PORTLAND, Ore. — The City of Portland will close 100 miles of through streets to car traffic in an effort to create more space for people to walk, bike or run during the coronavirus pandemic while maintaining proper social distancing.
These closures will take place along designated neighborhood greenways and streets that have lower car traffic. These streets will remain open to local traffic.
PBOT will install temporary barricades and signage to alert drivers of the closures.
The plan also includes expanding space for pedestrians along streets that are “narrow or missing sidewalks,” and provide more room with pop-up walking and biking lanes.
In business districts, PBOT said they’ll establish space so customers can line up with enough physical distance, and create dedicated loading zones for pickup and delivery.
The city of Portland has seen a dramatic spike in speeding since the pandemic began and a major decrease in traffic congestion.
Further details about the plan can be found online. It’s unclear when the closures will begin.
“When we reach the point that we can re-open, we want to make sure our transportation system is ready,” PBOT Director Chris Warner said in a news release. “Portlanders have made great use of their neighborhood streets to walk, bike, and roll during the pandemic. We’ve designed the Slow Streets|Safe Streets initiative to make sure they can continue to do this safely as we get back closer to normal.”