Obama Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood opened up a hearing last week on the authorization of new highway spending with a shout-out to our very own Columbia River Crossing project. “He said, ‘It will be paid for by tolls,’” recalls Portland Metro President David Bragdon, who was back in DC to talk to the Senate about […]
Transportation
Posted inTransportation
Riders Union Protests Fareless Square Cuts
A handful of activists from a nascent public transit riders’ union turned out to protest TriMet’s plans to nix free buses from Fareless Square and to reduce the frequency of “frequent service” bus lines at a public forum on the cuts last Monday. “It’s going to make it harder for working class people to get […]
Posted inTransportation
Governor Vetoes Bill to Toll Existing 1-5 Bridge
Things get so crazy at the action-packed end of the legislative session that some big policy decisions slip through the cracks. Like this one: On June 24th, the Governor vetoed a little two-paragraph bill that would have directed the Oregon Department of Transportation to develop a framework and rate structure to begin tolling the existing […]
Posted inTransportation
Streetcars Will Each Cost $450,000 More Than Portlanders Were Told
A cast of big name politicians including Ray LaHood unveiled the first Portland’s six new streetcars last week, praising the streetcar construction’s creation of 90 regional jobs and its impact on green transit. What wasn’t mentioned at the press conference is the cost of each streetcar. When City Council votes tomorrow on whether to put […]
Posted inMedia
MAX Stunt Collides with Cycling Community
“Should cyclists pay a road tax?” This question, printed boldly on a full MAX wraparound ad, has drawn the ire of some cyclists over the last week. Oddly enough, the question focuses on a misconception that we debunked in the bike issue. Webtrends’ attention grab. Clearly not working at all. Comments on the issue—which ranged […]
Posted inTransportation
Can Vancouver Stomach a $6 Toll?
Now that we’re rolling ahead with the $4.2 billion Columbia River Crossing bridge, here comes the hard part: actually finding $4.2 billion in the middle of the Great Recession. Back in April, the governor strong-armed Oregon legislators into keeping $30 million for the CRC in the state budget, but two funding sources for the bridge […]
Posted inPolitics
Portland’s Streetcar Born in the U.S. of Fuckin’ A!
Obama Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood came to Portland this morning. Standing next to the nation’s largest platinum LEED building at the base of the aerial tram in the shadow of the South Waterfront manufactured high density community, LaHood announced, “Portland is the transportation capital of the our country, the green capital of our country, the […]
Posted inTransportation
TriMet Unveils MAX Green Line, Confetti Cannon
Tuesday morning several hundred extra special politicians, journalists, transit nerds and TriMet staffers got a sneak peek at a transit project thirty years in the making: finally, finally, the MAX made its first trip out to the deep southeast nether regions of Lents and Clackamas. The shiny new train rolled up to the still unfinished […]
Posted inTransportation
TriMet Plans to Nix Fareless Buses
The public comment period opens today on TriMet’s plan to end free bus rides in Fareless Square. To close a $3.5 million budget gap (caused by a combination of high gas prices and plunging payroll tax income) TriMet’s plan is to keep only MAX and streetcar fareless downtown and also reduce the frequency of some […]
Posted inTransportation
Sam Adams Shows Some Backbone (and other surprising CRC news)
STOP THE PRESSES! At the Columbia River Crossing project sponsor’s council meeting this morning, Mayor Adams piped up for two good ideas. After the mayor raised environmentalist allies’ ire by proposing and approving the fattest, car-friendliest 12-lane option for the bridge back in February, his wheels turned toward the recognizable “sustainability champion” direction this morning. […]
Posted inTransportation
Committee Splits on Bridge Design
The committee overseeing the design of the new light rail, bike-ped bridge over the Willamette split today on which bridge design they should move forward. A majority of the 14-person group opted for the cable-stay bridge, which is the cheaper option, but a small group pushed to have a “minority opinion” written up in favor […]
Posted inTransportation
Architects Warn Altered Bridge Design Will Trigger “Coming Battle”
Remember this beautiful Willamette bridge design architect Miguel Rosales unveiled at city hall in April? Well now architecture blogs have sounded the alarm that lead architect Miguel Rosales will no longer be involved with the new Willamette bridge project. TriMet chose a different contractor to take over the next phase of the project, which Portland […]