Author: Chris Smith

  • Portland Traffic and Transportation Class Fall Term, 2005

    My own transportation advocacy was greatly enhanced when I took the PDOT/PSU traffic and transportation class almost 10 years ago. Offered every spring and fall, I would recommend this course to anyone interested in improving transportation in their neighborhood, city or region. Here’s the info on the fall class… Neighborhood traffic, alternative transportation and how…

  • Bookshelf: Urban Cycling

    We have two similar but very different books on the topic of urban cycling! Urban Bikers’ Tricks and Tips Link to book at Amazon.com Link to book at Powell’s Link to book at Multnomah County Library List Price: This book is the ultimate practical guide. All kinds of situations that a cyclist may run into…

  • Unravelling Transit in Clark County?

    I got a TriMet alert last week reminding me that TriMet Passport (employer-based passes) would no longer be accepted on C-TRAN premimum express routes as of September 1. This sent me to the C-TRAN site to see what how else the TriMet/C-TRAN integration might be affected, and I found this page about C-TRAN’s “Service Preservation…

  • Crosswalks: A Matter of Culture?

    Or, what I did on my vacation. As a neighborhood activist, I have frequently heard the question, “why don’t we stripe more crosswalks?” The stock-in-trade answer of the traffic engineers in Portland is that drivers are not sufficiently aware of crosswalks and they give pedestrians a false sense of security. This has always struck me…

  • My Trip: Proof Positive that Bridgeport Village is a Hermetically Sealed Environment

    Last week my usual commute to Wilsonville took a detour. Since I had a mid-morning meeting in downtown Portland, I couldn’t catch the 96 as I usually do. Since I also wanted to visit the Container Store (I’m an organization freak), I put my bike on the #12 and got off at Highway 99 and…