Category: Safety

  • The Bigger Vehicle Wins

    One of my NW Portland neighbors took these pictures of the aftermath of an auto/powered-wheelchair collision at NW 21st and Flanders. In a post to the neighborhood listserv, he questions whether increasing the auto intensity of NW Portland (with a new parking structure) is a good idea. My question is having just re-signed NW 21st…

  • Slow Down: That Means You Too

    The folks over on the SHIFT list are working on an education event for Friday at a new safety hot spot: The bottom of the Broadway Bridge at NW 9th St. Fast-moving bikes coming down the ramp, coupled with cars that might or might not signal right turns are the ingredients for a lot of…

  • Too Fast

    Meeky passes on a link to an article in yesterday’s Wall Street Journal (unfortunately it requires a login) about states raising speed limits to as high as 80 mph. Here’s a partial sample: States around the country, including Texas and Michigan, have recently increased speed limits on hundreds of miles of interstate highways and freeways.…

  • Behavior in the “Commons”

    Miles, a regular reader and frequent commenter here, recently posted his experience feeling threatened on MAX on his own blog, documented life. This has gotten me thinking about how we as members of society interact with each other when we meet in our “commons”, the spaces that we share public ownership and use of. The…

  • Do Ghost Bikes Help or Hurt?

    At the bike summit on Saturday, there was an interesting comment in the “Why People Don’t Ride” session. Ghost Bikes scare people. The white bicycles, placed at locations where riders have been killed are (as I understand it) intended as a combination memorial and reminder to our leaders that we need to make conditions safer.…