Category Archives: traffic safety

Report Issues via iPhone, Android Phones

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The City of Portland is pleased to announce the release of PDX Reporter, an application (app) for Android based smart phones. Now residents who use Android phones can report and request service calls to City assets and publicly maintained infrastructure. The decision to create an open sourced Android app follows the successful release of a similar iPhone app in February 2010, and is aimed at increasing transparency through open data and improving communications with Portland residents.

“This is a way to instantly connect with your City. If you see a problem in your neighborhood, you don’t have to wait to report it. You can make a report instantly. I encourage Portlanders to download the PDX Reporter app and send us information on the issues you see around your community,” says Mayor Sam Adams.

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Leaf Removal Fee Comes to Section of King

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The City of Portland has instituted its long talked about fee for removal of leaves in the streets of Portland neighborhoods with the heaviest street tree canopies. Many homeowners were surprised when implementation finally came since there was apparently no advance direct notification. According to the Oregonian article on the subject, the news of the plan was supposed to be disseminated via the individual neighborhood associations–even though they are not city entities. Paige Coleman, director of the Northeast Coalition of Neighborhoods, distributed an email querying neighborhood association volunteers if they had in fact been notified by the city.

The portion of King that is in a leaf district is Walnut Park from Alberta to Ainsworth and Rodney to Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. This district will receive two leaf removals each year. This year’s will be on November 5th and 24th and the fee will be $30 with low income households paying $10. Property owners can opt out of the fee if they apply for a waiver and submit a leaf removal plan. More info is at the City of Portland leaf removal page: http://www.portlandonline.com/transportation/index.cfm?c=47144&a=319617

Read Oregonian columnist Anna Griffin’s take on the issue here.

Columbia River Crossing: A More Sensible Alternative?

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A conversation with George Crandall, urban designer; Bill Scott, founder and general manager of Zipcar; and Joe Cortright, economist.

Three of the region’s top experts in design, economics and transportation offer a cheaper, more buildable alternative to the proposed 1-5 bridge over the Columbia River.

Part of the Agora events series of the City Club of Portland

Presented in partnership with Portland Monthly magazine.

Date: November 15, 2010 – 6:00pm – 7:30pm
Jimmy Mak’s 221 NW 10th Ave.

N/NE Quadrant / Stakeholder Advisory Committee

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A Stakeholder Advisory Committee (SAC) is being formed to advise project staff and make recommendations to the Portland City Council and the Director of the Oregon Department Transportation on policy and project proposals resulting from the N/NE Quadrant and I-5 Broadway/Weidler planning process. The committee will have approximately 30 members, with wide representation from area stakeholders and community interests, including: business and neighborhood associations, property owners, affordable housing, cultural heritage, the environment, economic equity, labor, urban design and transportation.

Subcommittees of the SAC will be formed to address specific issues, such as transportation, land use and urban design, and will include additional stakeholders with expertise and interest in the topic issues. Subcommittees will help frame the issues for the full SAC, especially on specific subject areas requiring more analysis and input. SAC and subcommittee meetings will be open to the public and have opportunities for public comment. Agenda, minutes and materials will be posted on this website as they are available.

A Technical Advisory Committee (TAC), representing public agencies with specialized expertise related to the plan and implementation, will serve as a resource for the SAC throughout the planning process.

More information about the SAC process and procedures may be found in the Draft Stakeholder Advisory Committee Collaboration Principles.

N/NEQ News: Are you interested in serving on the Central N/NE Quadrant Plan Stakeholder Advisory Committee?

The City of Portland and the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) are seeking applications for two “at-large” positions in order to broaden the diversity of perspectives on the Stakeholder Advisory Committee.

The project will launch with the first SAC meeting on September 16, 2010 (tentative date) and is expected to take approximately 18 months to complete. The SAC will meet approximately 12 times during that period. The deadline to submit an application for an “at-large” position is September 3, 2010. See the Application Form for more information

Get Involved–click here!

Bike Boulevard Improvements at Going/Martin Luther King Jr.

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The Portland Bureau of Transportation is beginning work on Northeast Going Street at Northeast Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard to construct intersection improvements for cyclists and pedestrians. The project will consist of extending the median barrier on Northeast Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and two striped crosswalks where there are higher traffic speeds and traffic volumes on Northeast Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and pedestrians and cyclists have difficulty crossing the
street. No parking removal is necessary to accommodate the median island on Northeast Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. In addition, auto traffic will be regulated to right turns at this intersection only.

The project is scheduled to start in late March dependent on weather and construction crew availability. Construction of the intersection improvements should be completed relatively quickly within about a week and a half. This location was identified as a location where cyclists and pedestrians may have trouble navigating and crossing the busy intersection. This improvement will shorten the distance pedestrians and cyclists are exposed to traffic and will increase the visibility of pedestrians and cyclists to motorists and to each other. Pedestrians and cyclists will be able to make a two stage crossing, with the benefit of a concrete refuge to wait for traffic to clear for a safer crossing. The project team has visited neighborhood associations after holding two initial public meetings to get feedback from neighborhood residents on North and Northeast Going Street so that feedback and neighborhood input could be incorporated into the proposal. Access will be maintained in the area during all construction phases. Some road access will be limited while work is occurring in the street but access will be maintained through the duration of the construction. No complete road closure is anticipated.

The Bureau of Transportation is sensitive to the use of this connection in the neighborhood and will endeavor to complete the work as quickly as possible to minimize the inconvenience these improvements may cause.