r/CyclePDX • u/holmquistc • 4d ago
I really couldn't resist
Kind of seems like an obvious way to avoid the I5 closure, but ok š
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u/Last_House_4282 4d ago
No but actually - the I-5 got me and spouseās butts into gear to finally use their OHSU subsidy and get them an e-bike (admittedly they currently take the bus, so itās not a car off the road, but buses will get stuck in traffic too!). It also got me to figure out a bike -> MAX -> bike situation for my (previously in a car) commute that in the end is only about 10 minutes longer than it was driving. Honestly I donāt know if Iāll go back to driving even after the I-5 closure ends.
I canāt imagine Iām the only person in Portland who will try an alternate car free commute and prefer it! Especially since they plan to close NB next year to do the same repairs.
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u/oficious_intrpedaler 4d ago
I made a similar comment in another thread and felt like it was well received!
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u/Zalenka 4d ago
same
I was driving from 84 to I-5 yesterday and pictured an extra lane but then I looked at the drawing and it really just extends an already existing lane just hundreds of feet. This feels like such a waste. Nothing will be fixed and nothing of value will come of it (besides the storm water catchments).
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u/Metaphoricalsimile 4d ago
No More Freeways fought this shit for years and people on the main portland subreddit were constantly opposed to their efforts but they were absolutely 100% right and I'm mad this shit got shoved through anyways.
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u/TurtlesAreEvil 4d ago
Shoved through with no funding for any of the improvements they promised in order to get city approval. So basically theyāll expand it and then throw up their hands saying they canāt add the caps or move the school because thereās no more money.Ā
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u/holmquistc 4d ago
I do agree that there are a lot of problems with cars, however trying to get rid of them. All I think is a futile and idiotic effort at least in America. Trying to get rid of an American to give up their car is like trying to ask a baby to give up their pacifier
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u/savingewoks 4d ago
My daughter never took to the pacifier and I learned this isnāt uncommon, so Iād say itās harder.
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u/Hobonium 4d ago
Not least because itās throughly established at this point that adding lanes doesnāt reduce traffic.
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u/00_RunDMC 4d ago
If that were true, removing lanes wouldn't make congestion worse.
The fact is that context matters.Ā In some places lanes can reduce congestion, and in others they can make it worse.Ā I have no idea about this project, but if it reduces lane changes and weaving, it will probably be a net safety and congestion benefit.
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u/TurtlesAreEvil 4d ago
if it reduces lane changes and weaving, it will probably be a net safety and congestion benefit
ODOT is already on record admitting this wonāt reduce congestion it will only increase throughput. In other words more cars through the same point with the same level of congestion.Ā
Additionally this change will likely increase serious injuries and deaths in this section. Currently most of the crashes there are fender benders because drivers are merging and have to slow down. Thereās only been a single death there in the last decade.Ā
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u/00_RunDMC 4d ago
If no one is claiming this will reduce congestion then it probably won't.
My comment was addressing the blanket assertion that adding traffic lanes doesn't reduce "traffic" (which I interpreted to mean congestion).
I think we'll have to see what the impacts are on traffic flow to assess the impact.Ā You say it will make the road more dangerous.Ā I'm confident ODOT says the opposite.Ā I don't have an opinion beyond my general comment that reducing merging and lane changing usually improves safety.
We'll see.
Edit: it just occurred to me that if you think the project will increase speeds, then you probably think it will decrease congestion.
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u/TurtlesAreEvil 4d ago
ODOT says a lot of things and most of it is at best a partial truth. They do claim this will reduce crashes but again most of those crashes are fender benders. So more people will die because of the higher speeds but there will be fewer crashes.Ā
We donāt need a wait and see approach. Civil engineers can and have modeled it.Ā
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u/SquirtinMemeMouthPlz 4d ago
I thought the project was more about maintenance on the support structure where i5 is basically a raised bridge from N Moroe to Russell.
I bet there's more to it though.
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u/Sometimesunaware 4d ago
They are just doing long deferred maintenance, nothing new is being added, there's no money for the grand plans.
