What's Happening Now?

Construction of speed cushions on NE Sacramento Street is expected to begin next week. Speed bumps on NE Tillamook Street and NE 105th Avenue are still several weeks away.

Construction of Phase One of the project is mostly complete.This included the new roadway configuration with a turn lane, a vehicle lane in each direction, a buffered bike lane in each direction, and parking on both sides of the street. Phase One also included four new crossings with a marked crosswalk and a temporary pedestrian island.

This summer PBOT crews will continue with some touch ups including adding a crossing at NE Thompson Street (originally planned at NE Sacramento Street), building a ramp on the bridge to connect the two-way bike lane and the sidewalk, adding speed cushions on NE Sacramento Street, adjusting delineator posts, and adding bike symbols.

This fall PBOT will work with ODOT to lower the speed limit to 30 MPH, add speed bumps on NE Tillamook Street and NE 105th Avenue, and begin project evaluation including traffic data and public input.

In winter and spring of 2020, PBOT will release a final design based on the project evaluation. If the new roadway configuration is maintained, the design will be implemented in Phase Two, including a crossing at NE Beech Street, converting the crossing islands to permanent concrete islands, adding curb extensions and upgrading curb ramps, adding several upgrades to the NE Fremont Street intersection, and adding any other project enhancements that are included in the permanent design.

PBOT will actively collect public input during the project evaluation in the fall. In the meantime if you have any comment you can contact the project manager:

Christopher Sun
503-823-5391
Christopher.Sun@portlandoregon.gov

NE 102nd Ave Safety Project

The NE 102nd Ave Safety Project will be improving safety for all people walking, biking, taking transit, and driving on NE 102nd Ave between Weidler and Sandy.

This nearly two-mile corridor is on Portland’s High Crash Network, which means it is one of the top 30 streets for crashes in the city. This corridor is surrounded by homes, businesses, community centers, and schools, including Prescott Elementary School and Mt. Hood Community College.

Project goals

• Reduce crashes
• Reduce vehicle speeds
• Improve pedestrian crossings
• Improve access to transit
• Create bicycle facilities that serve all ages and abilities

 

Sign up for occasional project updates:

**On the next page, check NE 102nd Ave Safety Project, then submit** Email address:

Project Timeline:

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Community Engagement:

Summary & Findings

To learn more about the community engagement process and findings, please read the NE 102nd Ave Safety Project Community Engagement Summary

Key findings

• About two-thirds of people expressed support for the pilot project.
• About two-thirds of people indicated they are concerned about fast speeds on NE 102nd Avenue and about crossing at an unmarked intersection.
• More people expressed concern about biking on NE 102nd Avenue than not.
• Many people shared concerns about drunk driving and safety on the bridge over I-84.
  
• Many people expressed concern that the safety project would increase congestion, resulting in neighborhood cut-through, difficulty getting out of the neighborhood, and aggressive driving behaviors.

Completed open houses:

Thursday, April 12 2018     5-7 PM     Mt Hood Community College     10100 NE Prescott St

View the April Open House information boards 

Wednesday, May 16 2018    4:30-7:30 PM     Midland Library     805 SE 122nd Ave

Tuesday, June 5 2018     6-8 PM     Rosewood Initiative     16126 SE Stark St

Wednesday, January 9th 2019   5-7 PM   Crossroads Church Community Room   2505 NE 102nd Ave

View the January Open House information boards (NOTE: updated design is not reflected in this file)

Other Engagement

The project team met with Parkrose and Parkrose Heights neighborhood associations and The City of Maywood Park, and has presented at Prescott Elementary School, Parkrose High School, IRCO Africa House, and IRCO Asian Family Center. The team has also responded to many phone calls, emails, and letters from interested community members. 

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Project Background:

 

Some facts about NE 102nd Ave from Weidler to Sandy:

 

          

 

          

 

 

• About 10,000 vehicles travel in each direction daily.
• NE 102nd is a major connection route between Gateway and Parkrose.
• NE 102nd is served by transit lines 22 and 87.
• The are 3 current bikeways and 5 future bikeways that connect to this corridor.

Vision Zero: 

Vision Zero is Portland’s goal to eliminate all traffic deaths and serious injuries by 2025. In order to do this, Vision Zero has identified the streets with the highest number of road fatalities, serious injuries, and crashes with bicycles and pedestrians. These streets make up the High Crash Network. 

NE 102nd Ave from Burnside to Sandy is part of the pedestrian high crash network.

