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Old Posted Dec 5, 2011, 7:25 AM
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Pac NW Plannergeek Honeymoon | Portland 3/3: Transportation


Portland's reputation as a progressive city for transportation is well-earned. It may not have the mode split of bigger cities, but it is clearly doing all the right things.

Light Rail

Light rail works here, better than I’ve seen it work anywhere else. Many cities that try to use light rail as if it were commuter rail find that it is inconveniently slow, and lacking in capacity. Portland makes no such mistake. Street-running light rail is perfect for smaller places, and Portland’s scale fits it like a glove. Seattle needs its downtown subway, but smaller Portland feels complete and well-served with its slower surface trains.









Note the transit-only street.





I don't think I've seen a curved platform in any other American city. In fact, I thought it was against the rules. Guess not.



Note the name of the shop in the background.



Railcar interior, with dedicated bike area. This is a nice amenity to have, but you can only do it if your rush hour trains aren't loaded to a crush.



Neatly lit up little station.



Annnnd, both LRT and streetcar at the same intersection. Good time to switch.




Streetcar

So, because the light rail in Portland is mostly on-street (at least in the central city), the difference between light rail and streetcar is minimal. Streetcar generally shares its lane with cars, but traffic on city streets is generally quite light, so it doesn't seem to much matter.

Personally I think streetcars are worth their weight in urbanist gold. They can't replace metros in big cities that really need metros, but they can do so many things, and are affordable enough that any city can build one. Basically, a streetcar line costs about the same to build as a high school. If your city can build a high school, it can build a streetcar.

Portland's streetcars are the same as DC's will be, so I was excited to see and ride them for the first time. Seattle's streetcars are also the same model, but I didn't ride there, and the line is so much shorter and newer that it isn't nearly as much of a big deal.

















Note how the station in this next picture "bulbs out" into the parking lane. By bringing the station into the street and not making the streetcar shift over a lane to reach the curb, the streetcar moves faster because it doesn't have to shift back into the traffic lane when it's ready to get going. This arrangement is also better for pedestrians, since it means they don't have to cross as far when they want to cross the street. Cars still get one completely free lane, so they can't legitimately complain. This is the kind of well-carried-out detail that helps Portland stand apart from many other cities. Portland gets the details right.

This trick works equally well for bus stops, for the record.



A picture of a streetcar, from the inside of another streetcar. Meta.



Speaking of the inside.



The interchange in this picture cost more than the streetcar. I promise. Of course, you'd never guess that from the incredible whining the highway lobby does in regards to Portland.



Speaking of streetcar detractors, some people think these two vehicles are exactly the same except for cost. They're wrong.



At Portland State University the streetcar goes through a plaza. Everybody takes pictures of this.





The other picture everybody takes is by the go by streetcar sign. You saw it in the neighborhoods thread, but here it is again.




Intercity Rail

The go by streetcar sign is an homage to the go by train sign at Portland Union Station.



By the way, every single intercity train station I used on this trip was under renovation. All three cities. Good news for train riders of the future, but upsetting to my picture-taking hopes.



I took this train from Seattle to Portland, then from Portland to Vancouver, then back to Seattle. Probably not the same train all three times, but the same line, anyway.



Main waiting room. Click the image for a bigger version.




Buses

The buses in Portland seem pretty mundane, and there are way too many other cool things to see there to focus much on them. So I didn't.




Some of the stops are neat.





I can't say I've ever seen seats integrated onto a pole before. Interesting.



The frequent service flag is cool. Nice to differentiate. Unfortunately it's a little useless without a map. Regular riders who already know where the bus goes also already know how often it comes.




Aerial Tram

The aerial tram is definitely not mundane. New York has one, and I think that's it as far as cities in the US are concerned. Portland's goes from the Southwest Waterfront up a hill to a big hospital.
















Biking

For all its famous streetcars and aerial trams, Portland's biggest claim to progressive transportation fame may be its cycling infrastructure. Among large American cities only New York is in the same league.

Let's start at the base of the aerial tram. A *lot* of people bike here.





Cyclists in every city where streetcars are proposed flip their lid, but in Portland (just like in Amsterdam and many of Europe's best cycling cities) the two get along just fine.



