Amtrak ticket stubs for round trip train reservations and bike reservations.

This past weekend I took a trip up to Portland from Eugene with my bike. I really appreciate the fact that I can bring my bike on the train, as it gives me the choice to do whatever I like when I arrive at Union Station. Upon arrival, one can bike to the nearest bus line to get home, go to Powell's for the newest read, or relax at a nearby café. At any rate, the fact that Amtrak permits bikes on board does wonders for a visitor's experience in the Rose City.

As a pretty much monthly visitor to Portland, surprisingly enough, this past weekend marks the first time I have brought a bike on board. Accordingly, I've given some thought to how bikes on Amtrak trains fit the Portland goal of diverse travel options. In short, "choices." If you offer citizens choices in terms of their travel options, the more likely they will make a different choice than insisting on riding alone in their cars. Be it train, light rail, bus or bike, Portlanders get around. Amtrak's inclusion of bicycles on board increases the number of choices people can make upon arriving to town as to where and when they want to go. Accordingly, I've written a brief list of ideas and suggestions in light of my trip that might make arriving "from train with bike" that much more desirable and convenient.

1. Improve ticketing of bicycles upon purchase. The decision to bring my bike from Eugene to Portland came after I had already bought my ticket north. For me to add my bike to my reservation, I had to cancel my previous ticket and be charged an extra $10 dollars on top of the ticket price to bring my bike roundtrip. Days after, I was reimbursed for the initial transaction. The easier we make it easy for “leisure riders” to make reservations for their bikes on the fly, without needing reimbursement of previous Amtrak fares, the more accessible trains will be and the more popular the prospect of riding one’s bike at one’s destination.
2. Standardize bike boarding information, waver forms and tagging. On Saturday morning, I arrived at Eugene Station to wait in line for the appropriate ticketing to bring my bike on board. To bring your bike you need to sign a form acknowledging that Amtrak has no liability for potential damage that may occur on your trip. After signing, I received a carbon copy of the form explaining the terms of agreement along with a tag for my bike. On the return from Portland, I was given a perforated form to perform the same task. The text was easier to read and more intuitive as it looked like it was printed off the same printing system as my tickets. The tag ripped off the form to be hung on my handlebars. Regardless of the differences in waver forms and bike tags, the actual round tickets, four in all (two for the fare and two for the bikes) looked the same. It would great to bring this sort of standardization to the bikes on board. Lastly, at the end of my ride to Portland, I wasn’t required to give proof that my bike belonged to me, whereas after arriving in Eugene I was required to give the other part of the ticket I received before boarding. To sum it up, Amtrak needs to be better with making a more seamless system for transporting bikes, especially when it comes to showing proof that a bike belongs to a certain individual.
3. Increase the capacity for bicycles on board. A quick call to Amtrak revealed that trains the Amtrak Cascade line only have capacity for six bikes, that is, six bike hooks to hang bikes if they are not already taken. I imagine more bikes could be accommodated if brought in boxes, but boxing your bike for less than a two-day stint in Portland doesn’t make sense. If Amtrak and Portland got together to find away to accommodate more bike hooks on trains, this could potential decrease the demand for rental cars, taking more cars of the road and encouraging visitors to see Portland and its neighborhoods on two wheels. To put this point into perspective, if I wanted to come to Portland with a group of friends to participate in the Bridge Pedal this coming weekend, and we all brought our bikes, then everyone else would be sweet out of luck. If we started off in Vancouver B.C., we would essentially take up all available bike parking for passengers boarding in Washington.

So there you have it. It would be great if people could suggest ways to make some of these suggestions happen. I was sure to send in these comments on the cards that were provided on the train, but more people pushing for better access to Amtrak's trains with bikes will surely make for a better case. You can leave your comments online here. And if you are post prone, (word on the street is you can get a ticket for a free drink on Cascade trains if you send them a comment) you can send your comments to:

Washington State
Department of Transportation
Rail Office
P.O. Box 47407
Olympia, WA 98599-7407

With the coming Winter Olympics in Vancouver, not to mention the fact that people just want to bring their bikes on board, it's important that we work to increase bike capacity on Amtrak as well as streamline current policies towards our two-wheeled friends. I also see this as a potential improvement that could come of Washington and Oregon's application for stimulus funds to update the Cascade line's crossings and aging infrastructure. If we're set on making the riding the train a viable transportation option, it's important that we make it viable for all users, those with and sans vélo. The more bikes at Union Station, the more money in the Portland's, and not to mention the Pacific Northwest's economy.

