Sarah, I think you're falling into the trap that the Trib did, and it's confusing things somewhat here. The lede is about pedestrian safety, but the chart from the Tribune is for ALL crashes -- not just those involving pedestrians. Just because 82nd and Powell has the most crashes doesn't necessarily mean it's the most dangerous for pedestrians (keep in mind there are crosswalks with ped signals at that intersection, unlike the intersection in the Trib lede). If you want some information about pedestrian-specific crashes, that information is available and would probably be more useful if you're focusing on ped safety.

@mel - hookers.

OK, I just gotta wonder in these times of limited funds how the BTA would view these statistics.

So that Bermuda Triangle of Powell/Foster/82nd isn't just my imagination!

@Mel

Roughly 100 years ago, 82nd avenue was established as a bypass of the then-fledgling city of Portland. The route carried a lot of traffic, and by the time the city of Portland had sprawled East, it was incorporated into the streetscape. The road was never intended to be a community thoroughfare (or even a "main street" type route, such as Hawthorne or Alberta or Belmont, which all originally were designed for streetcars) so the Right-Of-Way has always been remarkably wide and is treacherous for pedestrians now because of the road's width, speed limit, long blocks, and built form that discourages pedestrian movement.