The biggest danger to urban cyclists is getting hit by a car driver who isn't watching for bikes. Therefore anything you can do to make bikes more visible to car drivers is a good thing. Thus, painting bike lanes green is a great idea. You can save money and headache by only painting near intersections.






Interesting two-way bike lane.



This is called a bike box. It's very dangerous and difficult for bikers to turn left from a bike lane on the right side of a street. Bike boxes provide a safe place for bikers who want to turn left to queue at red lights.



When you put your bike lane between the curb and a row of parked cars rather than between the parking lane and moving traffic it is called a cycle track. This is much safer than a normal bike lane, but it takes up a little more street space.



OK, so get this. Here's a cycle track, painted green, with a bike box at the intersection. This might be the best on-street bike intersection in the country.



Covered bike parking. Costs more, but people like it.



Nice bike wayfinding system.



More little things done right: Public stairway with grooves along the side for bikes.




We stopped at the Museum of Contemporary Craft in the Pearl because Wife is a big crafter. We were surprised to find there a special exhibit about utility bike design. Basically, as more and more people ride bikes around cities as a form of transportation, the cycling business is transitioning away from the racing/exercise market and towards a more everyday-people-doing-their-thing market. And, as a result, the design of bicycles in changing. It's becoming less important for every bike to be made of some super lightweight carbon nanofiber, and it's becoming more important for bike riders to be able to do functional things like carry a box, and not get their clothes dirty.

Thus the
Utility Bike Design Challenge, in which several teams of independent bike designers set out to build the perfect urban utility bike.













Finish line.




The end. Vancouver is next.
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Last edited by Cirrus; Feb 20, 2012 at 4:49 AM.
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Old Posted Dec 5, 2011, 9:46 AM
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good showing, and very educational.

can't wait to get back to Portland myself.
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Old Posted Dec 5, 2011, 12:21 PM
J. Will J. Will is offline
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Quote:
Note how the station in this next picture "bulbs out" into the parking lane. By bringing the station into the street and not making the streetcar shift over a lane to reach the curb, the streetcar moves faster because it doesn't have to shift back into the traffic lane when it's ready to get going. This arrangement is also better for pedestrians, since it means they don't have to cross as far when they want to cross the street. Cars still get one completely free lane, so they can't legitimately complain. This is the kind of well-carried-out detail that helps Portland stand apart from many other cities. Portland gets the details right.
I don't think I've ever seen or heard of a streetcar system anywhere in the world where streetcars shift a lane towards the curb at a stop, and then shift back a lane into traffic. I doubt such a streetcar line even exists anywhere.
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Old Posted Dec 5, 2011, 2:09 PM
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You could be right, although there definitely are plenty that just run right up against the curb their whole length. Regardless, I wanted to use that picture to point out the reasons and benefits. If the last sentence upsets you then pretend it isn't there.
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Old Posted Dec 5, 2011, 2:37 PM
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Good stuff!
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Old Posted Dec 5, 2011, 5:56 PM
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Awesome post as always. And awesome city.

I believe Portland is running up against light rail capacity problems though. I can look for a link later or maybe someone from Portland can say.
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Old Posted Dec 5, 2011, 6:25 PM
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i didn't expect to learn so much! hurry up and get to vancouver
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Old Posted Dec 5, 2011, 8:39 PM
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Thanks for your threads Cirrus! I did not actually realize how ignorant I was of all the great things Seattle and Portland are accomplishing until now. I eagerly await your perspective of Vancouver.
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Old Posted Dec 5, 2011, 10:29 PM
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Originally Posted by Cirrus View Post
You could be right, although there definitely are plenty that just run right up against the curb their whole length. Regardless, I wanted to use that picture to point out the reasons and benefits. If the last sentence upsets you then pretend it isn't there.


LOL. No, it doesn't "upset" me. I just find it funny that you're giving credit to Portland for not having it's streetcar shift lanes around stops when no streetcar system anywhere in the world shifts lanes around stops. I don't even see how that would be possible. How would the streetcar avoid colliding with cars in the other lane if it were forced to switch lanes? There would be multiple streetcar-car collisions per day, especially in heavy traffic. As for the bulb-outs, is that really better than running against the curb (I'm only talking for streetcars, not buses)? Bulb outs are where the sidewalk cuts into a parking lane. That means cars have to traverse the streetcar lane to get in and out of the parking lane, which can lead to collisions or cars impeding streetcars in heavy traffic if the driver has to wait for a clearing to get out of the parking lane. The only real benefit to bulb outs is that the lane will be a parking lane 24/7, and cannot be turned into a general traffic lane during peak hours as regular parking lanes usually are.
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Old Posted Dec 6, 2011, 1:37 AM
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Awesome thread, or awesomest thread? The forum is lucky to have you, Cirrus.

