Tuesday was another day that illustrated how Portland has a long way to go to make its streets — even one with a much-heralded recent investment — safe for people not inside cars. Even on Southeast Hawthorne, where the Portland Bureau of Transportation recently completed a major project billed by Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty as … Read more
“I had never really looked into attending group rides. I never thought those rides were accessible to me.” – Cassie Wilson “Bike fun” is a colloquialism often used here in Portland to describe that thing where people get together to socialize and ride bikes, often with a theme in mind. Pedalpalooza (now in its third … Read more
The two installations of this rare treatment show the city’s willingness to innovate — and to trust everyone will play nice. Photos and video by Jonathan Maus What are city planners to do when they want to give cycling more priority on a street but don’t want to take the space needed for high quality, … Read more
After months of speculation and back-and-forth at City Hall, the Portland Bureau of Transportation just announced they will stripe a bike lane on SW Main between 3rd and 4th avenues. This is the block where the Thompson Elk Fountain and statue had lived before it was removed following damage it sustained during protests. There was … Read more
Note: I’m well aware that some Portlanders (especially some who work for the City of Portland) think that I complain too much. I understand why folks think that, and I totally understand why. I’m also not ashamed of it. I think that’s part of the important role BikePortland plays in this community: To point out … Read more
The red paint is still fresh on NE Couch where the Portland Bureau of Transportation has installed their latest ‘Rose Lane’. It’s all part of their ongoing effort to speed up bus service and re-allocate road space away from drivers and toward bike and bus riders. PBOT’s Rose Lane project began in 2019 and the … Read more
The Portland Parks and Recreation bureau has finally had enough with people driving cars onto the Peninsula Crossing Trail in north Portland. This path is a key part of the 40-Mile Loop and an important north-south route that offers a carfree option for walkers and rollers between North Willamette Blvd and North Columbia Blvd, a … Read more
I sometimes think the reason some of the haters we often hear from seem to be growing louder these days is because the Portland Bureau of Transportation is actually doing some relatively radical things. Our streets, they are a changin’! Huge concrete planters in the middle of the lanes, carfree plazas everywhere, 15 mph and … Read more
With all of Portland’s bike infrastructure projects to discuss, exciting developments in our neighboring cities don’t always get the attention they deserve. With this in mind, I headed down to Milwaukie yesterday to check out the relatively new SE Linwood Avenue multi-use paths, and I was impressed by what I saw. Linwood Ave is located … Read more
There are all types of ways to push back against a project you don’t like. As social media has matured in recent years, a lot of folks have become good at creating graphics that — when they go viral — can be a very effective way to establish a narrative. Look no further than someone … Read more
As a cyclist, these offset intersections annoy me. Portland’s street grid system is pretty tidy (with some glaring exceptions – I’m looking at you, Laurelhurst and Ladd’s Addition). But someone traveling around the city will notice there are places where streets join at a slight offset, which means you can’t go straight across an intersection … Read more
There’s one vital ingredient needed to influence the debate around a multi-billion dollar effort to expand I-5 between Portland and Vancouver: Money. Last night in a shaded backyard in the Creston-Kenilworth neighborhood, well over 100 people gathered for a house party that raised thousands of dollars for the Just Crossing Alliance, an upstart coalition of … Read more