1937 intersection at SE Powell Blvd. & 39th Avenue looking north, one of the many street scenes in the Archives' collections. Photo courtesy of Portland City Archives A2005-001.517

This spring term in my Honors College history class, I was assigned to write a ten to fifteen page research paper on a topic of my choice. Being the Portlandphile (or PDXphile, if you please) that I am, I took to researching Forest Park, a large, forested park no less, not ten minutes from the city center. Over Memorial Day weekend I took a trip up north to jump start my research. The process to secure the park's current size of over 5,000 acres, which began in 1947, was a treat to investigate. Much like the growth of a now cherished and developed Forest Park, the place of my research, Portland's City Archives, its records dating back to the beginnings of Portland, is a wonder in itself to behold.

The archives are located in Chimney Park in North Portland, in a building once designated as the center for waste collection of a former city dump. During my two visits to the archives, Diana Banning, the City Archivist, helped me work through numerous boxes and files for the primary sources I sought. To my surprise, Diana, a humble public servant, expressed her amazement, "normally, people your age don't know about the archives." "Really?" I enquired. The wealth of information pared with the diligence of Diana and her colleagues as the keepers of the City's history, impelled me to give them their due recognition. I got into contact with Diana again in an attempt to let people know more about one of Portland's lesser-known treasures.

PDXme: What is the Portland City Archives?

The Portland City Charter assigns the City Auditor responsibility over City records and so the Archives and Records Management division resides in the office of the City Auditor. The City of Portland Archives and Records Center is managed by Archives and Records Management and is the official repository for the City’s historical records.In addition to housing and managing the archives, we also provide off-site records storage for City bureaus.

While we provide many services to City bureaus and their employees, those that are available to the public are probably of most interest here! As a public archives, our collections are available for use by the public for free. I feel that this is one of the most important services we can offer citizens: free and open access to the documentation of the City at work.

Our collections are focused on records created by or for City agencies; our earliest official records begin in 1851, with the first City Council meeting. We have records detailing the activities of all bureaus, including those that are no longer active like the Motion Picture Censor Board and the Milk Inspector. Essentially, if you wonder what the archives contains, think about what services the City provides and you’ll have a sense of our subject matter: transportation, water, sewer, solid waste, recycling, police and fire protection, parks, planning, development, and neighborhood collaboration are only a few out a much longer list.

While most of our collections consist of correspondence, reports, studies, and project files, we also have photographs, maps, and plans. We don’t have an exact count, but I estimate that we have nearly 750,000 photographs in our collections and they document City officials, activities, and projects. Even though a large portion of our images were taken to provide evidence of public works projects, they also document the neighborhoods where the projects took place and capture how life in Portland has changed throughout the decades.

Although our collections are primarily bureaucratic by their very nature, they also document social history. Local governments are involved in so many aspects of our everyday lives that the official records can’t help but document society.

PDXme: What is your job? Can you describe an average day?

As the City Archivist, I’m convinced I have the best job in the City! Really, how cool is it to work with old records, photos, maps and plans? Add to that, I also get to help people find information they need. I’m the first to say that I’m not the City’s historian – there are other more qualified people out there doing excellent work interpreting the city’s history; rather, my job is to collect, protect and provide access to the documentation of the City of Portland.

One thing that people don’t realize is that archival records are being created as we speak – just because a record is new doesn’t mean it lacks historical significance! As such, I work closely with my colleagues, Tim Hunt and Brian Brown, on contemporary records issues. Now that more than 90% of our records are created in the electronic realm, archivists and records managers are presented with great challenges when it comes to preserving the public record.

As for an average day, I’m not sure there is one. I spend approximately 20-30% of my time working with researchers and answering reference questions. I also have the administrative duties that come with managing a facility and staff. I also work with bureaus on records management and archives issues, spend time on outreach activities and other professional duties.

PDXme: How did you become interested in archiving? What do you enjoy about your profession?

While I’d like to say that I wanted to be an archivist when I grew up, I can’t. In fact, I didn’t even really know what an archives was prior to my first job in one. When I was accepted into library school, I wanted to find a job working in a library. Listed on the job board was a post for a student processor at the King County Archives in Seattle. I never looked back. I’ve spent my career working for local government archives and records management programs and continue to love it.

I think what invigorates me and makes me very proud to be an archivist is that I feel like I’m helping connect people to their past. Connection to the past is much more than researching your family tree (although I believe genealogy is the nation’s second-most popular hobby); rather, it’s linking who we are to who we were as individuals, neighbors, communities, regions, and nations. There is a statue at the National Archivesthat contains a quote from Shakespeare’s The Tempest:  “What is past is prologue” and it well-defines the role of archives in society. Add to that, as a public archivist I absolutely believe in the role that archives play in government’s responsibility to citizens for an open and democratic process. After all, without the evidence of the government’s actions or documentation of a society, there is no accountability. It’s no coincidence that archives are often an early victim of a regime change.

