[Volunteers from
Elders in Action]

Last week, citizen activists joined city employees and representatives from non-profit group Elders in Action to bring attention to a dangerous intersection in Northwest Portland.

According to PDOT traffic safety experts, the NW 9th and Lovejoy intersection (at the bottom of the Broadway Bridge ramp) has had more than it’s fair share of close-calls, crash reports, and complaints. There is a senior home on one corner and there has even been a bike-on-pedestrian hit-and-run crash.

This education action came about as a way to come together as a community to raise awareness of these issues.

We set up at around 7:30AM and took to the sidewalk with a bunch of signs. Several members of the media showed up, including reporters from KPAM and KXL.

Several residents of the Station Place Tower senior condos came down to talk. One of them was Don Gale. After noticing a story about the event in Oregonian (the Metro section gave it a full column), he staked out the intersection from about 6:30-7:00am. He said in that time he counted 11 bikes that ran red lights and 6 that ran yellows.

And surprisingly, despite our bright signs and presence on the corner, a few dangerous situations still managed to unfold.

[Apparently this white Volvo didn’t notice the signs.]

Also present at the event was Phil Staley, the man who was hit by a cyclist while walking in the crosswalk. It was fantastic to see Phil engaging us and talking about solutions, instead of retreating to anger about his experience. I was especially pleased to see him and PDOT traffic safety point man Greg Raisman having a constructive dialogue about the issues.

[Cooperation in
action.]

Many people honked their horns and waved in approval, but of course there were some folks that couldn’t resist the chance to get upset. I really have trouble understanding why some motorists are just so angry. A few of them hastily rolled down their windows and said things like,

“Well, if you guys would start following the rules, then…then maybe…”

Or,

“Maybe if you would actually follow what it says on your signs I’d listen to you!”

So much anger. I would just smile and say something like,

“Thanks, we’re doing our best to spread the word and educate everyone. We all have to share a responsibility to be safe.”

It tried to not comments like that get me down. When I started to feel exasperated at how to communicate with people like this, Greg Raisman pointed out that the vast majority of passersby were very friendly and supportive. He was right.

In the end, I think this was a successful event. It garnered a good amount of publicity and it activated groups of the community that don’t usually come together.

There is some talk about doing these on a regular basis at other locations (such as the path on the Esplanade) and even in Beaverton. Stay tuned for more information.

[Don’t miss the rest of the photos.]