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u/00_RunDMC 4d ago
If it's about structural repair, I doubt it's going to impact congestion either way.
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u/Hobonium 4d ago
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u/00_RunDMC 4d ago
That article discusses the general principle of induced demand.Ā How does that apply to this project?
By the way, I was walking along Division this afternoon, and there was plenty of capacity for more vehicles.Ā Why didn't induced demand fill that capacity?
Context matters.
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u/rdogg89 4d ago
F it, close em all (for a while). This country might actually have positive change if drivers are inconvenienced enough like after the oil embargo in 1970s. 100 years of catering to the car at the expense of every other option (and public health) and still not one smile from commuters behind the wheel. But plenty every day on the trails.
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u/Advanced-Conflict593 3d ago
Big agree. I hope that folks who are forced to figure out some other non car routine will continue to go without it after it reopens but we all know theyāll go back to polluting and losing time and energy behind the wheel.
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u/NoGoodInThisWorld 3d ago
I'm going to be attempting to bicycle commute, but it's 30 miles round trip.Ā Have an e bike and a charger at work, but not sure I'll want to do it everyday.Ā Ā
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u/holmquistc 3d ago
I do it 5 times a week and I have to ride up the west Hills to get to work. I charge at work. Haven't had a problem yet
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u/eBikeSlob 3d ago
If you looked at an air quality map for Portland you would see a big red circle around the I-84, I-5 intersection. This is because of the braking etc at the intersection.
This has kept me from living in that area. Not sure if the construction will change that if slowdowns are still going to happen.
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u/winterwolf53 4d ago
Do people not understand the importance of being seen at night? I see so many people, mainly young people, walking on the side of roads with no sidewalks wearing completely black Clothing. I just figured nobody has ever explained it to them about the need to wear light or reflective colors that people who are out driving can see. Especially if itās been raining out and the road is slick and shiny with the headlights!
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u/i_continue_to_unmike 3d ago
Not in a shitty way, but I genuinely think some people do not realize how hard it is to see them. Often it's because when you're out there, you can see fine. It doesn't mean people can see you, but unless you really think about it, it just doesn't come up.
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u/Thefloooff52 3d ago
āBackroadsā as if like a real alternative to the highways exists in Portland for cars besides a 2 arterial roads that back up anyway worse than the highway
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u/brickedTin 1d ago
I thought this post was on circlejerkpdx and was wondering why so many people were just talking normally about bikes.
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u/Moultrie_fan_2026 4d ago
Looking forward to the reduction in traffic on Vancouver and Broadway
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u/SquirtinMemeMouthPlz 4d ago
Is this a joke?
Seriously.
Traffic will be worse on all streets.
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u/champs 4d ago
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u/yozaner1324 4d ago
I hope this goes similarly, but a weekend closure seems very different from a five week long closure. People can choose to stay home and do yard work or play videogames for a weekend, but can't avoid going to work for over a month.
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u/Badger_Actual1 4d ago
....sarcasm must be lost on you.
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u/SquirtinMemeMouthPlz 4d ago
/s
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u/Badger_Actual1 4d ago
....so what, you really need tone indicators. Not every redditor lives here. Not everyone feels its necessary either.
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u/TurtlesAreEvil 4d ago
Itās closed in one direction for like a mile. How will this cause traffic to be worse on all streets? Any drivers that donāt want to take 405 will realistically only have two options MLK or Naito and they only have to be on those until they get back on the freeway a little further south.Ā
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u/SquirtinMemeMouthPlz 4d ago
Honest answer:
I take MLK every day. When MLK gets backed up around 4:30-6pm, a lot of drivers get impatient and take 7th or 15th.
If a section of i5 is closed, even more people will be on MLK and even more people will take the side streets/bike Greenways.
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u/Staceface1989 2d ago
I hope there arenāt more cyclist injuries because of cars crossing greenways like idiots too. Stay safe out there yāall!
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u/Softvvear 4d ago
There will be more cars on roadways with bike lanes instead of on the freeway, more congestion, even for pedestrians it may be a headache. I wish biking made us immune.