East Portland Action Plan (EPAP):

EPAP is a guide for improving livability in outer East Portland, developed in 2009. The EPAP committee is a community led effort to implement this plan.In 2012, PBOT and EPAP developed the East Portland In Motion (EPIM), which is an implementation strategy for active transportation projects and programs east of 82nd Ave. EPIM identified 102nd as high priority for walking, transit, and biking improvements.

Fixing Our Streets:

In 2016, Portland voters passed the city’s first local funding source dedicated to street improvements and safety projects across the city. The measure, in addition to a Heavy Vehicle Use Tax, will generate an estimated $74 million over four years.

Using the information we have about NE 102nd Ave, the Vision Zero designation a pedestrian high crash street, and input through EPAP and EPIM, NE 102nd Ave from Weidler to Sandy was selected to receive funding from Fixing Our Streets to do pedestrian and crossing improvements.

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Improving Safety for people crossing 102nd

Currently NE 102nd has five lanes: two vehicle lanes in each direction plus a turning lane, and space for parking on both sides of the street.

 

This configuration is difficult for crossings because:

-People crossing the street have to cross a long distance at once. Even crossings at traffic signals can be difficult, which is evident on NE 102nd where many of the crashes happen at the intersections with traffic signals.

-Currently the only crossings that PBOT considers to be safe when crossing five lane are traffic signals or pedestrian hybrid beacons. It would not be possible to install as many traffic signals or pedestrians hybrid beacons because of the way they affect traffic flow and because of cost.

 

An alternative is to change the number of lanes.

Volumes on 102nd are low enough that removing a travel lane in each direction, making it a three-lane corridor, would cause very little delay. This option also allows for buffered bike lanes to be added to the street.

 

With only three vehicle lanes, PBOT could add safe enhanced crossings with a pedestrian island and signage. Some of the specific advantages include:

-More intersections can be treated because of a lower impact on traffic flow and lower cost.

-Safer crossings at some signalized intersections where there are fewer lanes to cross.

-A traffic calming effect will lower speeds.

-Bike lanes are added to the corridor.

 

Weighing these two options, PBOT determined that the most effective way to improve safety and eliminate pedestrian crashes and traffic related deaths and injuries, is to adopt the three lane solution. 

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Project Design (Pilot Phase):

For the majority of the 1.75 mile corridor, the NE 102nd Ave Safety Project will offer a configuration with three vehicle lanes, buffered bikes lanes, and on-street parking. Customized modifications were made at key areas to address a variety of issues and opportunities, including at NE Weidler St, NE Tillamook St, the overpass over I-84 and the railroad, NE Fremont St, NE Prescott St, and NE Sandy Blvd.

Click here to see the NE 102nd Ave corridor designs with annotations explaining different changes.

Click here to see the full corridor design.

Pilot and Evaluation:

The project team has heard many concerns that the project will lead to increased congestion and diversion onto neighborhood streets. Current modelling and engineering studies suggest that is unlikely to happen except in extraordinary circumstances. To address the concerns, PBOT will install this project as a pilot in summer 2019. The pilot will allow people who live in the neighborhood to see how the new facilities function and respond to what works well and what doesn’t. It will also give PBOT an opportunity to collect data on project impacts.

Phase I of the pilot will only include changing the road striping and installing flexible plastic posts for the segments of two way protected bike lanes and to mark the pedestrian refuge islands. 

In the fall of 2019, PBOT will evaluate safety and operations on NE 102nd and neighborhood streets, and look at how effective the project is at meeting project goals. Using the data gathered during the pilot and the evaluation, PBOT will determine the final design for NE 102nd Ave and implement mitigation on neighborhood streets if necessary. If the pilot is successful, this final implementation will also include converting elements such as the pedestrian refuge islands to concrete and adding the transit extensions at NE Fremont Street. 

To learn more about the pilot evaluation strategy, please read through the NE 102nd Ave Safety Project Pilot Evaluation Guide.

Construction Date: Summer 2019

Current Project Phase: Construction/ Evaluation

Total Project Budget:  $331,000 from Fixing our Streets as well as additional funding from related projects including sidewalk infill on NE 102nd Ave from I-84 to Sandy and the Bell and Tillamook Greenway, and the Cannabis Tax.

Project Contact: 

Christopher Sun
503-823-5391
Christopher.Sun@portlandoregon.gov

Last updated: 19 August 2019