4/25: Hello readers and friends. I'm still recovering from a surgery I had on 4/11, so I'm unable to attend events and do typical coverage. See this post for the latest update. I'll work as I can and I'm improving every day! Thanks for all your support 🙏. - Jonathan Maus, BikePortland Publisher and Editor
“Can we create–even if only for a little while and in a limited area–the feeling one gets when riding in world class cycling cities?”-PDOT’s Roger Geller In case you haven’t heard the buzz, PDOT is in the midst of updating their Bicycle Master Plan (the current one is over 10 years old). The Bicycle Master … Read more
[The Rose Quarter might get better soon. (Looking North from Interstate Blvd. toward Wheeler).] As part of the East Side Big Pipe construction project, the Bureau of Environmental Services will fund $2 million worth of projects to, “neighborhoods and business districts affected by combined sewer overflow construction”. They call it their Community Benefits Opportunity Program. … Read more
[PDOT map of planned improvements.Click for larger view.] Over the weekend, Evan Manvel from the BTA joined neighborhood leaders, PDOT traffic safety staff, and City Commissioner Randy Leonard on a ride to envision improvements on a bicycle boulevard route that will bypass SE Foster Blvd. Evan shares this map (at right, click for larger view) … Read more
Chris Smith mentioned this yesterday, but I just noticed an interesting story buried in the Metro Section of today’s Oregonian. Here’s the gist. Metro is in the midst of their Regional Transportation Plan update. According to Metro, this plan is,
[Detail of detour map.Click to download] Between March 2007 and spring of 2009, TriMet will be constructing the new I-205 MAX line that will connect PSU with points east to Clackamas County. A reader just forwarded me a two-page info sheet that details the bike path detours along the 6.5 mile stretch. You can view … Read more
[All signs point to more bike boulevards] In case anyone gets the wrong impression after my post about Berkeley’s bicycle boulevard efforts, I thought an update on Portland’s progress was in order. Here are a few things I’ve come across just in the past week or so. SE Foster Bypass Bicycle Boulevard With strong leadership … Read more
[Berkeley’s Bike Boulevards, by Clarence Eckerson (for StreetsBlog)]Length: 8 min. 12 sec. Clarence Eckerson’s latest StreetFilms piece focuses on Berkeley California’s bicycle boulevard network. It’s a great film and it shows that Berkeley is way ahead of Portland in creating slow, traffic-calmed streets that are safe and appealing for people (not just cars).
Several readers have written in complaining about gravel still left in many bike lanes throughout the city. It was initially spread to help with the ice and slick roads from our recent storm. One reader says,
[Sharrows in NW Portland.]Photo: Todd Boulanger At the recently completed annual meeting of the National Committee on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (NCUTCD), they voted 35-0 to endorse shared lane markings (aka sharrows) and forward the recommendation to the Federal Highway Administration. From there, it is a small step into officialdom… inclusion in the next edition … Read more
[Detail of covered bike parking map.] Due to the behemoth Portland Bus Mall reconstruction project, downtown traffic is snarled and gnarled all over the place. For smart Portlanders this is a perfect time to consider biking into work. But no one wants to leave their bike out in the wet and cold…so what to do? … Read more
[Regular bike lanesdon’t always cut it.] As bicycle advocacy and ridership in America matures, new solutions and ideas for integrating bicycles onto our roadways must be seriously considered. For decades, we have been happy with conventional bike lanes, but as we get serious about reaching double-digit mode-splits, perhaps it’s time to go beyond a stripe … Read more