Cycling in Portland, Oregon

Portland's reputation as a bike-friendly City was enhanced by The Yellow Bike Project, a 1994 civic engagement action led by local activists Tom O'Keefe, Joe Keating and Steve Gunther.{{citation needed|date=February 2021}} O'Keefe proposed painting donated bikes – repaired by at-risk-youth served by the Community Cycling Center – bright yellow, and deploying them for free use around Portland. O'Keefe cited the Provo movement's White Bicycle Plan in Amsterdam as inspiration after watching the documentary "Sex Drugs & Democracy".{{cite news

| url = https://www.nytimes.com/1994/12/09/us/portland-journal-where-trust-rides-a-yellow-bicycle.html?sq=Portland+Yellow+Bike+Project&scp=1&st=cse

| title = Portland Journal; Where Trust Rides a Yellow Bicycle

| author = Don Ryan

| work = New York Times

| date = December 9, 1994

| access-date = 2011-04-06

}} "Gratis Pedalis Feralvus"{{citation needed|date=July 2016}} was a tongue-in-cheek slogan for the quirky eco-transportation project. About a dozen yellow bikes, painted for free by a local auto body shop were launched. Eventually 60{{cite news|url=http://www.wweek.com/portland/article-19601-bike-share-snare.html|title=Bike-Share Snare|last=Stites|first=Sam|date=28 August 2012|work=Willamette Week|access-date=27 July 2016}} to 100 bicycles were part of the project. Ultimately the project failed after bikes were stolen, vandalized, or thrown into the Willamette River.{{cite news|url=http://www.oregonlive.com/history/2016/01/portlands_disastrous_yellow_bi.html|title=Remembering Portland's disastrous Yellow Bike Project|last=Rose|first=Joseph|date=21 January 2016|work=OregonLive.com|access-date=27 July 2016|author-link=Joseph Rose (journalist)}}

{{see also|Bicycle Transportation Alliance}}

The bicycle revolution in Portland started taking off with the founding of the Bicycle Transportation Alliance in November 1990. The first project of the BTA was persuading TriMet, the regional transit agency, to carry bicycles on its buses and light rail trains. BTA gathered over 7000 signatures and the support of numerous local city councils, prompting TriMet to conduct a one-year trial on a few bus lines. After a year of no significant problems and an increase in transit ridership by cyclists, TriMet instituted the first 100% bicycle accessible major transit system in the U.S. The Bicycle Transportation Alliance grew into one of the most effective cycling advocacy organizations in the U.S. The BTA focused on making major streets safe for cycling by advocating bicycle lanes, improvements to all seven pedestrian-accessible Willamette River bridges linking the downtown to the rest of the city and for safe, secure bicycle parking. In 1992, BTA successfully sued the City of Portland under ORS 366.514, the Oregon "Bicycle Bill," forcing the city to provide bicycle facilities as part of all projects. The City appealed this to the Oregon Court of Appeals which upheld the BTA's position, solidifying the responsibility of all governments in Oregon to provide safe bicycle and pedestrian facilities in all projects.{{cite news| url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rex-burkholder/portlands-bicycle-revolut_b_3861490.html | work=Huffington Post | title=Portland's Bicycle Revolution Started with a Lawsuit! | date=September 4, 2013}}

Interest in city transportation planning began in the early 1970s after the state of Oregon passed comprehensive state land use laws with the city of Portland drafting its first 'Bicycle Master Plan' in 1973.{{cite web|url=http://www.ibpi.usp.pdx.edu/media/portlandbikestory.pdf|title=The Portland Bicycle Story|author=Initiative for Bicycle & Pedestrian Innovation (IBPI)|publisher=Portland State University|year=2010|access-date=2010-11-29|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100611153037/http://www.ibpi.usp.pdx.edu/media/portlandbikestory.pdf|archive-date=2010-06-11}}

The city's first bike plan that was adopted in 1973, titled the '1973 Portland Bike Plan', called for nearly 190 miles of bicycle infrastructure to be built in the city and created a citizen's Bicycle Advisory Committee along with a Bicycle Program within the city's Transportation Bureau.{{cite web|url=http://www.bicyclelaw.com/road-rights/a.cfm/road-rights-your-city-versus-my-city|title=Road Rights- Your City Versus My City|author=Bob Mionske|publisher=BicycleLaw|date=2010-02-14|access-date=2010-11-29}}

By 1996, after the city had created the nearly 190 miles of initial bicycle infrastructure from the first plan, the city adopted its second bike plan in 1996, titled the 'Portland Bicycle Master Plan', which called for an additional 445 miles of bicycle infrastructure to be built over the next 20 years (cumulative of 630 miles by 2016).