PDXme: What kinds of people do you provide services to?

We provide services to everybody; archives are not just for scholars! Our researchers come from as close as down the street and as far away as Japan. We work with attorneys, students, neighborhood activists, businesses, government employees, and genealogists – to name a few. It’s difficult to fully classify all of the people who use our records. Serious scholars working on dissertations and publications can be researching next to a person doesn’t really see themselves as doing research. Rather, they have a need to find out something that pertains to them on a personal level. My favorite example of this is an elderly man who came to the archives many years ago looking for a list of approved street trees. It turns out that his sidewalk was damaged by tree roots and he was trying to prove that the tree he’d planted many years ago was recommended by the City as a tree that wouldn’t disrupt the sidewalk. We found a pamphlet for him and he happily took a copy away with him to help him prove his case. Unfortunately, I didn’t find out if he was successful, but I think he personifies my assertion that archives are important to everyone.

PDXme: The City of Portland has been working with Portland State University to move the Portland Archives into its new Student Recreation Center. Why is this happening, and what are some changes we can expect with this move?

The Archives and Records Center has been experiencing space shortages for years and we’d done as much as we could do to stay in the building as long as we could. The timing for the new PSU building was perfect and the City purchased space from PSU in a condo agreement so we could move the City’s Archives and Records Center. The new building will provide us room to grow (local, state and federal laws dictate how long we need to maintain records), and more importantly, we’ll be much more accessible. Our current location is 11 miles from City Hall and access via public transportation is spotty.  The new location sites us between the streetcar, the MAX and buses.

We anticipate that we’ll begin moving the collections sometime in January 2010 and that we’ll be closed to researchers for 6-8 weeks once the move commences. Moving nearly 30,000 boxes, thousands of maps and plans, hundreds of ledgers and a variety of other materials – all needing to be precisely tracked and relocated – means that we’re planning for a complicated and finely orchestrated move.

However, once we are moved into the new facility, our researchers are going to love it! The reading room will have a lovely view, lockers to place their belongings, and nice tables and chairs from which to do their research. We’re also planning for a wireless connection so people can search our online catalog,Efiles and other resources they might need. While the hours are not yet set in stone, we plan to offer some extended and drop-in hours to compliment our current by-appointment research times.

This is an exciting move that will bring City information resources closer to the community; after all, a core tenet of archives is access and soon we’ll be so much more accessible.

PDXme: If one wanted to visit the archives, what would you suggest that he or she do?

At this time, making a research appointment is all that is needed to begin the process of accessing the City’s archives. Currently, we are open 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday-Friday, by appointment only.  One may make an appointment by calling 503-823-4631 or emailing. After our move, please check our website for updated hours and contact information.

PDXme: Anything else you'd like to tell us about the Archives?

I’d like to make a plug for our Annual Open House, which is scheduled this year for October 2^nd, 1-4 p.m. This is the public’s chance to get a “behind the scenes” tour and enjoy a root beer float as our thank you for stopping by. This year marks our 10^th open house and our 30^th anniversary at the Stanley Parr Archives and Records Center (SPARC). The celebration will take a fond look back on our time at SPARC, as well as forward to our exciting new location.

The bus stop across the street at Sunset & Capitol Hwy. where my sister and me caught the 45.

I don't ride TriMet too often these days as I am living in Eugene, but when I was growing up in Southwest Portland, taking the bus was a normal activity. I took it to my Maplewood home after school let out at Robert Gray and to my Ashcreek home during high school. It was bliss. In a sense. I started riding TriMet before my time. Those my age usually took the school bus or relegated themselves to waiting up to an hour after school for their parents to pick them up. Not me. In fact, I would dart out of school each day hoping to catch an earlier bus, even beating my peers in their yellow bluebirds.

My sister Maggie, a year younger than me, was in the same boat as far as getting to and from school. Often we would stay after school with various extracurricular activities, after which we would wait at the bus stop together at Sunset & Capitol Hwy. We generally made the trip on the 45 towards Garden Home. We got to know Denise, a single mother with a 10 year-old son. She was friendly, smiled often and we often got into chats with her about whatever came to pass. The weather, the season, our school, her job, all was for the talking.

