BikePortland

Comment of the Week: Portland, the city that can reinvent itself

Portland bike lover Helena Stedman in 2012.
(Photo: J.Maus/BikePortland)

Well, we sort of hate to give this recognition to the same person twice — let alone twice in a row. But amid all the amazingly insightful comments beneath Jonathan’s piece Wednesday about coming to terms with Portland’s big changes, one stood out as both accepting of Portland’s serious problems and focused on its enduring strengths.

It came from reader GutterBunnyBikes, who wrote, Thursday evening, about our city’s consistent ability to be “an active agent in its own evolution.”

North Portland Bikeworks new location-11-10

Commuter-related sales are generally up across the city.
(Photos © J. Maus/BikePortland)

After a few uneasy years for many local bike shops, the people whose businesses are built around Portland’s core of daily bike commuters say they’re feeling the boom.

One week after a new Census estimate that Portland added 5,000 net new bike commuters in 2014 to reach a total of 23,000 citywide, we called a few of the city’s biggest bike sellers to see if that seemed right.

Yep. And what’s more, they said the boom got bigger in 2015.

How can we make it easier and more efficient to take bikes on transit vehicles? TriMet’s Bike Plan is our chance to weigh in on that and other issues.
(Photo © J. Maus/BikePortland)

With the opening of the new Orange Line giving TriMet railcars and buses even larger footprint in our region, there’s never been a more important time for the agency improve access for bicycles. Making sure that bikes integrate well with transit stops, parking options and on transit vehicles themselves is crucial to Portland’s low-car future.

This is Ben Sanders. He commutes to work 20 miles from Vancouver to Lake Oswego.
(Photos © J. Maus/BikePortland)

This post was made possible by Portland Design Works, a local company that designs beautiful and functional parts and accessories for everyday cycling. Ben is one of three winners of our Ride Along Contest we held last March.

A 20-mile pre-dawn bicycle commute might sound horrible to some people; but if anyone can enjoy such a long haul it’s Vancouver resident Ben Sanders.

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

After all, it is a bike street.
(Photo © J. Maus/BikePortland)

Not everybody likes the city’s proposal to add traffic diverters to Southeast Clinton Street at 17th and 29th Avenues. But just about everyone who rides a bike on Clinton seems to.

Fortunately for the proposal, just about everyone who’s currently interested in the issue seems to ride a bike.

Out of 123 comments gathered at last week’s open house, 84 percent of people said they support the city’s proposals and just 16 percent opposed them. Supporters include 84 percent of the people who said they live directly on Clinton and 95 percent of people who bike there — including those who both bike and drive.

Forest Grove - Barney Reservoir loop-20.jpg

Want to feel small? Do the Oregon Coast Gravel Epic on Saturday.
(Photo © J. Maus/BikePortland)

This menu of delicious rides and events is brought to you by our friends at Hopworks Urban Brewery. Their support makes BikePortland possible.

Whether you want to chill out with the full moon or hone your singletrack skills, we’ve got a ton of ideas for you this weekend. This week’s guide is as full as I’ve seen it since the height of summer. Way to welcome the fall season BikePortlanders!

The forecast for the next few days looks to be excellent. We might have a shower today, but the weekend will be dry and in the low 70s.

What do you have planned? Whatever it is, we hope it involves a bicycle. Enjoy your weekend.

Los Angeles transportation director Seleta Reynolds.
(Photo via TREC at PSU)

Seleta Reynolds gets results.

As we reported last week, the city whose livable streets program she led for three years, San Francisco, has subsequently delivered the nation’s most consistent string of boosts in bike commuting.

She’s now one year into a vastly larger gig: transportation director for the City of Los Angeles, which turned millions of heads last month when it rolled out a citywide plan to gradually reallocate numerous auto lanes to create dedicated bus lanes and 300 miles of protected bike lanes.

She’s also one of the most reflective transportation leaders in the country, as the interview below makes clear. Ahead of her free Oct. 6 talk at Ecotrust, we caught up with Reynolds to discuss her advice for Portland’s advocates and bureaucrats, the arguments for biking that work best and whether Portland is still cool.

My daughter and I at the 2006 Bunny on a Bike ride. I’m wearing the first-ever BikePortland t-shirt designed by local artist — and soon to be former Portlander — Carye Bye.

In 1972 Jim Merz and Virginia Church set off from Portland on an epic bike ride. That alone isn’t groundbreaking or especially newsworthy, but Merz and Church (his wife at the time) aren’t just any bike riders. They both spent their lives in the bicycle industry and their collective work has had a local, national, and global impact.

Comment of the Week: Portland, the city that can reinvent itself

Portland’s latest biking surge seems real, local bike shops say

TriMet announces open houses for first-ever Bike Plan

Ride Along with Ben Sanders: Vancouver to Lake Oswego

At open house, City hears overwhelming support for diverters on Clinton

Weekend Event Guide: Swifts, Sandy Ridge, scavenger hunt, Sunday Parkways and more

‘When you have it, it’s priceless’: Nine questions for Seleta Reynolds

Opinion: Coming to terms with a changing Portland

Legendary framebuilder Jim Merz shares his 1972 Portland to Panama bike ride

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