Since 2005 Portlanders have come in from out of the cold and huddled together for a holiday shopping tradition unlike any other: BikeCraft, a holidy gift bazaar for bike lovers.
This year’s event is on the weekend of December 12th and 13th.
Most of those new traffic victim memorials will be gone soon: Here’s why
Most of them will be gone by next week.
(Photo: Oregon Walks)
(Photo: Oregon Walks)
On Sunday in the pouring rain, dozens of activists and family members of people who have been killed in traffic crashes erected memorials at 135 locations throughout Portland. The effort was part of the national World Day of Remembrance to End Traffic Deaths. The ghostly white silhouettes were ziptied to sign poles adjacent to some of the most dangerous major streets in the region — most of them owned and managed by the Oregon Department of Transportation.
No more than 24 hours later ODOT maintenance crews started taking some of them down.
One of the event organizers said at first she was angered, but after contacting ODOT she now plans to remove most of them this weekend.
Kristi Finney with Families for Safe Streets, whose son Dustin was killed by a drunk driver while he biked on SE Division in 2011, didn’t ask for ODOT’s permission prior to the event. “We suspected they would take them down if we affixed them to their property,” she told us via email yesterday.
Even so, Finney added, “I feel dismay that out of all the priorities ODOT should have, removing these memorials of people killed on their unsafe roads was made a top one. Really, they couldn’t even leave them through the outbound rush hour?”
Let the city know (again) if you support diverters on SE Clinton
The issue on Clinton.
(Photo: M.Andersen/BikePortland)
(Photo: M.Andersen/BikePortland)
In a digital companion to its Nov. 5 open house, Portland is circulating another online survey taking the political temperature of Clinton Street residents, businesses and users about traffic diverters on a busy stretch of Clinton Street.
It takes about 30 seconds to complete.
This is the second online survey asking how people feel about the city installing an experimental diverter in the 30th and Clinton area to see what happens to traffic patterns. The current proposal is to install one test diverter at 32nd, in addition to one planned for 17th.
Brazen bike thief appears in court facing prison sentence and $250,000 bail
Parsons appeared via video at the Justice Center in downtown Portland this morning.
(Photos © J. Maus/BikePortland)
The Multnomah County District Attorney’s office is sick and tired of Leroy Parsons gaming the system.
Parsons, arguably Portland’s most brazen and prolific perpetrator of bike theft, appeared in court today. He was arrested last week for bike theft and the DA has upgraded his charges to include 16 total counts, including nine felony charges (several of which are for bike theft) and an increased bail amount aimed in keeping him locked up until sentencing.
If convicted on all counts Parsons could face a lengthy prison term. But that’s a big if.
New rules would require Portland pedicab operators to drive cars and carry car insurance
A night ride.
(Photos: J.Maus/BikePortland)
(Photos: J.Maus/BikePortland)
“Half my guys don’t even have driver’s licenses — in fact, I don’t have a driver’s license.”
— Kyle Kautz, owner at PDX Pedicab
Three weeks ago, a task force convened by Transportation Commissioner Steve Novick released a new set of regulations for “for-hire vehicles” like taxis, Lyft and Uber.
Also included in the new rules: pedicabs — but the rules for those seem to have been written mostly with copy-paste buttons.
The result: According to code now under review at city council, car-free Portlanders would need not apply for pedicab jobs.
Wednesday Video Roundup: Sagan, Terry, Brits
Our first video is a fantastic bio of Georgina Terry, avid cyclist, fabled bike builder, and owner of the Terry Bicycles brand. I have a Terry seat and am jealous their apparel isn’t meant for me- they don’t “shrink and pink” things. For an example of how thoughtful and women-oriented they are, look at their chamois guide and fit guide. Anyhow, the video- and pay attention to Georgina walking down a hallway just past the five minute mark.
Brad Ross, Cross Crusade promoter since 1995, announces his retirement
Ross at work in 2007.
(Photo © J. Maus/BikePortland)
(Photo © J. Maus/BikePortland)
Brad Ross, the man behind the Cross Crusade, which has grown into one of most successful cyclocross race series in the world, has announced his retirement. Ross was also the director of the Cascade Cycling Classic and many other races during his career.
My Bike Recovery Story: Return of the Viva!
