Editors Note: This article has been modified to express the point of view of the North Portland biking community.
The Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) announced on Oct. 30 that it will be re-striping the stretch of North Willamette Boulevard. from North Rosa Parks Boulevard to North Woolsey Avenue. PBOT is already re-paving that part of the street and will re-stripe it in the process, creating a shoulder area on the south side and also adding a buffer area to the bike lanes on both sides of the street. The changes will result in the loss of on-street parking on North Willamette from North Rosa Parks Boulevard to North Woolsey Avenue and are slated to begin after Nov. 10.
While there are not current plans in the works for adding a shoulder area along the section of Willamette where the University of Portland is located, PBOT spokesperson Dylan Rivera said that, "PBOT does have an interest in working with stakeholders in improving conditions on Willamette past Woolsey, connecting to the University of Portland."
Rivera said that in response to the paving work already happening on Willamette Boulevard, a group called Friends of Willamette Boulevard petitioned the City to add two buffered bike lanes and a shoulder area on the south side of the street in the process.
Friends of Willamette Boulevard also sent a letter to the city commissioner detailing the dangers of biking and walking on Willamette.
"People walking on the south side of N Willamette are forced to pick their way along a make shift deer trail with a steep ravine to one side," they said. "People bicycling do so next to speeding traffic in narrow bike lanes. As such a vital connection for active transportation, N Willamette must be improved for the city to meet is transportation, livability, and climate goals."
Rivera said that PBOT often seeks to improve the traffic operations of a given street when repaving it and that these changes typically come at little or no cost to the City. He also cited safety improvements as a reason the City is re-striping the street.
According to a PBOT safety query report, there have been six bike crashes on this stretch from 2009 to 2012. No one was killed.
“This project will make it safer and more comfortable for everyone to bike, walk or take public transit on a crucial corridor in North Portland,” Rivera said in an email to The Beacon.
Some residents though are frustrated about the loss of parking space. Julee Ryan, an office assistant in the School of Education, has lived in the Arbor Lodge section of Willamette Boulevard for 27 years. She said that the loss of parking space in front of her home will force her and her neighbors to park on adjacent streets. She also said that PBOT didn’t inform residents on those streets of the changes that will likely result in more cars being parked in front of their homes before the letter was sent.
The area taken up by the newly paved bike lane will still be a loading zone. And while Rivera said that drivers should always yield to bikers and pedestrians, Ryan said cyclists going around parked cars and into traffic poses safety concerns.
“I thought it was fine the way it was,” Ryan said. “In reality, I don’t think it’s going to make anybody safer. It’s just going to remove parking.”
Mike Salvo, who has been a resident of the University Park neighborhood since 1942, lives on Yale Street and will not lose parking space in front of his house. However, he said, the changes will affect anybody who drives on Willamette Boulevard and in his opinion will not result in a safety improvement. He said that he received an email from the City notifying him about the project due to his role as chair of the University Park Neighborhood Association. Speaking as an individual, he expressed frustration with what he perceived as the City not being diligent enough in alerting all who would be affected about the changes.
“My concern is that the City didn’t do a good job in reaching out with a change that is going to impact every driver on Willamette Boulevard,” Salvo said.
A petition has been started to stop the changes, but Ryan said that she thinks it may too late to be effective as the changes should start on Nov. 10, this Friday.
Rivera said that studies conducted by PBOT show that parking utilization on N Willamette in this section is very low.
"The parking spaces there are almost always vacant," Rivera said. "There is ample available parking space on side streets. Most properties in the project area have parking available in private driveways and/or are on corner lots."
Rivera said that parking in a bike lane can result in an $85 fine, but residents will typically get warnings in the first few weeks of the change being implemented.