On one of our last rides before winter break one year, my sister and me bought her a candy cane as a sign of our appreciation for her. She took it gladly and with a smile "You didn't have to do this! Thank you so much guys, you're so sweet!" She promised us a gift the next day. We were greeted the next day by a larger grin and two candy cane reindeers. Ones with twisted pipe cleaners for antlers and hot-glued eyeballs one would find in bulk at a craft store. "Here you go!" We took it with thanks. This small interaction highlighted our gratitude for Denise. There were times when we had forgotten our bus passes, that she gave us the wave-through "Come on board!" she would motion.

We've since lost contact with Denise. After our move to our third house in Southwest, we no longer took the bus as we had once done. The conversations we shared each afternoon on our ride home were pleasant as they were brief. But the fact that these conversations happened made our trek home that much better. "Hurry up!" I would call to my sister. "We need to catch Denise's bus!"

My riding plummeted after 9th grade when my family moved to Arnold Creek, a neighborhood without bus lines. In the interim between the move and getting my driver's license, my mom took my sister and me to and from school. It ended up that I would usually carpool home after cross country, swimming or track, or, if no ride existed, I would take the longer, more frustrating ride through SW Portland.

We had Denise as our bus driver for a good year and half I want to say. But I'm not sure. I'm not certain if arrangements like this happen on bus lines anymore, where you can expect one bus driver to be driving a bus at a given time. With TriMet's budget woes, I guess we can just be thankful that some busses are running at all, let alone buses with fixed drivers.

A neighborhood bus driver to me meant a woman who would ask me about my day as I boarded the bus each afternoon. She was a woman who cared about people and the service she provided them. And for a kid at that age, I wonder if her presence perhaps made me a bit more mature, making me tone down my mischievous behavior as I came to understand that I belonged. Isn't this what we want in a community? People we can get to know and trust? For what it's worth, I'd encourage everyone to get to know their own neighborhood bus driver, a person that one can share a few afternoon laughs with, and perhaps, even memories.

When I was growing up in Southwest Portland, I never rode my bike. The hilly terrain and long distances, in addition to roads lacking adequate shoulders, made biking a difficult and dangerous activity. Nonetheless, there are some people who make biking in Southwest feasible. David Keller, a fellow alum from Wilson High School now attends Portland State University (PSU). He commutes daily from his humble Multnomah Village condo, deep in Southwest. I caught up with him on Facebook to get a sense of his love for biking, Portland's urban pastime.

PDXme: Describe yourself. Who are you and what do you do?

I'm David Keller. I'm a full time student majoring in international business / marketing at PSU. I like helping the environment and enjoying it as much as possible. I love being outside in general.

PDXme: What kinds of bikes do you own?

I own a road bike with gears, a fixed gear bike, and a mini bike that I use when I zoobomb. My fixed gear was the first bike I bought last summer that got me into serious riding. I've been riding that since, and I just recently became interested gears. Just in April I found the bike that an old neighbor had passed on to me in 1997. I decided to make it my new commuter down to PSU. Riding that, I ended up fixing it up and modifying it, so there are almost no original parts left.

PDXme: What got you into biking? How about commuting?

David: I got into biking a few different ways. When I bought the fixed gear bike last summer, I got into fun riding and taking it out for a day ride almost to just call it a hobby. Recently with the road bike (gears), I've found myself making biking a serious part of my life. Riding to school 5 days a week has only made me more into it. Having no other option, I commute in the sun, rain, cold, sleet, you name it. I can beat the bus, so there is no reason to take it. Riding to school also got me into farther rides and pushing myself. I did a few rides along the Spring Water Corridor, which is a bike path that starts near OMSI in SE, and is a 40 mile loop out towards Gresham and then back to town. Similar to this, is the ride out to Sauvie's Island. It is a satisfying ride where you get to relax on the beach when you're halfway done. I also did the Reach the Beach this year, which is a 103 mile bike ride from Portland to Pacific City in support of the America Lung Association of Oregon. It was an unbelievable ride and it makes me want to participate in serious rides more often.

PDXme: Describe your average commute. What do you like the best about it? What could you do without?

David: My normal commute is 5 miles downtown and 5 miles back. Nothing major, but I get to rage downtown because it's downhill and then I get a workout on the way back. I really like riding in the rain, even though my shoes get soaked. I could do without crazy drivers on Barbur Blvd. though. It's the quickest way to get downtown and there are some crazy people who drive it. I've almost been slammed into on multiple occasions. But I can't let that stop me. Just another thing to think about every time I jump on my bike.

PDXme: You mentioned that you like to fix up other people's bikes. To what extent have you worked on a bike?

David: I do like to fix bikes. I like to build up bikes. I can take a bike apart and put it back together no problem. I'm actually looking into starting a new project soon. So I'm constantly looking around for something to do.

PDXme: How about Southwest? What do you think could be done to improve biking in the area?

