Update on Couch bike lane: BTA says it’s still a ‘safety risk’
After re-striping and other changes by PBOT, people have more room on NE Couch.(Watch slideshow below – Photos © J. Maus)
Note: I'm currently on a family trip and not working normal hours. Email and message responses will be delayed and story and posting volumes here and on our social media accounts will not be at their usual levels until I return to Portland September 4th. Thanks for your patience and understanding. - Jonathan Maus, BikePortland Publisher and Editor
After re-striping and other changes by PBOT, people have more room on NE Couch.(Watch slideshow below – Photos © J. Maus)
Director of PBOT, Sue Keil.(File photo © J. Maus) Here’s the latest in the East Burnside Couch Couplet story. Yesterday PBOT released an official statement about the dangerous bike lane from head of that bureau, Sue Keil. In the statement Keil writes, “It has come to the Portland Bureau of Transportation’s attention that the bike … Read more
Michael O’Leary of the BTA says the Burnside Couch couplet is unsafe to ride.(File photo: Adams Carroll) The City of Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) is coming under fire for biking conditions on their East Burnside Couch Couplet project. In a blog post published yesterday, the Bicycle Transportation Alliance (BTA) wrote that the couplet is … Read more
Sweeping curves on NE Couch are causing a lot of safety concerns.(Photo © J. Maus) The new segment of NE Couch Street that leads onto the Burnside Bridge from NE MLK Blvd. raised red flags as soon as it opened. Sweeping curves make it difficult for people on bikes to avoid riding on slippery bike … Read more
Looking west on NE Couch at 12th. Will “interested but concerned” ride on this?(Photo © J. Maus) The City of Portland recently polished off rolled out the latest changes on a major project in the Central Eastside. The East Burnside/Couch Couplet project turned Burnside into a one-way street going east and Couch into the main … Read more
New bike lane on NE 12th at Sandy.(Photos © J. Maus) Last week I shared how the East Burnside/Couch couplet project would impact bikeways. One of the biggest changes I warned you about was a new lane configuration on NE 12th at Sandy. PBOT crews installed the new treatment over the weekend and I ventured … Read more
Looking north on NE 12th at Sandy/Burnside.(A bicycle-only lane is coming soon).(Photos © J. Maus) The East Burnside Couch Couplet project is nearing completion and the Bureau of Transportation has already begun the “traffic transfer” that will eventually turn Burnside and Couch into one-way, east-west thoroughfares. What will these changes mean for people on bicycles? … Read more
PBOT Drawing of new streetscape on Burnside. Portland Mayor Sam Adams and a host of dignitaries and bureaucrats held a groundbreaking ceremony for the East Burnside-Couch couplet project yesterday. The $17.8 million project will transform the streetscape of Burnside and Couch by turning them into one-ways, adding traffic signals, bike lanes, trees, curb extensions, and … Read more
[*Updated: 7:25pm; 10/18, 8:28am] Blue line shows where new bike lanes will be. Transportation Commissioner Sam Adams recently made a decision on how to deal with bicycle traffic when E. Burnside and Couch Streets are re-constructed for PDOT’s East Burnside/Couch Couplet Project. According to PDOT, the project, “will serve as a catalyst for…redevelopment and business … Read more
Comment of the Week: Gratitude for N/NE Broadway project