(May 20, 2014)  – The City of Portland Bureau of Transportation advises the traveling public that street improvements will require lane closures on E  Burnside Street between NE 32^nd Avenue and NE Cesar E. Chavez Boulevard Tuesday, May 20, through Friday, May 23, 7 a.m. through 5 p.m. each day. 

One traffic lane will remain open at all times. Local access to residences and businesses will be provided.

The public is advised to expect delays while repairs are being made. We ask the public to travel cautiously, observe all lane closures and directions by flaggers, and use alternate routes if possible.

The lane closures are necessary to allow crews to grind and pave 1.5 lane miles.

This work is weather-dependent and the schedule may change.

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(May 15, 2014) – The Portland Aerial Tram will expand service to seven days a week through the summer, adding Sunday service from May 18 to September 14 from 1 to 5 p.m. 

In addition to serving commuters, the Portland Aerial Tram has become a popular tourist destination.  Expanding the tram schedule to include Sundays offers the public an additional chance to enjoy stellar views of the Cascade Range and the city during the clearest days of the year.

To kickoff the expanded summer service, the Portland Aerial Tram and partners invite the public to a celebration this Sunday, May 18, from 1 to 2 p.m.   The kickoff will include FREE food and beverages from South Waterfront businesses, a balloon artist for the kids and a caricature artist for everyone.  Tram T-shirts will be available for $10 and color fabric markers will be available for free to decorate T-shirts.

The public can also enjoy tours of the control and engine rooms with purchase of a $4 round-trip fare. Kids 6 and under ride for free with an adult.

Free food and beverages are being provided by Elephants Delicatessen, Lovejoy Bakers, Aquariva, Cha Cha Cha, and Greenleaf Juicers.

About the Portland Aerial Tram

The Portland Aerial Tram is owned by the City of Portland’s Bureau of Transportation and operated by Oregon Health & Science University.    It opened to the public on Jan. 27, 2007. The cabins, named Walt and Jean, travel 3,300 linear feet between the South Waterfront terminal adjacent to the OHSU Center for Health & Healing, and the upper terminal at the Kohler Pavilion on OHSU's main campus. Traveling at 22 miles per hour, the tram cabins rise 500 feet for the three-minute trip over I-5, the Lair Hill neighborhood and the Southwest Terwilliger Parkway. Visit http://gobytram.com . Find the tram on Twitter @PortlandTram  and Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/portlandaerialtram. 

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(May 14, 2014) – The City of Portland Bureau of Transportation advises the traveling public that street improvements will require a road closure on SW First Avenue between SW Morrison and SW Yamhill streets on Monday, May 19 and Tuesday, May 20, 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. each day.

A detour will be in effect to accomplish this work. Southbound traffic on SW First Avenue will be detoured onto SW Morrison Street, west to SW Third Avenue, south to SW Salmon Street, then east back to First Avenue. SW Naito Parkway is another possible alternate route.

The public is advised to expect delays in the area.  We ask the public to travel cautiously, observe all lane closures and directions by flaggers, and use alternate routes if possible.

This closure is necessary to remove and replace the surface layers of SW First Avenue to stabilize the foundation of the road and prevent potholes and other surface distresses.

Local access to residences and businesses will be provided.

This work is weather-dependent, and the schedule may change.

(May 12, 2014) -  The Portland Bureau of Transportation today announced the approval of eleven Street Seats locations for 2014, including three new installations.  For the first time, all Street Seats will be smoke-free, a change made in response to public comments received during the application process this spring.  

Now in its third year, Street Seats is a program of the Portland Bureau of Transportation that allows businesses and non-profit organizations to convert on-street parking into other public uses, such as café seating or a mini-park. Based on similar programs inSan FranciscoandNew York City, the program enlivens the streetscape by creating spaces for Portlanders to enjoy seating and a meal or drink outdoors, which in turn enhances street vitality and benefits local businesses.

Street Seats began with a pilot project in 2012 that was followed by an ongoing program in 2013.   Each business or participating organization pays a permit fee plus the replacement value of parking revenue, if the installation is in a district with parking meters.

The three new locations approved for construction are:   

SoMa Ecodistrict at SW 4^th Avenue and Hall Street, Bonfire Lounge at 2821 SE Stark Street and Lompoc Brewing at 1620 NW 23^rd   Street. Seating can be installed as early as June although the exact date will be determined by the permit holder. 

Returning locations are:

The Analog Café  at 720 SE Hawthorne Boulevard, Bartini/Urban Fondue at 2108-2118 NW Glisan Street,  Enzo's Caffe Italiano at 2529 NE Alberta Street,  Mississippi Pizza 3552 N Mississippi Avenue, Oven & Shaker 1134 NW Everett Street, The Portland Bottle Shop 7960 SE 13th Avenue and Songbird Café at 6839 SE Belmont Street.

The returning Street Seats are approved for year-round use, although Oven & Shaker and Bartini/Urban Fondue have chosen to operate their Street Seats during the warm weather months only.

In addition to the approved locations, PBOT’s review committee denied three applicants and has invited the remaining four applicants to modify their designs. All submissions were evaluated on design quality and the suitability of the location, with a priority given to any design that provided seating to the general public. In addition, each proposal had to demonstrate support from the community.

While public support for the overall program has been positive, PBOT has received and is responding to public concerns about second hand smoke and sidewalk crowding. In addition to requiring that all locations be smoke-free, PBOT also is requiring new installations to leave a minimum width of eight feet of the sidewalk clear for pedestrians.  Permit holders also are required to submit operations plans to ensure the upkeep and cleanliness of the Street Seats.  

The Street Seats designs may be found at www.portlandoregon.gov/transportation/StreetSeats.  Street Seats photos may be found at http://www.flickr.com/groups/pdxstreetseats/ 

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(May 12, 2014) – The City of Portland Bureau of Transportation advises the traveling public that street improvements will require lane closures on NE Broadway between NE 37^th Avenue to NE Cesar E. Chavez Boulevard Thursday, May 15, through Monday, May 19, 7 a.m. through 5 p.m. each day. 

The lane closures are necessary to allow crews to pave .4 lane miles.  There will be no changes to striping or traffic patterns as part of this project.

One traffic lane will remain open at all times. Local access to residences and businesses will be provided.

The public is advised to expect delays while repairs are being made. We ask the public to travel cautiously, observe all lane closures and directions by flaggers, and use alternate routes if possible.

This work is weather-dependent and the schedule may change.

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