David: In SW specifically, it would be nice to have bike lanes everywhere (or at least on major roads). On parts of Barbur, Beaverton Hillsdale Highway, and tons of other major streets, no specific bike lane exists. Mostly I have to ride on the shoulder, which is normally rocky, bumpy, and has glass everywhere. Especially on Barbur, there's parts where the bike lane goes away, and bikers are forced to ride in the road. People drive really fast there, and it makes for a bit of a rush.

PDXme: What do you hope Portland will do to help make biking in Portland more feasible/easier?

David: To make biking in Portland easier, I think the green box idea should be incorporated in other places outside of the downtown area. just being able to cut to the front of traffic, and having an area where you know cars can't hit you takes a bit of tension off. A lot of drivers don't like cyclists, so it helps to have a safety zone at every light. Besides that, Portland is pretty bike friendly already. Luckily I'm fortunate enough to live here.

PDXme: To what end do you think you'll be cycling? Do you want to continue riding your bike to get around when you are older?

David: I'll continue riding until I lose my legs. I really like cycling, and it's such a great way to stay in shape, I can see myself biking until I'm an old man. It's too great to ever give up.

In the class we focused on analyzing the poetry of Spanish urban poets of the 19^th and 20^th centuries. At the end of reading all that poetry, I was left with an urge to write poetry in the likes of the Spanish masters, José Martí and Federico García Lorca about my love of Portland.

So I put my fingers to the keys and let the passions flow:

Me - My City or City I Yearn (Choose the title you like!)

Big Ramp, Big Pink, Big Sky

I grip a city I yearn.

A city that I cannot read about,

But I can feel it.

I can’t live it,

But I can envision it.

I can’t demand it,

I can only dream.

I can’t work for it,

I can only think.

And believe.

I grip a city I yearn.

A city that is me.

Over the past year I have had some changes in my life that have been, at times, hard to adjust to. What has comforted me tremendously is my love for Portland, the memories and connections I have had and the dreams and aspirations I hold for its future. In a way, I have personified Portland in my own likeness. This reflection has worked to strengthen my bond with this place I call home.

No matter where I am around the world, in the southern hemisphere or a train's ride away, I know it’ll always be here. I will always know myself, and I will always have a home. And damn it if that isn’t what your hometown should be – a place where you feel yourself. The fact that I can’t come up with a suitable title for my poetic ponderings leaves me to think that Portland will accept me for whoever I am, and so too must I accept myself.

Now onto the more uplifting poetry written on March 23rd. Think what you will:

Train Stops

The Streetcar dead ends before new South Waterfront development.

On so many trains I would like to ride, with you.

So let’s ditch the car and parking and just ride.

So many tickets to buy, schedules to check, but every moment will be with you.

No more fleeting stoplights to wait for your caring eyes,

Heaven knows, many have died that way.

All we need are our backpacks and wallets.

And maybe a packed lunch, but you and me, we’re taking all the stops.

Tickets

If tickets had a price, I’d buy them, but they don’t take Martian dollars, so I am at loss. Train hopping I go.

Alas, this is just the start of my poetic madness, keep it here on the PDXpoesy page to check out my other poems. Send your own PDXpoesy and get it featured on PDXme! Be sure to include the date you wrote it. Out-of-Portland submissions are, of course, accepted!

"USA! USA! USA!" I almost felt as if I was watching a soccer match unfold while watching this video. The unveiling of the first modern American streetcar prototype in almost sixty years has created a wave in the stadium of public transportation. The car was produced primarily by United Streetcar, a subsidiary of Oregon Iron Works, as well as a myriad of other U.S. companies.

In 2007, the Oregon State Legislature allocated money to the Clackamas-based company to work towards building a manufacturing base here in Portland for these "vehicles of desire." The hopes of creating jobs and rejuvenating America's ailing cities have come true, but there is still so much work to be done. Portland, being heeded by a federal government for once in a long while, is now on the tangible forefront of the shift from sprawling, chaotic communities to more equitable and livable communities to sustain for years to come. LaHood's words are what we've already heard about Portland's efforts to improve and expand public transportation, but the fact that we've gotten this attention has really got Portlanders on a kind of pdxme fix.

In laymen's terms, this pdxme phenomenon is what I try and describe on this blog. It's a feeling you get when you know Portland's got something right, and that is why you're here. What Portlander can't stop giggling at official recognition from the federal government (a.k.a. the people who set trends and make money and ideas happen) of what we already  know? Pdxme! Pdxme! Pdxme! And please, please, Portland me pretty.

Passengers disembark the new MAX green line at Clackamas Town Center. Photo courtesy of Portland Transport.