Portland's transit and bike infrastructure is bending the curve up there--it was a typically autocentric US city (without a local rail system) as recently as the 1970s. Now look at it.
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Old Posted Dec 6, 2011, 2:30 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by fflint View Post
Portland's transit and bike infrastructure is bending the curve up there--it was a typically autocentric US city (without a local rail system) as recently as the 1970s. Now look at it.


no doubt. portland got a huge jump on reclaiming its city center beginning with the removal of the above, harbor drive, in 1974. the waterfront park that replaced it (named for governor tom mccall, a republican who understood city planning and environmental concerns, to such a point that he produced a documentary on pollution in the willamette river in 1958) is now the centerpiece of portland's urban core, hosting the rose festival, cinco de mayo, brewers festival and so forth.

mhays, i'm not sure specifically what you're referring to. (not saying you're wrong, i just don't know.) the max system is expanding, though. they're building a transit-pedestrian-bike bridge as we speak over the willamette, which to my knowledge is the first transit-only (i.e. non-car) bridge built in the US in the 21st century. when it opens in 2015, it will serve the new orange line, which is being developed to milwaukie, a southern suburb.

speaking of which, cirrus, did you know about this? i saw a pic of it either in one of your other threads or on your flickr, but didn't catch explicit mention of it. EDIT: you can see the construction beginning on the river on the left side of this pic:




the success of the bike network is, at least for me personally, immeasurable. the wayfinding, as you mentioned, is very thorough and all over the city and even suburbs. it irks me when i see people riding on major vehicular thoroughfares because the bike system covers the entire system and rare is the need to jeopardize your own safety or mess up traffic on a main street that usually also has buses.

which reminds me: one other planning & mapping item that's impressed me since i moved here two years ago is the way the arterial streets are laid out. non-arterial streets are, intentionally, difficult for thru-traffic to navigate, many of them dead ending or resulting in a T where you must turn. the side streets which do go through are more often than not the designated bikeway, most of which come with speed bumps and obvious paint markings giving favor to bikes.
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Last edited by giovanni sasso; Dec 6, 2011 at 2:47 AM. Reason: clicked "submit" before finishing post
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Old Posted Dec 6, 2011, 3:19 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by J. Will View Post
As for the bulb-outs, is that really better than running against the curb (I'm only talking for streetcars, not buses)? Bulb outs are where the sidewalk cuts into a parking lane. That means cars have to traverse the streetcar lane to get in and out of the parking lane, which can lead to collisions or cars impeding streetcars in heavy traffic if the driver has to wait for a clearing to get out of the parking lane. The only real benefit to bulb outs is that the lane will be a parking lane 24/7, and cannot be turned into a general traffic lane during peak hours as regular parking lanes usually are.

The streetcars are only running like every 10 mins (just guessing here, but close), in a shared lane with car traffic. I don't think there is really a problem with parked cars getting in/out of their spaces because of the streetcar, any more than heavy car traffic would cause difficulty. In downtown Portland, at least, there are no parking lanes that are converted into traffic lanes during rush hour. I think the 'bulb outs' work just fine -- I'd rather that than running against the curb since in Portland's case, anyway, the streetcar runs along streets with parking that would have to be wiped out.
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Old Posted Dec 6, 2011, 3:46 AM
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Awesome.
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Old Posted Dec 6, 2011, 5:01 AM
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This was very extensive and detailed thanks for posted I really enjoyed your pictures, and all your other Portland / Seattle posts.


