Advocates with native nonprofit BikeLoud PDX say metropolis visitors engineers repeatedly shared issues about eradicating visitors diverters in northwest Portland with different metropolis officers, however a call to take away them nonetheless moved ahead.
The group launched paperwork at present acquired by way of a public data (see under) request that present exchanges between transportation bureau workers and Public Setting Administration Workplace (PEMO) workers. “These communications present the hidden course of metropolis leaders used to attempt to take away these diverters in opposition to the steerage of PBOT’s lead visitors engineer,” BikeLoud asserts. Beneath is extra from an announcement in regards to the data simply launched by BikeLoud:
“A collection of inside memos from the town visitors engineering and operations groups put it plainly.
Jan. 13: “We can’t take away these planters — they’re addressing bike crashes that had been occurring at this location.”
Jan. 29: “I’ve revisited this location with the Site visitors Engineer and this diverter can’t be eliminated for security motive.”
June 18: “The diverters are in place for good motive.”
These messages complicate the claims in Metropolis Supervisor Michael Jordan’s Aug. eleventh letter on the topic. His letter mentioned that PBOT “finally beneficial” eradicating the diverters. However the one public document of this determination is from June twenty fifth, which says, “It has been decided that the diverters shall be eliminated. ETA TBD.” Determined by who? And the way did they arrive to that conclusion?”
In an announcement about these revelations, BikeLoud Chair Eva Frazier and Vice-Chair Kiel Johnson mentioned,
“We perceive the rationale of PEMO [Public Environment Management Office, the city office that spearheaded the removal plans] to work rapidly to deal with group issues and permit small changes to occur. However as individuals who depend on a protected bicycle community, it’s irritating to really feel as soon as once more let down by our metropolis’s management… After reviewing the Metropolis’s communications, we’re involved about our present management’s capacity to execute council-approved coverage with transparency and integrity.”
This new data from BikeLoud is vital as a result of PEMO made it look like PBOT was supportive of the diverter elimination plan.
It’s been practically three weeks since Mayor Keith Wilson introduced a pause within the Metropolis Administrator’s plan to take away two units of diverters in Northwest Portland that create one-way visitors for drivers. When the plan was first uncovered on August 1st, the group rapidly rallied in help of the visitors calming units attributable to their significance in creating safer neighborhood greenways and the truth that they had been each put in as suggestions of a multi-year planning course of.
The Portland Police Bureau and Metropolis Administrator’s workplace say NW twentieth (at Everett) and NW Johnson (at fifteenth) should be returned to two-way auto visitors in order that cops can extra successfully combat crime. However regardless of Central Precinct Commander Brian Hughes and Metropolis Administrator Mike Jordan issuing memos to put out their arguments, Mayor Wilson has apparently stopped them from transferring ahead with the plans.
The Metropolis of Portland’s bicycle and pedestrian advisory committees have each issued statements opposing the diverter elimination plan. The Pedestrian Advisory Committee letter acknowledged, “We’re troubled by the shortage of transparency and engagement obvious within the course of to reach at a proposal eradicating this infrastructure,” and requested any motion of diverters be delivered to their committee beforehand. And the Bicycle Advisory Committee penned a metropolis council decision stating their opposition to eradicating the diverters and mentioned any plan to take action should undergo a clear, data-driven course of.
At an August twentieth assembly of the PEMO “Downside Solvers” community, PEMO Director Anne Hill tried to dismiss issues in regards to the diverters. When a number of involved Portlanders confirmed as much as discuss in regards to the concern, she mentioned the assembly was not the proper venue to debate it. “If people wish to have an enormous dialogue about bikes and the way we patrol… You possibly can have that assembly. That’s not what this assembly is.”
Hill went on to say, “I perceive there’s lots of misinformation. I perceive that diverters turned the identify of what that was… it wasn’t diverters.”
I requested Director Hill through chat in that assembly to make clear why she didn’t assume the assembly was the proper venue to specific issues in regards to the diverters (since these conferences are the place the diverters had been initially mentioned) and if she may increase on the “misinformation” allegation; however neither she nor anybody on her workers have bothered to answer.
