Commissioner Leonardgets ready in his office.File photo: 5/8/07 On Tuesday I joined City Commissioner Randy Leonard on his ride home from work. I requested the meeting/interview/ride because I’ve heard he’s a dedicated bike commuter, and more importantly, because one of the lessons I learned during the Bike Master Plan funding fiasco is that if we … Read more
Senator Jason Atkinson (R-Central Point)testifies on behalf of S.B 926, while Steve Brown looks on.File photo: 3/29/07 Senate Bill 926, which seeks to use $3.5 million in state lottery funds to build three new velodromes in Oregon, is stalled on the desk of the Ways and Means Committee. The bill is awaiting referral to a … Read more
Download PDF (232 KB) Mayor Tom Potter has just sent a letter to all four City Commissioners and the City Auditor detailing six additional expenditures he will be able to fund in the budget. Included among them is $100,000 for the Bicycle Master Plan Update process. Here’s an excerpt from the letter: “OMF (Office of … Read more
Potter at a Walk and Bike to School event last year.File photo: 10/4/06 When Portland Mayor Tom Potter decided to cut funding for the Bicycle Master Plan, his office received over 300 calls and emails, the third highest response of any issue during his tenure Potter recently told KGW-TV that the community’s reaction was “dissappointing,” … Read more
Chris Smith at Pioneer Courthouse SquareFile photo: 7/27/06 The word on the street is that citizen activist, blogger and consummate Portland transportation insider Chris Smith is considering a run for Portland City Council. Smith was recently profiled in the Portland Tribune in a front page story that called him, “Citizen Smith”. A former transportation chair … Read more
Michelle Poyourow and Scott Bricker of the BTA have spent most of the day in City Hall, working to find a solution to get our Bicycle Master Plan Update process back into the budget. Michelle just updated their blog and reported that the Mayor’s office received a record amount of 300 unique phone calls and … Read more
(Note: The title of this post was originally, “Benefits fraud may stymie progress on Bike Commuter Act.” I changed it to better reflect the situation.). I just got an email from Congressman Earl Blumenauer’s legislative assistant Katie Drennan. She said that although there is considerable momentum for the Bike Commuter Act (42 co-sponsors so far), … Read more
Rep. MacPherson, Chair of the House Judiciary Committee.Photo: State of OR The House Judiciary Committee voted 5-4 (along party lines) in favor the Vulnerable Roadway Users bill (H.B. 3314) this morning. The bill was passed with some significant amendments. The amendments change the base infraction from a Class A misdemeanor to a traffic violation payable … Read more
“What we are very interested in is moving the violator into a driver improvement program, which would include training, completion of community service, and a physical test for competency.”–BTA Board Member Doug Parrow, testifying in Salem yesterday. A bill backed by the BTA and the Willamette Pedestrian Coalition (WPC) that seeks to increase the penalty … Read more
Laura Cohen of the Rails toTrails Conservancy inCity Hall last week.File photo: 4/12/07 The Rails-to-Trails Conservancy (RTC) stopped in Portland recently to meet with advocates and policy-makers to rally support for an ambitious congressional funding campaign. As I reported a few weeks ago, the RTC hopes to secure $2 billion in the next Federal Transportation … Read more
The BTA’s “Vulnerable Roadway Users” bill (HB 3314 )will get a hearing in the House Judiciary Committee on Monday (4/23). I spoke with Scott Bricker about the bill this morning before he left for another day working the halls of Salem. According to Bricker, the bill targets vehicle operators that currently only have to pay … Read more
Bricker demonstrates the proposed pedestrian hand signal.File photo: 2/15/07 The BTA is working the halls of Salem right now to build support for Senate Bill 573. According to an action alert sent out by BTA lobbyist Scott Bricker yesterday, “The bill would allow pedestrians to use a hand signal to employ their right-of-way, rather than … Read more