Life in the streets. Documenting the culture of intersections.
Street narratives, public service announcements, ideologies, and other stories from the asphalt.
Do you feel strongly about an intersection? Please share your street story!
Snap some photos or a quick video with your digital camera. Record an audio file, write a haiku, paint a picture.
Audio
[Flash 9 is required to listen to audio.]“Enough with the damn bikes, you know the safety on these streets.. my god”
Portland area driver states her displeasure with focus on bicycle development.
“They’re using all our resources, we’re spending all our money on them”
Actually, the Portland Bureau of Transportation has only spent 0.7% of it’s capital improvement budget since 2000 on bicycle-related projects.
The entire cost of Portland’s bicycle system is 60 million dollars. Wonder what that equates to for car-centric development? About 1 mile of freeway.
Still, it is good to hear from drivers. Because we’re in the middle of a revolution, a sea change of how we get around, there is bound to be plenty of opposition. How can we reconcile the perception vs reality here? For instance gas-tax revenue, which funds most of PBOT’s budget, cannot be used to build bike facilities. 90% of Portland cyclists own cars, and we’re not spending ENOUGH money on bike infrastructure.
via Hard Drive Blog - Only in Portland: Protests of ‘motorist discrimination’
Text
Pedestrian killed during hit and run in Portland
PORTLAND, Ore. -
The Major Crash Team responded to the scene and the victim, a 39-year-old male, was taken to the hospital. Police said he later died from his injuries.
Investigators said it appears the victim was intoxicated at the time he was hit and was not in a crosswalk. The driver of the car was contacted by police and they say he claims he did not know he had hit someone.
No charges have been filed in the case, according to a police press release. However, the investigation is continuing.
Can you catch where this article is casting the blame?
Video
BridgePedal, an annual tradition in Portland, closes many highways and other roads to allow bicyclists to enjoy these resources otherwise restricted to only automobiles. Imagine if all road users had such access to these very expensive assets, that provide public space, amazing views, and great routing for cyclists and pedestrians.
Link
Idaho Stop makes cyclists 14.5% Safer →
That number isn’t enormous, but every percantage point counts when it’s the difference between life or death.
Stop signs attempt to control and diffuse our intersections. Idaho Stop law gives precedence to bicycle traffic by turning stop signs into yield signs. In Portland, 2-way stops are favored. I find that it maintains the menacing potential of oncoming cross traffic. I prefer the 4-way stops prevalent in Philadelphia and New York City.
Video
I love how green Portland is, and I’d probably be the last person to ask someone to move their plants. However, they do occasionally pose a problem for visibility at intersections. How can this section be repaired while respecting the plants?
Or better yet, we could welcome even more plants, which could slow traffic and make an otherwise double-yellow striped intersection more blissful. But how?
Photo
Share-it Square - a project of City Repair. Imagine every intersection as a communal space. There are a few of these intersection repairs in Portland. Cars almost always slow down to view the ornate mural and naturaly-built structures around this intersection in the Sellwood neighborhood.
Intersection 911 is a project of BOZZmedia
