northwest Portland from the hills.
A reader email we received yesterday struck a nerve because it brought up issues I’ve personally experienced and thought a lot about. The issue is bicycle access and interactions with other vehicle operators on busy roads during rush-hour where there’s no dedicated space for cycling.
The busy road in this case is NW Cornell.
Southwest and northwest Portland are jammed right up against some pretty serious hills on their western sides. These hills are criss-crossed by a number of roads, many of which are popular for both riding bikes and driving cars between downtown Portland and the major cities on the west side. Despite the presence of Highway 26 and Burnside — both of which are major thoroughfares for auto users — many people still drive on roads like NW Cornell, Germantown, and others in order to avoid backups.
Reader Rob A. recently experienced something while driving on Cornell that left a strong, negative impression on him. Here’s what happened, in Rob’s own words (emphases mine):
