BikePortland

Advocates prep for battle after release of draft U.S. transportation bill

The BTA’s Rob Sadowsky is
already working contacts in DC
to improve the bill.
(Photo © J. Maus)

The U.S. Senate Environment and Public Works Committee released their long-awaited transportation reauthorization bill last week (known as MAP-21), sending alarms throughout national bike advocacy circles because it, according to Streetsblog DC “eviscerates successful and popular programs to make biking and walking safer.”

The Bicycle Transportation Alliance immediately signaled they would gird for battle due to the bill’s “very alarming setbacks.”

In Munich, narrow cycle tracks separated from auto traffic have fallen out of favor and there’s a growing push for wider bike lanes in the roadway.
(Photos © Denver Igarta)

— This guest article was written by Denver Igarta. Denver is a transportation planner with the City of Portland who’s on a study trip in Europe funded in part by the German Marshall Fund.

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

Year: 2008
Brand: Novara
Model: Divano
Color:white/red/black
Size:55cm
Serial: 07XP09261
Stolen in Portland, OR 97212
Stolen:2011-11-6
Stolen From: NE Alameda
Neighborhood: Alameda
Owner: Leigh Guyer
OwnerEmail: ljguyer@comcast.net
Reward: 100
Description: ’08 White,Red, Black Novara, Divano road bike with aero bars and SPD pedals
Police record with: Portland
Police reference#: 11-97114
This registrant has documented proof of ownership of this bike

Event: Free Bike Maintenance Class at Western Bikeworks (11/16/11)

Event: Free Bike Maintenance Class at Western Bikeworks
Date: 16 November 2011
Time: 5:30 PM

Details: We will begin a series of Wednesday night maintenance classes that will be on the 1st and 3rd Wednesdays of the month.

Participants will receive a 10% discount coupon good for 30 days after the class (some exclusions apply).

The first Wednesday class will focus on hands-on flat repair, lube and bike cleaning.

The 3rd Wednesday class will focus on front and rear derailleur adjustment, brake pad and brake lever adjustment; Including micro adjust with barrel adjusters, brake pad placement and adjustment/toeing for maximum braking efficiency.

This is a free event. Please visit our web site for more details.

The Advocacy Roundup

Below are some of the many opportunities to get involved and make a difference on transportation projects and issues throughout our region this week…

Tuesday, November 8th

TV Highway Corridor Plan Open House
4:00-7:00 p.m. Hillsboro Civic Center (150 E Main St, Hillsboro)
ODOT is considering rebuilding the Tualatin Valley Highway, either as a 6 lane freeway or a 4 lane highway. From the website it’s difficult to tell how serious they are about building a freeway, and the survey focuses more on trip reduction than road size. But that could just be greenwashing for a freeway project, like the N/NE Quadrant study in Portland is a mask for widening I-5.

If you have opinions on this or would like to learn more, come to the Open House or take the survey and speak your mind.

Portland Plan Open House
The Portland Plan is a road map for what the city will prioritize in the next 20 years. Rather than a geographic plan, it’s more of a business plan or management plan. According to Planning and Sustainability Commission member Chris Smith, “The Portland Plan will create the strategy that drives the update of the Comprehensive Plan (which includes the Transportation System Plan). The “Comp Plan” will be finished in about two years, but if you want to see a policy in the Comp Plan you better look for the strategy that supports it in the Portland Plan.”

Year: 2011
Brand: Mercier (no decals)
Model: N/A (no decals)
Color:Black
Size:52cm
Stolen in Portland, OR 97214
Stolen:2011-11-08
Stolen From: THE GAINSBORO BUILDING, 1809 SE HAWTHORNE BLVD. #204
Neighborhood: HAWTHORNE
Owner: Anthony Hernandez
OwnerEmail: anthony2814@gmail.com
Reward: YES
Description: BLACK, 52CM CHROMO FRAME (NO BRAND/MODEL DECALS)
BLACK AEROSPOKE REAR TRACK WHEEL
BLACK SRAM CRANKS
MKS PEDALS
BLACK WRAPS
BLACK SPECIALIZED SADDLE
Police record with: PORTLAND PD
Police reference#: 11-156312
This registrant has documented proof of ownership of this bike

Police offer reward for ‘window pane bandit’ who has hit several bike shops

West End Bikes on SW Stark
and 11th is one of several shops
that has been broken into
this past week.
(Photo © J. Maus)

A thief who has (nearly) mastered the ability to remove large windows without breaking them has hit several bike shops and other businesses in the past week.