Another one of the prototype American streetcars unveiled. Notice the bikes! Photo courtesy of Portland Transport.

Bike Corral at Mississippi & Beech

In an evening jaunt up North Mississippi Avenue in 2007, I came across this bike corral on North Beech.  I was able to take a good shot of it in spite of the drizzly weather.

So now that bike corrals are appearing in greater numbers (as seen on this map), why don't we expand this concept of efficiency by creating spaces for bikes that celebrate bicycling instead of placing them on the margins of roads? I would argue that taking bikes off of the side-walk is good for pedestrians, but it is at a relative cost to bicycles. Bicycles, like cars, have an air of freedom about them. When they are regulated by parking structures, they seem to lose a bit of their appeal. This is obvious if you drive a car. God knows how long you wait to get into and out of a parking garage in the Rose Quarter. With bikes, the appeal is similar, but there is something to say about finding a real gem of a vélo on display in a standard sidewalk lock-up. When we regulate people and things to certain rights of way, we sacrifice "something," and I think that lacking "something" is community.

A classy lady on N. Mississippi

A blue bike near N. Mississippi & Fremont

Communities in Portland are, in a word, resilient. We like our meetings. Our neighborhood association are among the most vibrant  in the nation with relatively high political influence. Why would their be a Facebook Application pertaining solely to which Portland neighborhood one should live in? As seen with the creation of City Repair, a non-profit dedicated to the creation of public gathering spaces, Portlanders like to shape their communities, each leaving his or her own mark on our city. In one project, community members came together to perform an "intersection repair." The community found its strengths among it, finding carpenters, painters, and good-willed neighbors willing to help. As a result, the community created a space for all to enjoy and changed city-wide policy for the use of public spaces. The reclaiming of "public" space is however, just the first step. Once we recreate an intersection, a vacant lot, it's important that we keep using the reclaimed space.

Now, you might be wondering, don't we want bike corrals? Of course. Walking along North Mississippi and seeing 10-20 bikes all in a row excites anyone crazy for bikes. (And that's a fair number of people here in River City.) Bike corrals are visible, but I'd like them so visible as to take up the underutilized space that cars could do away with at no expense to the driver. Case in point: traffic circles. What goes in the middle of a traffic circle? Usually plants. But often, this patch of green is left to members of the neighborhood to maintain. What if we could use traffic circles to their full potential, designating them as covered bike corrals? Only this time they would be accessible to bicyclists looking for bike parking from four directions, and visible to everyone. No longer will bikes, and the concerns of its bikers be left at the margin, but at the center of attention. Here is a sketch that I created with the help of my friend to give you a better idea of what I envision.

A Traffic Circle is made into a bike corral, a more efficient use of space.

Notice what you see (beyond horrible drawing skills). You see people. Bike corrals create people flow, the lifeblood of any livable community. But what we have in the middle of the intersection is a space that citizens hold dear, a place where bikers can leave their wheels. But why stop there? The space could be a covered meeting place for cyclists, or people waiting for a ride. Creating an "X" in order to access the space creates a uniqueness to the intersection that slows drivers down. Forcing pedestrians to walk through the space insures that watchful eyes maintain and keep an eye out for the space.

If one of these were to be placed on a corner with local restaurants or bookstores, I could imagine people waiting for the table in the middle of this neighborhood street, or kicking back with a book.

The engineering of such an intersection could be difficult. To make more space  in the center, there may need to be bowl cuts in the curves, as illustrated in the sketch. There is also the safety component. What about speeders? We could place speed bumps before the stop signs (which, I judged to hard to draw here) and additional reflectors around the gazebo-like bike corral. Steel posts around the structure are a must to protect people and bikes in the space. The fire department may have something to say about this, but lest we mention our prized statue of Joan d'Arc at NE 39th and Glisan? As long as this intersection an important emergency route, I couldn't see an issue.

Latin American countries often call a block the Spanish manzana, or apple. An intersection like this is at the edge of several blocks, or several apples. Sliced apple anyone? Perhaps some apple pie? These may be some names in the running for this proposed intersection. To my knowledge, I do not know if anything of  similar exists. Large scale roundabouts are, of course, commonplace in larger cities such as Columbus Circle in New York or the Arc de Triomphe in Paris.

Columbus Circle in New York

Arc de Triomph in Paris © Editions Hazan

I am excited at the prospect of bringing more bike corrals to Portland. As we work through this down economy, its important that we work to support our local economy, and bike corrals, as seen in the video above, do just that.

This proposed intersection works to engender community and, as my economic professor would say, "an efficient use of resources." I want to talk to my neighbors again, and I want to be a part of my own community, not a drone behind a piece of metal.

