time.
The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 50 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by this position include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, and the ability to adjust focus.
The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate.
This description is intended to provide only the basic guidelines for meeting job requirements. Responsibilities, knowledge, skills, ability and working conditions may change as needs evolve.
Happy Juneteenth, the (now national) holiday that marks the day in 1865 when word of the Emancipation Proclamation made its way to Texas and the last remaining Black slaves in America were finally set free. Learn more about it here.
Here are the most notable stories and other items our writers and readers came across in the past seven days.
Cycling history: If you haven’t heard about Jody Rosen’s excellent new book on the history of the bicycle, Two Wheels Good, I can highly recommend it! Check out this review from The Economist for a taste of its scope.
End the car pilot: Frightening research estimates that people are failing to control their cars and crashing them into buildings at a rate of about 100 times per day.
We’re seeking a Bike Manager to lead our Kerr Bikes team! Kerr Bikes provides the public with seasonal bike rental services at our Portland Waterfront and OMSI locations. As our Bike Manager, you’ll be responsible managing all aspects to the rental business from hiring and scheduling staff, to keeping the fleet up to date to responding to customer requests, opening and closing the store, marketing and working with PBOT as our Adaptive Bikes liaison.
Join our team, get a $2,000 sign-on bonus!
This is a full-time position that will average 40 hours per week. Weekly hours will be significantly higher during the spring, summer and fall months and lower during the winter months. Shifts include weekend and evening hours.
All Kerr employees are required to be fully vaccinated or meet the requirements for a medical or religious exception prior to beginning work.
Responsibilities
– Hire, train, and manage Kerr Bikes’ staff, often working with people under 18 and client workers from Albertina Kerr
– Plot direction of Kerr Bikes and Adaptive Biketown
– Coordinate with PBOT officials for Adaptive Biketown customer interaction and tracking
– Handle reservations, scheduling, and accommodations by phone and email
– Track, create, order, and purchase retail sales items for the business
– Track sales and shop inventory, and manage bank deposits
– Develop and implement marketing plans with support from Kerr’s Development team
– Provide shift coverage when needed
– Schedule facility improvements and work with IT to ensure equipment operates efficiently and reliably, as appropriate
– Staff and support events including tabling and promotional events
– Maintain shop information, literature, and training material
– Maintain a fleet of over 110 bicycles, including specialty bikes, adaptive bikes, and regular bikes along with supplemental adaptive equipment
– Order parts and track inventory
– Train employee on proper maintenance of the equipment
– Repair equipment as requested by customers
– Work with program managers and support staff for client volunteer and recreation program
– Work with support staff and social service professionals to support client employees
Qualifications
– At least 18 years of age
– 2 – 3 years’ of retail experience preferred
– 1+ years of supervisory experience preferred
– Knowledge of bike mechanics and repairs; Professional Bike Mechanic Certification is a plus
– Experience with adaptive bikes, recumbents, and supplemental adaptive parts is a plus
– Ability to lift at least 60 pounds and adjust to a changing work environment
Beginning at 6 p.m. today, NW Cornell Road will fully reopen to the traveling public as essential repairs to the NW Cornell Tunnels are now substantially complete. NW Cornell Road has been closed since Aug. 23 between NW 30th and 53rd avenues for essential repairs to the Cornell Tunnels to prevent structural failure.
First constructed by the Works Progress Administration in 1940 and 1941, these historic tunnels have served as a key transportation connection for over 80 years. Repairs to the tunnels were necessitated by the discovery of a large crack near the crown of the western Cornell Tunnel in 2019.
The prolonged closure was required due to the constrained working environment. Located in Forest Park, the tunnels were too narrow to remain open during the required construction. Contractors working for the Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) used great care while repairing damaged portions of the tunnel linings, while preserving historic nature of the structures and ensuring workers safety. The old lining of both tunnels was removed via hydro-blasting and a new lining was installed with rebar reinforced shotcrete concrete.
In addition to these structural repairs, new LED lighting has been installed in both tunnels to improve safety and energy efficiency. Finally, the stone masonry portals of both tunnels were cleaned and cleared of ivy by PBOT staff. Now complete, these repairs will extend the useful life of these historic assets.
The closure of a key transportation link like NW Cornell is significant and the project team would like to thank Portlanders for their patience during these extensive repairs and associated detours. Crews will return to calibrate the lights in the tunnels later this summer. This calibration may cause traffic delays but will not require tunnel closures or detours.
PBOT traffic data from before the pandemic show the tunnels handled roughly 7,000 vehicle trips per day. Now that NW Cornell is reopened, thousands of daily travelers can again rely on this important connection.