The city revised its bicycle plan again in February 2010 when the Portland City Council unanimously adopted its third bike plan, titled the 'Portland Bicycle Plan for 2030', which called for $613 million of spending on bicycle infrastructure over the next 20 years to expand the bicycle infrastructure target from 630 miles by 2016 to 962 miles by 2030 and increase the daily bicycle modal share from the current 7-8% to 25% by 2030.{{cite news|url=http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2010/02/portlands_2030_bicycle_plan_co.html|title=Portland's 2030 bicycle plan coasts to approval|author=Rose, Joseph|author-link=Joseph Rose (journalist)|newspaper=The Oregonian|date=2010-02-11|access-date=April 15, 2013}} With only about 300 miles of bicycle infrastructure built by the end of 2009, the plan sets a target of building 662 miles of new bicycle infrastructure in the city over the next 20 years.

With enabling legislation from the 2011 session, Portland lowered speed limits from {{convert|25|to|20|mph|kph}} on {{convert|70|mi|km}} of designated neighborhood greenway streets to increase safety for increasingly heavy use by pedestrians and bicyclists.{{cite web

| url = http://www.katu.com/living/autos/Some-speed-limits-in-Portland-lowered-to-20-mph-167361555.html

| title = Some speed limits in Portland lowered to 20 mph

| work = KATU

| date = August 24, 2012

| access-date = August 24, 2012

| url-status = dead

| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120827002536/http://www.katu.com/living/autos/Some-speed-limits-in-Portland-lowered-to-20-mph-167361555.html

| archive-date = August 27, 2012

}}

File:Johnsoncreek2.jpg

Portland is developing a network of bicycle boulevards to make cycling easier and safer.{{Cite web|url=https://www.pdx.edu/ibpi/bicycle-boulevard-planning-design-guidebook|title=Bicycle Boulevard Planning and Design Guidebook|website=Portland State University - Initiative for Bicycle and Pedestrian Innovation|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181121045423/https://www.pdx.edu/ibpi/bicycle-boulevard-planning-design-guidebook|archive-date=2018-11-21|access-date=2020-01-31}} The east side of Portland is particularly well-suited for this technique due to its consistent grid of north–south and east–west streets. The boulevards are defined with a combination of street markings, signs, and better signals for crossing busy intersections.[http://www.bta4bikes.org/at_work/bikeboulevards.php BTA: Bicycle Boulevards Campaign] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101112133825/http://www.bta4bikes.org/at_work/bikeboulevards.php |date=2010-11-12 }}

Another route is the Vera Katz Eastbank Esplanade.

In order to try to prevent car-bike crashes the city has painted sections of hazardous bike lanes blue.[http://www.portlandonline.com/transportation/index.cfm?c=34826 Blue Bike Lanes Report], City of Portland

More recently, the city has installed experimental bike boxes that allow bicyclists to wait ahead of motorized traffic at red lights.[http://www.portlandonline.com/transportation/index.cfm?c=46717 Bike Boxes], City of Portland

An important milestone in Portland's utility cycling infrastructure was the expansion of the sidewalks of Hawthorne Bridge in 1997, which significantly improved the safety and ease of bicycle commuting across the Willamette River.{{Cite web|url=http://pedbikesafe.org/bikesafe/casestudies_detail.cfm?CS_NUM=106|title=A Tale of Portland Bridges|last=Birk|first=Mira|last2=Smith|first2=Jeff|website=Bikesafe|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200131221341/http://pedbikesafe.org/bikesafe/casestudies_detail.cfm?CS_NUM=106|archive-date=2020-01-31|access-date=2020-01-31|last3=Mead|first3=Jill}}

In 2004, a bike path along the Sunset Highway between Sylvan and Cedar Hills was completed, helping to link Beaverton and downtown Portland.

Bicycle access to the Morrison Bridge opened to mixed reviews in March 2010.[http://www2.co.multnomah.or.us/Public/EntryPoint?ct=5ae50e9074df7010VgnVCM1000003bc614acRCRD Morrison Bridge Bicycle & Pedestrian Improvements] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110717084328/http://www2.co.multnomah.or.us/Public/EntryPoint?ct=5ae50e9074df7010VgnVCM1000003bc614acRCRD |date=2011-07-17 }}, Multnomah County{{cite news|last=Rose|first=Joseph|title=Multnomah County opens new pedestrian, bike path across Morrison Bridge|date=March 30, 2010|url=http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2010/03/multnomah_county_opens_new_ped.html |newspaper=The Oregonian|access-date=October 18, 2010}}[http://blogtown.portlandmercury.com/BlogtownPDX/archives/2010/03/30/morrison-bridge-bike-path-opens-today Morrison Bridge Bike Path Opens Today], The Portland Mercury

In recent years, the City of Portland has built personal motor-vehicle free bridges for pedestrians and cyclists whose commute crosses busy interstates or the Willamette river, and need a safe route. Some of these bridges include the Blumenauer Bridge (2022), Ned Flanders Crossing (2021), and the Tilikum Crossing (2015), which is open to pedestrians and cyclists, as well as MAX, buses, and Streetcar.