A total of six businesses (including three bike shops and one bike rack store) have been burglarized since November 1st by what police feel is the same criminal. Two bicycles stolen from windows have since been recovered (officers found them being ridden by people at the site of Occupy Portland) and now Crime Stoppers of Oregon is offering a $1,000 reward to catch the suspect who’s responsible for the string of thefts.

In each of the incidents, the suspect expertly removed a large window without smashing it (or at least trying to not smash it).

Year: 1988
Brand: Peugot
Model: Versailles
Color:Teal
Size:58
Stolen in Portland, OR 97215
Stolen:2011-11-5
Stolen From: Stolen from Carport in the back of my house.
Neighborhood: Sunnyside – SE Portland
Owner: Blaine Bartholomew
OwnerEmail: blaino12@hotmail.com
Reward: 100
Description: White grips, black rear rack, black fenders. Night Rider and Tom’s stickers on rear rack.
Police record with: Portland PD
This registrant has documented proof of ownership of this bike

Tomorrow: Legal, law enforcement experts to join rural road safety forum

Traffic on Skyline Blvd.
(Photo © J. Maus)

Tomorrow night the Skyline Ridge neighborhood association is hosting a community forum to discuss rural road safety issues. Safely sharing high-speed, narrow, and winding rural roads like Skyline Blvd has been an issue for years; but back in August, the issue reached a boiling point when it became clear that many people had been harassed in the same area along Rock Creek Road (which connects to Skyline).

To help calm tempers and perhaps find a solution before someone ends up being seriously hurt (or worse), neighbors decided to air out the issues and give everyone an opportunity to talk. At the forum tomorrow night, organizer and nearby resident Laura Foster has lined up legal experts and a professional moderator from Portland State University to help add structure to the event.

A story in The Oregonian published Friday (and an irresponsible Tweet by BikePortland) might have you thinking that Mayor Sam Adams — grappling with a tight budget at the Bureau of Transportation — has broken a promise to invest in sidewalks in East and Southwest Portland.

“Cracks have appeared in Portland Mayor Sam Adams’ pledge to build new sidewalks” is the opening line in The Oregonian story. In a Tweet about that story, I wrote “Mayor Adams backed off promise to build sidewalks due to budget.” “Not true at all,” Adams replied, “but I agree that is the impression the article falsely conveys.”

With historic cuts coming to PBOT, many in the community are watching Adams’ spending decisions — especially those that impact biking and walking — very closely.

What follows is more context behind Adams’ decision and how a local walking advocacy group is taking the news.

Just ‘Mo’ and go. (Note the mo tag on the seatpost.)
(Photo: Mo)

A reader tipped me off to a new urban mobility concept recently launched in Munich that is really blowing my mind… Or should I say “mo”-ing my mind?

Introducing “mo” (short for mobility); a system that hopes to someday integrate bike-sharing, car-sharing, and transit access into a seamless network that just might be the future of how cities tackle mobility challenges. The video below explains how it works…

Detail of new sign
that will be posted at
entrance to Waud Bluff Trail.

Next Tuesday, officials from the City of Portland Parks and Recreation bureau will join community leaders at a groundbreaking ceremony for the Waud Bluff Trail; a short, paved path that will connect North Portland and Swan Island near the University of Portland.

After six years of waiting, Swan Island businesses, trail advocates, and thousands of residents eager for safer and more direct access to the Willamette River have rejoiced at seeing this project move forward.

Unfortunately, for people riding bikes (and others using wheeled modes of transport), the trail will present several challenges.

Advocates prep for battle after release of draft U.S. transportation bill

Dispatch from Munich; where old cycle tracks can’t keep up with demand

white/red/black Novara Divano 2008

Event: Free Bike Maintenance Class at Western Bikeworks (11/16/11)

The Advocacy Roundup

Tuesday, November 8th

Black Mercier (no decals) N/A (no decals) 2011

Police offer reward for ‘window pane bandit’ who has hit several bike shops

Teal Peugot Versailles 1988

Tomorrow: Legal, law enforcement experts to join rural road safety forum

Mayors Adams still committed to sidewalk funding

Is ‘mo’ the ultimate urban mobility solution?

Steepness, stairs will limit bike access on new Waud Bluff Trail

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