[BWNA] FW: PRESS RELEASE 102607 Potential Bicycle Safety Solutions
David Whitaker
dkwhit at pacifier.com
Mon Oct 29 19:37:30 PST 2007
Here is some information on Bicycle Safety that is being proposed for
the neighborhood streets.
David Whitaker
BWNA Transportation and Land Use Coordinator
-----Original Message-----
From: Sandra Lefrancois [mailto:cnnoutreach at teleport.com]
Sent: Monday, October 29, 2007 11:12 AM
To: cnnoutreach at teleport.com
Subject: FW: PRESS RELEASE 102607 Potential Bicycle Safety Solutions
_____
From: Kuck, Cheryl Emma [mailto:CherylEmma.Kuck at pdxtrans.org]
Sent: Friday, October 26, 2007 6:17 PM
To: Kuck, Cheryl Emma
Cc: Chisek, Kyle; Chlapowski, Roland; Doussard, John; Douthit, Dan;
Miller,
Tom; PDOT Directors Team; Rubio, Maria; Spencer, Jared; Tomsovic,
Michael;
Van Keuren, Jeremy (Mayor's Office)
Subject: PRESS RELEASE 102607 Potential Bicycle Safety Solutions
CITY OF PORTLAND OFFICE OF TRANSPORTATION
PRESS RELEASE
For Immediate Release
October 26, 2007
Contact: Cheryl E. Kuck at (503) 823-5552
Or: Tom Miller at (503) 823-1121
<<PRESS RELEASE 102607 Bicycle Safety Action Plan.pdf>>
<http://www.portlandonline.com/shared/cfm/image.cfm?id=172754>
http://www.portlandonline.com/shared/cfm/image.cfm?id=172754
Committee on Policy, Engineering, and Enforcement for Bicycle Safety
Develops Action Plan to Improve Bicycle Safety in Portland
(PORTLAND, OR) - Representatives from Portland's bicycle and freight
communities, safety advocates, traffic engineers, Police, Multnomah
County,
and other stakeholders met Friday, October 26, to discuss a bicycle
safety
action plan developed by Commissioner Adams and the Portland Office of
Transportation. Commissioner Adams formed the Committee on Policy,
Engineering, and Enforcement for Bicycle Safety in response to the
recent
bicycle fatalities in Portland.
The Committee convened at City Hall to discuss solutions to Portland's
bicycle safety problems - with particular emphasis on bicycles and
trucks -
and to develop both a short term and a long term safety action plan. The
Committee discussed potential engineering, enforcement, and education
measures.
So far in 2007, Portland has seen six bicycle fatalities - the highest
number of bicycle fatalities on record for one year. Two of them
involved a
cyclist and a large truck. On October 22, a cyclist collided with a
garbage
truck on N. Interstate as the truck was making a right turn onto
Greeley. On
October 11, a cyclist was run over by a cement truck on SW 14th Avenue
as
the truck was turning right at Burnside. By contrast, in 2006 Portland
had
zero bicycle fatalities and 203 reported bicycle crashes. Reported
crashes
for 2007 will not be received until next year from the Oregon Department
of
Transportation.
"Despite this year's surprising and alarming fatalities, bicycling in
Portland has become safer," says Commissioner Adams. "With reported
crashes
increasing only slightly and ridership increasing exponentially, our
bicycle
crash rate is decreasing."
Even with that good news, however, Commissioner Adams recognizes the
public's concern about bicycle safety. "Studies show that over half of
Portland residents limit their bicycling due to traffic safety concerns.
Obsolete designs and increasing traffic have contributed to a system
that is
unsafe. The type of crashes that occurred in the past two weeks should
never
happen in a city with a well-integrated focus on promoting increased
bicycling."
The Committee's short-term plan is to identify problem intersections
that
have conflicts between bicyclists and motorists making right turns. That
part is easy, as 100 such difficult intersections have already been
identified by participants at the June 2006 Portland Bike Safety Summit,
by
the Portland Bicycle Advisory Committee, and by City staff.