In 2021, PBOT began to place large, [https://bikeportland.org/2021/07/29/pbot-will-install-80-concrete-barricades-to-make-safe-streets-more-permanent-335767 concrete planters] to replace the traffic cones they had used for the previous year, in order to slow down traffic on neighborhood streets. They were strategically placed at intersections in residential neighborhoods, and most have signage above them which indicate a recommended speed limit of 15 mph.{{Cite web |date=2021-07-29 |title=PBOT’s Slow Streets program moves ahead with permanent installations in response to positive community support {{!}} Portland.gov |url=https://www.portland.gov/transportation/news/2021/7/29/pbots-slow-streets-program-moves-ahead-permanent-installations |access-date=2023-01-24 |website=www.portland.gov |language=en}}

A recent project will bring covered bicycle parking to the popular southeast Hawthorne Boulevard shopping district.[http://www.portlandonline.com/transportation/index.cfm?c=36375 Hawthorne Boulevard Project], City of Portland

{{see also|Providence Bridge Pedal}}

Image:Bikes in Portland.jpg

The Bicycle Transportation Alliance sponsors an annual Bike Commute Challenge, in which thousands of commuters compete for prizes and recognition based on the length and frequency of their commutes.[http://www.bikecommutechallenge.com/oregon Bicycle Commute Challenge] information

The annual event Ladds 500 was established in 2016 for the purpose of riding around a park in Ladd's Addition 500 times, individually or as part of a team.

Pedalpalooza is an annual festival with hundreds of community-organized free bike events.[https://www.shift2bikes.org/pages/pedalpalooza/ Pedalpalooza], Shift

{{Update section|date=November 2023}}

The following table shows Portland's historical bike commuting mode share with data coming from the Census Bureau's annual American Community Survey:{{cite web|url=https://public.sheet.zoho.com/public/bikeleague/2000-to-2010-bike-commuters-largest-70-2-1|title=2000 to 2010 bike commuters_largest 70 (2)|publisher=League of American Bicyclists|date=2011|access-date=2012-09-24|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120503201754/https://public.sheet.zoho.com/public/bikeleague/2000-to-2010-bike-commuters-largest-70-2-1|archive-date=2012-05-03|url-status=dead}}{{cite web|url=http://blog.bikeleague.org/blog//blog/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/Copy-of-1990-to-2011-bike-commuters_largest-70_logo.xlsx|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121101153827/http://blog.bikeleague.org/blog/blog/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/Copy-of-1990-to-2011-bike-commuters_largest-70_logo.xlsx|url-status=dead|archive-date=2012-11-01|title=Copy-of-1990-to-2011-bike-commuters_largest-70|publisher=League of American Bicyclists|date=2012-10-12|access-date=2012-10-13}}{{cite web|url=http://www.bikeleague.org/content/acs-bike-commuting-continues-rise|title=ACS: Bike Commuting Continues to Rise|author=Ken|publisher=League of American Bicyclists|date=2013-09-25|access-date=2013-11-07}}{{cite web|url=http://bikeleague.org/content/new-data-bike-commuting-growing-steadily|title=New Data: Bike Commuting Growing Steadily|author=Ken McLeod|publisher=League of American Bicyclists|date=2015-09-17|access-date=2015-09-24}}

• List of U.S. cities with most bicycle commuters

{{reflist}}

{{Commons category|Cycling in Portland, Oregon}}

• [https://www.portland.gov/transportation City of Portland's Office of Transportation]
• [https://www.portlandoregon.gov/transportation/44597 Portland Bicycle Plan for 2030]
• [https://www.thestreettrust.org/ The Street Trust (formerly the Bicycle Transportation Alliance)]
• [https://bikeloudpdx.org/ Bike Loud PDX]
• [https://www.shift2bikes.org/ Shift]
• [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HhlffZwG8uw Yellow Bike footage]

{{Cycling in different countries and cities}}

{{Cycling in Portland, Oregon}}

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