I was wondering when we’d hear from AASHTO — the American Association of State Highway Transportation Officials (the “voice of transportation” a.k.a. the highway lobby). This just in (via Traffic World and Carfree USA): “AASHTO is weighing a $544.5 billion proposal for the next highway reauthorization bill… Such a proposal would be almost double 2005’s … Read more
Portlanders in Copenhagen. That’s PDOT’s head traffic engineer Rob Burchfield on the left (in blue).(Photo: Mikael Colville-Andersen) A delegation of Portlanders from Metro’s Blue Ribbon Committee for Trails recently completed a week-long exploration of bike policies, culture and infrastructure in Amsterdam and Copenhagen. Findings and recommendations from the trip will be presented at the final … Read more
[via Streetsblog] Nobel Prize winning economist and NY Times columnist Paul Krugman has given some powerful punditry to the recently launched “Build for America” campaign. In an Op Ed piece published last week, he wrote: “..right now, increased government spending is just what the doctor ordered, and concerns about the budget deficit should be put … Read more
A Starbucks employees stands in front of the display.(Photo: Brian Borrello)
Cover of Portland’s Community Case Statement.(Download PDF here) As part of their 2010 Campaign for Active Transportation (which launches Monday), the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy has helped cities across the country develop “Community Case Statements”. These case statements will be used to garner media attention for the campaign, but more importantly as tools to lobby Congress for … Read more
Commissioner Adams at the opening ceremony yesterday.(Photo © J. Maus) In a blog post published yesterday, City Commissioner and Mayor-elect Sam Adams wrote that with each new innovation the city rolls out for bicyclists, “our bicycle community assumes more responsibility as well”. “As we make continued investments in our street system to accommodate bikes, it … Read more
Commissioner and Mayor-elect Sam Adams (right), BTA Exec. Director Scott Bricker (foreground) and TriMet General Manager Fred Hansen (left) ride through a ceremonial ribbon at the southern entrance to the Rose Quarter Transit Center.(Photos © J. Maus)
(Graphic: Transportation For America) Yesterday, in cities across the country, Transportation For America launched their “Build for America” campaign. The Build for America effort is focused on lobbying congress for increased federal investment in a “21st century transportation system” that will create new jobs via the construction of a world-class rail system, upkeep of our … Read more
Time to celebrate.(Photo © J. Maus) A parade is planned for Thursday (10/16) to celebrate the new bike access and safety improvements through the Rose Quarter Transit Center. The project was the result of collaborative effort between TriMet, the City of Portland, the Bicycle Transportation Alliance, and the Lloyd District Transportation Management Association. A statement … Read more
PDOT’s Rob Burchfield and MatthewMachado presented ideas for changes to the dangerous the Broadway/Williamsintersection last night.(Photos � J. Maus) The Office of Transportation has struggled for years to figure out how to safely manage bike and car traffic flow at the intersection of Broadway and Williams. Following two fatalities due to right-hooks last fall, PDOT … Read more
One concept on the table is the creation of a new public plaza at the end of Ladd Ave. As I reported last month, the Office of Transportation and the Bureau of Planning have embarked on a project to improve the 7 Corners intersection (where SE Division, Ladd, 20th, and 21st streets converge). At last … Read more
In 1993 an upstart bike advocacy group called the Bicycle Transportation Alliance — headed by Rex Burkholder (now a Metro councilor) — filed a lawsuit against the City of Portland because of a lack of bicycle facilities around the Rose Garden Arena. This morning, 15 years after that legal battle (which ended after the BTA … Read more