At the end of the day, I believe Portland has a choice. We have the ability to change our cityscape to reflect the purpose of where we live: as a space amenable to community and human needs, not of machines out of scale with their surroundings.

So on your next jaunt up Mississippi, remember, apple pie!

Morning at Beaverton Transit Center, 2007.

Suppose we had a group of adamant anti-public transportation advocates (which comprises a vocal minority here in Portland). Do we want to run the risk of potentially opening up a transport agency that works to increase ridership, to people who would wish to do away with this vital public service? Metro, of course has had its leaders elected by the public for some time, but I feel that an overall growth management agency calls for direct representation of the people. TriMet, primarily an operational agency, would seem exempt from such public extensive accountability.

I am a fan of direct democracy, however, another person to vote for by an uninformed populace seems dangerous to me. Need we dip into explaining outcomes of the tyranny of the minority? Especially with the importance of transportation and land use issues, anti-transportation advocates could take advantage of voter apathy and storm the leadership of TriMet with their anti-tax and car-crazy rhetoric.

Metro has done some great work and I feel that electing its commissioners is well within the bounds of public interest. Also, due to its regional nature, more people know about it. But what could be gleaned by electing Fred Hansen, instead of appointing him as the general manager of TriMet? Are there other operational agencies with elected leadership? Some water districts come to mind, but how effective are these? Here is a list of what I perceive to be the pros and cons:

Pros & Cons of making TriMet an Elected Public Agency:

• TriMet would be forced to be more open to public demands.
  • This could potentially be a wake up call to an agency that seems to be having problems dealing with basic issues such as broken ticket machines.
  • On the flip side, if the public was adamantly for something that TriMet officials could not sustain, such as decreasing fares for riders, the agency would be at a loss to meet public demands and face unfair consequences of being voted out of office. This would be the better scenario. It might happen that TriMet would make decisions that dovetail to political concerns rather than the best public interest.

• TriMet would be forced to be more transparent with how and it why it spends it money.
  • This is good for public accountability, but man, doesn't this town have a bit too many process-oriented folks?
  • Does anyone see the demand for light rail on the proposed Orange line to Milwaukee? Perhaps a route down SW Barbur Blvd and out to King City would have had higher initial ridership. Also, what is the real reasoning behind limiting the scope of Fareless Square? (see previous post) With only $800,000 in forecasted savings each year, is there no other way to reduce TriMet's budget to retain the benefits of this downtown amenity?  I feel TriMet is on the whole quite accountable, but there are some places where it has come up short and feel this to be Metro's and City Hall's responsibility.

No matter which way you slice it, TriMet is a public agency, and I am glad for that! I couldn't perceive a public-private partnership by contracting out our vital public services. I don't know all too much about the ins and outs of TriMet's governing structure and procedures, but I hope this post can contribute to the discussion alluded to at Portland Transport. Where ever you stand, just remember, 100 million rides!

The interesting geometry of Fareless Square, according to Wikipedia, is due to various events. In the 1990s, the Square's boundaries were changed to accommodate stops at Union Station, to increase access to the new Amtrak Cascade trains.  The extension to the east side in 2001, incorporating the Lloyd Center Shopping Mall as well as the Oregon Convention Center, worked to encourage further use of public transportation, including the use of the newly opened Red Line, with service from the Beaverton Transit Center to the Portland Airport.

In 1986, there was an effort to do away with Fareless Square, but public support for the resource enabled it to survive until today. In 2007, talks of reforming the Square, from making it fareless only during certain hours or calling for its end surfaced as crime perpetrated by the homeless and youth began to rise. The call for reform escalated with incidents of knife fights which prompted extra vigilance from the TriMet Transit Police. The Oregonian has a cool map of crimes perpetrated 2005 and 2006. As a general trend, more violent crimes tended to take place in the suburbs, and, according to Wikipedia, this hampered efforts to do away with the Portland mainstay, located in the central city.

Fareless Square, compliments of TriMet.

This year, TriMet has a new plan to reform the Square. The down economy has prompted the public agency to tighten its belt, and accordingly TriMet has proposed that busses lose their fareless distinction, restricting "free" fare to the MAX and the streetcar. Below is an email alert I received on this recent update:

When MAX Green Line begins service downtown on the Portland Transit Mall in September, riders will be able to use MAX and Portland Streetcar for nearly all trips within Fareless Square. Changing the fare-free zone to rail-only would simplify the system for riders and improve efficiency of bus service, while maintaining frequent, free transit service in the City Center. We’d like your feedback on this proposal. Learn more and share your comments

You should click the link at the end to tell them what you think. (Also, you should sign up for their updates as well.) My initial reaction upon hearing these developments of the Square are mixed. To get downtown I take either the #44 or the #12 along 6th and from there, I tend to walk to my destination. Rarely do I use Fareless Square for free bus fare as in the end I will just have to buy another ticket home, out of the square. I do however, see the convenience in the fareless concept, especially for those who wish to take a quick trip to the other end of the mall. Unfortunately, the MAX is a bit slow downtown, and bus service tends to be faster.