Quote:
Originally Posted by Cirrus View Post
Light rail works here, better than I’ve seen it work anywhere else. Many cities that try to use light rail as if it were commuter rail find that it is inconveniently slow, and lacking in capacity. Portland makes no such mistake. Street-running light rail is perfect for smaller places, and Portland’s scale fits it like a glove. Seattle needs its downtown subway, but smaller Portland feels complete and well-served with its slower surface trains.
I disagree. When using the system it slows down too much once it leaves the alignment next to I-84 in Lloyd Center until it finally goes into the tunnel to Beaverton. The steel bridge also limits capacity and speed. I think they really need to plan a head and start thinking about a tunnel from Lloyd Center under the Willamette and have it connect to the tunnel through the west hills. It would have less frequent stops and could cut travel time significantly.
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Old Posted Dec 6, 2011, 3:58 PM
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Love it
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Old Posted Dec 6, 2011, 5:30 PM
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Giovanni: No, I didn't know about the bridge. Thanks for pointing it out.

J Will: The particular issue of bulb outs isn't the only reason I say that Portland does small things well. It's just one of many examples, and I happened to think of that comment while posting that picture. If you object to it, the point still stands in regards to other things. That being said, here is an example of a less ideal situation, from Toronto. People hoping to use the streetcar must cross a lane of either parked cars or moving traffic in order to get from the station to the stopped tram. I'm not very familiar with Toronto so I have no idea if this is typical or not; it's just the first streetcar stop I found on Google Street View.

Cityscapes: You could be right about light rail in the outer neighborhoods. I don't know. I didn't ride it down where you describe. But it sure does function well as a central city circulator.
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Old Posted Dec 6, 2011, 9:06 PM
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yeah, pretty cool that you saw it even if you didn't see it.



trimet's web site is, as you'd probably expect, pretty thorough in its detailing, but honestly i've been just as impressed with the facebook updates and twitter feed of the progress. plus it's a really good looking cable-stay bridge, the only one of its kind downtown, tucked in between the ugly double-decker i-5 bridge and the ok-looking cantilever truss (but arch looking) ross island bridge. the bike access to the new bridge will be a huge boon to people in the southeast and southwest.

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Old Posted Dec 6, 2011, 9:11 PM
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I agree. Good for transit, and phenomenal for bikes, where a modest reduction in distance and simplified route can have a major effect.
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Old Posted Dec 7, 2011, 2:09 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Cirrus View Post
Giovanni: No, I didn't know about the bridge. Thanks for pointing it out.

J Will: The particular issue of bulb outs isn't the only reason I say that Portland does small things well. It's just one of many examples, and I happened to think of that comment while posting that picture. If you object to it, the point still stands in regards to other things. That being said, here is an example of a less ideal situation, from Toronto. People hoping to use the streetcar must cross a lane of either parked cars or moving traffic in order to get from the station to the stopped tram. I'm not very familiar with Toronto so I have no idea if this is typical or not; it's just the first streetcar stop I found on Google Street View.

Cityscapes: You could be right about light rail in the outer neighborhoods. I don't know. I didn't ride it down where you describe. But it sure does function well as a central city circulator.
No, people hoping to use the streetcar in Toronto never cross a lane of moving traffic in order to get from the station to the stopped tram, as cars are not allowed to be moving to the right of the streetcar when it is stopped (much like a school bus), unless there is an island for people to wait on, like you find along Queen or College at Spadina. The advantage of the picture you posted above is that cars cannot pass the streetcar when it is stopped as it is in the left-most lane. That means if the streetcar is stopped in heavy traffic for say 40 seconds for passengers to board/disboard, there will usually be a clearing of at least a few hundred feet when the streetcar starts moving again. If cars are allowed to pass the streetcar while it's stopped, the congestion ahead of it can be just as heavy when it starts moving again as it was the streetcar initially stopped.

It was more the issue of the streetcar not switching lanes though that I found more strange. Forget whether or not that is actually done anywhere, how would it even be done in theory? What if the other lane was filled with cars? Would it wait there every time it needs to change lanes for a clearing in traffic? A bus can change lanes anywhere. A streetcar cannot.
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Old Posted Dec 7, 2011, 3:23 AM
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That's insane. You leave pedestrians crossing a lane of traffic to board a streetcar on the hope that drivers follow the law and don't pass the streetcar (thus plowing through unprotected people)? Only in Canada. (And maybe ever-dutiful Minnesota.) Thanks, but I'll take the bulb-out curb. Even a center platform. Some physical protection...

How are wheelchairs accommodated in Toronto? Drop a boarding plate, I assume, and let folks roll on up? I'm asking genuinely, I've never seen it, so I'm curious.
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