On NE Glisan, new bike lane character (and lower speed limit) earn clucks of approval
Portland’s creative bike lane characters keep getting more colorful.
Portland’s Bikeway Characters
What’s up with those sharrows and bike lane symbols that have a bit of extra creative flair?
The tradition goes back to 1999 when a PBOT maintenance staffer was bored and used excess scraps of thermoplastic used in pavement markings to give bike lane characters a bit of extra personality. The tradition was embraced by a subsequent person at PBOT named Kirstin Byer who expanded the program and made sure it became standard practice.
Learn more about this fun local tradition in the stories below.
PBOT’s whimsical bike lane characters make a comeback
PBOT has found their fun and artistic side with a new crop of bike lane characters.
Portland’s bike lane characters; a proud tradition continues (Slideshow)
One of Portland’s customized bike lane markings.-Slideshow below-(Photo: City of Portland) 2009 marks the 10th anniversary of a proud Portland tradition: our creatively modified bike lane pavement markings or what I like to call, “bike lane guys”. The “unlikely cycling hero” who started the tradition in 1999 — according to Portlander Jim Waigand, who has … Read more
New bike lane stencil by Joe Biel
Some of you may remember that Joe Biel (founder of Microcosm Publishing) is working on a documentary about bike art. He was particularly interested in Portland’s whimsical bike lane characters. I just heard from Joe that after a few meetings and phone calls he was given the opportunity to design and lay out his very … Read more
Meet Portland’s bike lane characters
If you’ve ridden your bike around this city long enough, you’ve probably come in contact with Portland’s bike lane people. Customized bike lane markings were started in 1999 by a former city employee named Todd Roberts and is a tradition that has carried on ever since. One of my faithful readers turned up this great … Read more