That being said, we've yet to see the travel times for new MAX Green lines which will travel south and north on 5th and 6th Avenues. I could foresee the new MAX service as being incredibly popular, just as the Blue and Red lines have been as an east-west rail thoroughfare. But I would still am not convinced that MAX and streetcar service combined would enable the current scope of access to downtown as the current transit mall. Given, there has never been a MAX on the transit mall, so we shall see. In light of this economy, TriMet is also considering selectively cutting and fine-tuning frequent service bus routes. So perhaps getting around downtown would not be as fast on the bus. This via another TriMet email update:

Due to the weak economy, TriMet still faces a $3.5 million budget shortfall. Instead of cutting more routes or reducing hours of operation, we propose to cover this remaining budget gap by making small reductions in bus service frequency, effective in November. These minor changes would be made during midday, in the evening and on weekends, so most commuters would not be affected. As a result, on 27 bus lines (including most Frequent Service lines) the time between buses would increase by about 2 to 4 minutes. We’d like your feedback on this proposal. Learn more and share your comments

So assuming that the new MAX Green line would be faster and more reliable for downtown travel, we can work to make buses more efficient passing through Fareless Square as they make the way on their routes outside of the downtown.

Here's a thought: perhaps we could designate free shuttle buses from one end of downtown to the other. Two shuttles could perform this task, mirroring the north-south east-west routes of the MAX lines. These shuttles would stop at few locations (ideally 2 or 3) in the immediate city center, lightening the load for buses and trains bogged down with strictly downtown travelers. For example, I could get off at the #44's first stop downtown at 4th and Hall and then take a shuttle that would then stop in Old Town and then Lloyd Center. We could limit these shuttles to rush hour travel only or keeping them going all day, budget permitting.

The goal of light rail is to get people to use it. I agree whole heartily with this statement. But does depending on fareless light rail and streetcar for downtown travel allow for the most efficient movement of people? Yes, it would free and people would most certainly use it, but would this slow down MAX service if buses no longer offered free fare? (The Blue and Red lines serve as examples of moderately slow light rail service in the city center.) As a regional rail system, it's important that we connect people with downtown together with fast and efficient transportation. I would liked to be assured that if TriMet gets rid of fareless busses that, specifically, fast and efficient transportation via MAX will not be compromised.

In the end, I'd rather ride rail than a bus. And I'm sure a lot of people would prefer the same. However, additionally I believe that the more options we offer to passengers, the more ridership we will see and with that, a more livable Portland.

The pathway would constitute a strategic cycling route 4.3 miles long and would connect cyclists and pedestrians from the Springwater Corridor at Gateway to the Eastbank Esplanade on the Willamette River. A perceived “highway for cyclists,” the pathway has the potential of increasing ridership by reducing the encounters between people, bikes and automobiles.

The construction of the pathway is proposed to occur aside the MAX tracks, where large parcels of land sit unused, collecting trash as well as graffiti on backsides of buildings. The possibilities for the space are endless. Given the development potential of the space, opportunities for showcasing local art, with murals, statues, and other works abound. What better than to show travelers from the Airport MAX what Portland is all about: bikes and beauty!

Sullivan's Gulch with Portland's Blue Line Max. Complements of Portland Underground Photography.

Currently the project is in the planning and advocacy stages, pushed by Sullivan’s Gulch as well as Irvington Neighborhoods. The neighborhoods have formed a committee to push for a preliminary feasibility and engineering study. The study would include cost estimates and design work, an important step in leveraging support for the project.

METRO, the regional government, as well as Parks and Recreation and the Department of Transportation with the City, have included the proposed trail in many of their long-term plans. The the neighborhoods’ planning committee are currently in need of letters of support for the project from those that will benefit from the trail.

With the completion of such a trail, Portland will be on its way to a healthier lifestyle accompanied with a less car-dependent society. How many more trails can we blaze? Will our political will will be the deciding factor?

For more information on this project, you can contact Dan Lerch-Walters.

Supporting Links

Sullivan's Gulch Neighborhood Association

Sullivan’s Gulch Trail

“Trail Blazers look to make history against the Nuggets…”