On Wednesday, 11/10 at 12noon, I got a phone call I never thought I’d be receiving. My precious Viva Kilo, which was stolen in July of 2014 had been found, and the very bike that started everything over here at Pedal PT was finally coming home. Elated, I retuned the gentleman’s call, and spoke to ‘Wes’ about the circumstances and how he came to acquire the bike. From our conversation, it sounds like he had purchased my bike from a neighborhood riffraff kid named “June-Bug” for $80 over a year ago, acknowledging that he new the bike was likely stolen. My bike then assumedly sat idle for a year at his place off of 82nd Ave and Clatsop.
Wes said he recently had some work done on another bike over at BackPedal CycleWorks on SE 72nd and Harold, and spoke to Dave about the Viva, and it’s likelihood of being stolen. Dave looked for it on BikeIndex.com, found my post from July 2014, and got Wes my phone # to call me with the great news. I called Dave, just to be sure, who confirmed Wes’ story. Later that evening, I drove to meet Wes at his place, the adrenaline pumping in anticipation.
When I arrived, there was no mistaking that this was indeed my bike. The Viva Kilo had been stripped of saddle (Brooks B67s) and seat post, and the headlight/rear reflector had also been removed. Some mild rust spots on wheels/spokes. A random old saddle, and a jerry-rigged seat clamp had been installed (see pic). However, to my surprise, the roller brakes and NEXUS internal geared hub all were in absolutely perfect working order, and the custom fenders and front/back racks, brass bell, and leather handgrips were also left unaltered. No (new) dents, dings or scratches. Wow. I lovingly brought the bike home in my car, and unfortunately had to immediately get to PDX to catch a plane to Orlando for a conference. Yesterday, I finally got a chance to take it all in, clean and polish her up, tighten bolts, and get her closer to getting back to it’s ‘pre-stolen’ status. I seriously can’t believe my Viva is back home!
With that said, I am SO eternally grateful and thankful to everyone who made this recovery possible. My situation is likely not too extreme, but it took some very heads-up thinking from Dave, and of course without Bryan and the BikeIndex.org site, my bike would have likely never been returned. So, my advice: To ANYONE who values their bike, no matter if it’s worth $50 or $5K, take the time now to register your bike on BikeIndex.org. It’s 100% free, it takes less than 5minutes, and IT WORKS! Take it from me, getting your stolen bike back is possible, and I’m living proof that the bikeindex.org system works!
Gimmick or godsend? My review of the NiteRider Sentinel with “Laser Lanes”
The light has two lasers that project a bike lane on the road alongside your bike.
(Photos © J. Maus/BikePortland)
(Photos © J. Maus/BikePortland)
A bike light that creates virtual bike lanes wherever you go? That’s the promise behind the NiteRider Sentinel 40, a rear light that comes with a special “laser lanes” mode that projects two bright lines on the ground around your bike.
First look at Metro’s plans to build new singletrack trails north of Forest Park
Detail of Metro’s trail plans.
We have important updates on a story we shared yesterday about a historic step forward for off-road cycling in Portland.
As you might have heard, Metro is on the verge of finalizing a plan that would develop several mountain parcels north of Forest Park. Two of the parcels are slated to include singletrack trails built specifically for mountain biking. If built, these trails would represent the largest network of off-road bike trails ever developed in Portland. In advance of a final public meeting about the plans that will be held tonight, Metro has published the meeting materials on the project website.
In addition to giving you a more detailed look at Metro’s plans, I also want to elaborate on a point I made in yesterday’s story about the people who are organizing opposition to the bike trails. A key point in their case against Metro’s inclusion of the trails in these plans is a contention that the land was purchased solely to protect habitat and that, “a mountain bike park is contrary to the terms of the levy.”
A backwards incentive in Portland, where bus rides cost more than parking spaces
We’ve made driving both cheap and convenient even though it causes a whole lot of problems.
(Photo © J. Maus/BikePortland)
(Photo © J. Maus/BikePortland)
Though lovers of bikes, transit and walking hate to admit it, driving a car is often the most convenient way to get around Portland. Until we start reconfiguring our roads to give more space to bicycling and dedicated transit lines, that will likely remain the case years into the future.
An odd thing about driving is that not only is it usually convenient; it’s also usually pretty cheap.
The question is, why are we also going out of our way to make driving so cheap?
At least, that’s the question asked Sunday by Tony Jordan, a member of the committee that’s currently advising the city on whether it should raise its downtown parking rates from $1.60 to $2 per hour.
135 ghostly memorials of traffic victims now haunt our region’s streets
(Photos: Oregon Walks)
Yesterday local advocates for safer streets joined with family members of traffic victims for a somber ceremony: they placed white silhouettes of their loved ones on our area’s most dangerous roadways.