How to make Bike Month matter in Portland

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

Great idea from Portlander Russ Roca: when you
patronize a bike-friendly business this month, draw a bike on
the receipt and share a social-media photo to thank them.
(Photo: The Path Less Pedaled)

Much like Arbor Day, and for basically the same reasons, National Bike Month has long been a bigger deal in Nebraska than it is in Portland.

But, though it’s a little harder to spot around here, May is indeed Bike Month in the United States. And there are lots of great ways to celebrate it locally.

First, here’s a wonderful idea from Russ Roca of The Path Less Pedaled: All this month, patronize businesses that you know to be bike-friendly, and thank them for it by drawing a little picture of a bike on your receipt. Then share a photo of the receipt on your favorite social media account with the hashtag #bikenomics.

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Job: PPC Specialist – Velotech, Inc. – FILLED

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

Sorry, this job has been filled. Browse more great jobs here.

Job Title
PPC Specialist

Company/Organization
Velotech,Inc

Job Description
Velotech, Inc has an opening for a motivated Pay Per Click (SEM/PPC) specialist with a keen eye for analytics and details. We’re looking for someone with Google Adwords experience (Google Adwords Certified Preferred) to effectively manage and optimize PPC campaigns to generate maximum ROI for our group of cycling-related businesses. Experience with Yahoo/Bing and Facebook Pay Per Click campaigns is a plus. Candidates with Search Engine Optimization and bid management software (Acquisio or BidMax) experience strongly preferred. Are you results driven, organized, and motivated to help directly drive sales for a growing company in the cycling industry? Submit your resume today for our Pay Per Click (PPC) specialist position at Jobs@velotech.com

Job Duties:
• Manage and optimize existing PPC campaign components including, but not limited to – Ad Copy, Bid Prices, Cost per Conversion, Cost per Click, Keyword Research, etc.
• Help create PPC strategies including keyword research and analysis.
• Implementation of PPC strategies.
• Create performance reports with recommendations for improvements.
• Work directly with an Account Manager to optimize PPC campaigns.
• Work and become familiar with bid management software (Bid Max).
Required Skills:
• Avid Cyclist and/or Experience and Knowledge of the Cycling Industry
• Excellent analytical, organizational, project management and time management skills
• Focused and detail oriented
• Google Adwords (preferably 2+ years experience)
• Knowledge of keyword analysis and conversion analysis
• Knowledge of landing page analysis
• Negative Keyword Analysis
• Word, Excel, and PowerPoint
• Ability to clearly and effectively articulate thoughts and points
• High levels of integrity, autonomy, and self-motivation

How to Apply
Send your Resume to Jobs@velotech.com

Water and sewer reform measure could curb street safety projects

Before (left) and after (right) a “green street” project that both improved storm drainage and diverted auto traffic on the NE Klickitat Neighborhood Greenway.
(Photos: City of Portland)

As ballots arrive today in Portland mailboxes for a hard-fought ballot initiative (Measure 26-156) that would remove water, sewer and stormwater overflow operations from city oversight, one issue has attracted little notice in the billion-dollar battle over managing the city’s pipes.

That’s the comparative trickle of stormwater management fees that have been used not for pipes and gutters but for in-street bioswales — the basins lined with native plants that clean local rivers by reducing storm runoff. These bioswales also double as traffic-calming islands and intersection diverters that improve bike safety. It’s that transportation safety element that led former Portland Mayor Sam Adams to call the bioswales a “double win” and set aside $20 million for their construction as part of the Bike Plan for 2030 when it was adopted in 2010.

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AlexRims 700c 2002

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

Year: 2002
Brand: AlexRims
Model: 700c
Stolen in Portland, OR 97203
Stolen:2014-03-21
Stolen From: Inside the Louis York Apartment Building on N. Ivanhoe St.
Neighborhood: St.Johns
Owner: Hayden Llewellyn
OwnerEmail: hayden.llewellyn(AT)gmail.com
Description: Two AlexRims rims – Shimano XT hubs – XTR skewers and Michelin Carbon tires with a yellow stripe on the sidewall
Police record with: Filed with Portland PD
This registrant has documented proof of ownership of this bike

Job: Bike Tour Guide – Cycle Portland

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

Job Title
Bike Tour Guide

Company/Organization
Cycle Portland

Job Description
Cycle Portland is a Bike Tour and Rental company located in Old Town Portland. We provide guided rides around the city and also out to the Columbia Gorge and Oregon Wine Country. These tours focus on different themes, including Portland History, Local Microbreweries, Food Carts, and Bike Culture. We have a full service and repair shop where we rent the bikes out and lead the tours from on NW 2nd Ave. This will be our 8th season leading Tours of Portland.