Potential infrastructure solutions
* Treating 14 of the city's top difficult intersections, which
will
include N. Interstate at Greeley and SW 14th Avenue at Burnside, with a
"bike box" to reduce bicycle crashes referred to as a left and right
"hook"
* Bike box at stop bar at intersection
1 Skip-stripes, with or without color, through
intersection
with bike box
2 Widen bike lane at intersection
3 Bike warning sign activated by bike loop
4 No right turn on red lights with bike boxes
Potential equipment solutions
* Equipping trucks with mirrors to eliminate blind spots
* Equipping trucks with side guards to prevent people from being
pulled under the vehicle
* Equipping bicycles with mirrors and noisemakers
Potential enforcement and crash investigation solutions
* Police enforcement and crash investigation policies
* Jail time for drivers with suspended licenses
Potential education solutions
* Department of Motor Vehicles supplemental urban driver's guide
and
testing
* Enhanced truck driver education for urban truck drivers
* Enhancements to existing programs like Share the Road, See and
Bee
Seen (Light the bike, see the bike), and I Brake for People
Commissioner Adams stressed the need for everyone to "share the road and
practice safe travel behaviors whether you're driving, biking, walking,
taking transit, or using some other mode to get around Portland."
Commissioner Adams reported that toward promoting the safety of Portland
citizens and its City workers, the City of Portland has installed many
safety devices in its heavy equipment fleet. These include additional
mirrors, side signal lights, backup cameras, reflective tape, and
frenzel-optical lenses that allow drivers to see through the
passenger-side
door. These safety items, combined with extensive operator training,
significantly improve safety for pedestrians, bicyclists, other vehicle
operators, and City workers.
The City has also reviewed its dump trucks, street sweepers, aerial
tower
trucks, boom trucks, vacuum trucks, and equipment trailers to determine
if a
side guard retrofit would keep a person from getting in front of the
rear
wheels. Fortunately, most of the City's equipment already includes a
side
protection between the axles. The protection comes from the tool bins
mounted to the body or frame of the truck, or, in some cases, the space
between the axles is filled with a fuel tank and tool bins.
An assessment of the fleet made this morning, Friday, October 26, shows
that
about 12 pieces of equipment could benefit from the installation of the
side
guards. The cost is about $4,500 per side, and includes design,
fabrication,
installation, and wiring of the new lights. Adding one side guard to
each of
these 12 pieces of equipment would cost the City approximately $54,000.
Commissioner Adams emphasized that his "Safe, Sound and Green Streets"
initiative is one solution to the growing backlog of maintenance and
safety
projects that make Portland's transportation system unsafe for all
users.
"With a growing population," says Commissioner Adams, "there is more
demand
being placed on the transportation system. Deferred maintenance adds an
estimated $9 million annually to the $425 million transportation backlog
that exists. Too many Portlanders are being injured and killed on those
roads."
Given the current transportation funding situation, the money does not
exist
to adequately address these issues. In order to cover the funding gap,
it
would take a seventeen-cent increase in statewide gas taxes, which is
unlikely to happen in the immediate future. Oregon's last gas tax
increase
occurred in 1993 and the Portland metro region receives only
forty-six-cents
out of each dollar paid through gas taxes and vehicle registration fees.
Additionally, there are no allocated local funding sources for basic
maintenance.
Two more Town Hall meetings are scheduled in Portland to provide
residents
an opportunity to review the proposal developed in collaboration with
the
"Safe, Sound and Green Streets" Stakeholder Committee, discuss proposed
projects that address safety, paving, and bridge needs, and learn about
a
possible local funding package to deliver the projects.
Southwest Portland Town Hall
Monday, October 29, 7-9 pm
Wilson High School
1151 SW Vermont
Southeast Portland Town Hall
Tuesday, October 30, 7-9 pm
Sellwood Middle School
8300 SE 15th Avenue
All Portland residents are invited and encouraged to attend these
discussions with Commissioner Adams and Multnomah County Chair Ted
Wheeler.
For more information and to provide input about the effort underway to
develop a bicycle safety action plan, visit
<http://www.commissionersam.com> www.commissionersam.com. For
information on
the Safe, Sound and Green Streets proposal, visit
<http://www.safeandsoundstreets.com> www.safeandsoundstreets.com.
###
Cheryl E. Kuck
Portland Office of Transportation
1120 SW Fifth Avenue, Suite 800
Portland, Oregon 97204
503-823-5552 phone
503-823-5909 cell
503-955-3023 pager
503-823-7609 fax
cherylemma.kuck at pdxtrans.org
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