Description
I commute from Vancouver to east Portland by bicycle. Since the Vancouver Ave bridge has been out I have been unable to find a safe route to work. When the Vancouver Ave bridge was closed but still usable, this was not an issue, but now that the bridge is completely out, I am forced to try to bicycle across the Columbia Slough on MLK (HWY 99E), which is three lanes in each direction with no shoulder and no sidewalk and cars traveling at 55 mph. When I tried following the auto detour on Columbia Boulevard, I hit a storm drain that was about 2 inches lower than the roadway and almost went down right in front of the right front tire of a big rig that was passing by at that moment. How am I supposed to get to work without risking my life? I don’t have a car or even a license and the number 8 bus only goes halfway across the industrial area.
Please close a lane on MLK and use Jersey barriers to create a bicycle and pedestrian construction detour.
Thanks!
2 Comments
Brian Tang (Registered User)
Closed Brian Tang (Registered User)
The widened bike lanes on Interstate Ave and northbound on MLK are a big help. I’ve mostly been taking either Interstate or 33rd Ave since Vancouver Ave has been closed. I’ve actually come to enjoy taking Interstate, especially since the bike lanes were widened and I learned that you can take Schmeer Rd to N Whitaker Rd in the northbound direction.
It would be nice to have something to facilitate bicycle traffic on the MLK Columbia Slough bridge, though. At a very minimum, I would recommend temporary “bicycles on bridge roadway” signs.
Thanks to whoever was responsible for getting the bike lanes widened!