This position includes greeting customers, preparing bikes for them to ride, leading them around the city on prepared routes while stopping occasionally to share information about Portland. This position also includes renting bikes to visitors from all over the world to explore on their own and outfitting them with maps, bike route advice, and a sweet whip to cruise the city with.

Some bike mechanical know how is required because you have to be able to adjust bikes to fit people and fix a flat if you were to get one while out on the ride.
Other requirements include Customer Service skills, retail experience, a genuine desire to work with the public, and a strong personality.

How to Apply
Do you like to host visiting friends by taking them around the city? Are you passionate about cycling in Portland? Are you knowledgeable about Portland enough to give directions and willing to learn more about the city? Do you have Guiding experience a knack for storytelling/ improv?

This position is seasonal with a possibility of staying on year round. If interested please send a resume to info@portlandbicycletours.com with a paragraph about why you would be good for the position. Thank you.

ODOT embarks on “big data” project with purchase of Strava dataset

A valuable bicycle planning and policymaking tool?

The Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) is the first state transportation agency in the United States to ink a deal with Strava, a leading website and smartphone app used by people to track their bike rides via GPS.

Last fall, the agency paid $20,000 for one-year license of a dataset that includes the activities of about 17,700 riders and 400,000 individual bicycle trips totaling 5 million BMT (bicycle miles traveled) logged on Strava in 2013. The Strava bike “traces” are mapped to OpenStreetMap.

If all goes according to plan, the data could revolutionize how ODOT makes decisions about their policies, plans, and projects. At the very least, forging boldly into the realm of “big data” and pushing the boundaries of bicycle planning marks an important step for an agency that’s facing a very different future and actively looking to shed its old-school, highway-first reputation.

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white/lime green Schwinn Cutter 2012

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

Year: 2012
Brand: Schwinn
Model: Cutter
Color:white/lime green
Size:~52
Photo: http://imgur.com/CPeUKqJ
Stolen in Portland, OR 97217
Stolen:2014-05-01
Stolen From: Lardo’s employee bike rack behind the store on N Mason and N Williams st.
Neighborhood: N Williams
Owner: Matthew Dudley
OwnerEmail: mwdudley(at sign)gmail.com
Description: White frame, single speed, platform pedals, lime green seat with black seatpost, lime green rear wheel, the brake pads need to be replaced and the brakes adjusted so currently they are almost nonfunctional
This registrant does not have proof of ownership of this bike

Oregon ranked 5th most bike-friendly state by the League

The League of American Bicyclists has ranked Oregon the fifth most bike friendly state in the nation. This ranking marks a slip of two places from our third place ranking last year. Since these rankings debuted in 2008, Oregon has only been out of the top five one time with an eighth-place in 2011 (which the Oregon Department of Transportation took exception to).

While no ranking system is perfect (and most of them are nothing but click-bait garbage) the League of American Bicyclists does have some credibility and they have a rigorous set of criteria that they use to weight a state’s success in integrating bicycling into transportation plans, policies, and projects.

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black/turquoise Specialized Dolce 12 2013

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

Year: 2013
Brand: Specialized
Model: Dolce 12
Color:black/turquoise
Size:small
Serial:WSBC6060211051
Photo: http://www.specialized.com/us/en/bikes/road/dolce/dolce-compact
Stolen in Portland, OR 97209
Stolen:2014-04-30
Stolen From: Stolen from the west entrance of On Deck Sports Bar in the Pearl. The lock was cut.
Neighborhood: Pearl District
Owner: Mary Cecchini
OwnerEmail: maryrcecchini@gmail.com
Reward: $100
Description: The bike is black with turquoise handlebars. There are two water bottle cages. One of the cages is pink.
Police record with: Portland PD
Police reference#: T14004416.
This registrant has documented proof of ownership of this bike

maroon Surly Disc Trucker 2014

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

Year: 2014
Brand: Surly
Model: Disc Trucker
Color:maroon
Size:56.5
Photo: https://scontent-b-sea.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn2/t1.0-9/1904110_10152125420327023_2120465881_n.jpg
Stolen in Portland, OR 97214
Stolen:2014-04-30
Stolen From: My backyard in SE near 39th and Division.
Neighborhood: SE
Owner: Benjamin Applebaum
OwnerEmail: sauce504(A T)gmail.com
Description: Maroon 2014 Surly Disc Trucker, mostly stock.Drop bars, bar end shifters, Avid disc brakes, black bar tape, rear rack, black BMX pedals.
This registrant has documented proof of ownership of this bike

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From the Archives

Protestor blocks bus and bike lanes on Division with his car