Transportation
An Oregon Perspective on Transportation
Rex Burkholder
Bicycle Transportation Alliance
Grocery shopping, mailing a letter, getting to school, meeting friends at a restaurant. Simple tasks. Yet, after fifty years of sprawling development fueled by freeway boosterism, such simple tasks require huge expenditures of energy, time and money. For too many people the absurd has become daily reality where burning a pint of gas to buy a quart of milk is normal. Of all that we do to meet our daily needs, simply getting from here to there has become one of the biggest challenges to sustainability we face.
Automobiles account for about 45% of air pollution in the Northwest, kill more northwesterners annually than gunshot wounds or drug abuse, cost drivers about $300 a car per month, and require thousands of acres for highways and parking lots that could be used for housing, businesses or parks and wild spaces.
The great challenge of the 21st Century is to free ourselves of the necessity of driving to meet our needs. What will it take to make transportation sustainable?
The good news is that we have the tools:
- Better community design. Re-zoning to promote mixed use, compact, higher density development patterns centered on a concentration of services and transit. Sidewalks that go somewhere and are attractive. The Portland region's 2040 Vision is a great start towards re-creating the types of communities where kids can walk to school and it is considered normal and expected.
- Providing facilities on all streets for walking, cycling and transit. Street design is critical to ensure that people feel comfortable out of their cars and can get to where they are going easily and quickly. Especially in city centers, driving should be de-emphasized so that there are actually advantages to not driving.
- Personal choices. Choosing a place to live where you can walk or bike to the store, post office, park and school. Only one quarter of trips are commute-related, so living somewhere with good access will lower your dependence on the car tremendously even if you do still have to drive to work. Try riding your bike again. Add baskets so you can shop. The average speed of commuters is only 17 mph in Northwest cities while a cyclist can easily go 10 mph, plus you don't have to fight for parking.
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Next Transportation Event
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Saturday, May 17 - Sunday, May 18, 2008
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Greener Homes and Gardens Expo
Sponsored By: The ReDirect Guide
Date(s): Saturday, May 17 - Sunday, May 18, 2008
Time: 10:00 AM
- 6:00 PM
Location: Portland Expo Center
Description:
The ReDirect Guide is pleased to announce the 2008 Greener Homes & Gardens Expo. Our 6th Annual and the Portland area's longest running sustainable home & garden show. This year's show will focus on the following key themes:
Green Home Building & Remodeling
Sustainable Landscaping & Gardening
Renewable Energy & Conservation
Alternative Transportation
Combating Global Warming
Web Site:http://www.greenerhomesandgardens.com/
Contact Information:
katie Heald
503.231.4848
katieh@redirectguide.com
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View Entire Calendar of Events
Featured Case Study
 John Schubert
John is the founder of Biking for a Better Community and Transportation Options, two highly successful projects in Central Oregon to preserve clean air and community livability. John’s work promotes sustainable transportation across generations, from educational programs with school kids to employee incentives in the workplace.
Source: Sustainable Northwest
[Full Case Study]
View All Transportation Case Studies
Featured Oregon Organization |
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Eugene Bicycle Coalition
http://www.efn.org/~bicycle/
Building a bike-friendly community. The Eugene Bicycle Coalition was organized in 1995 to promote bicycling as a vital part of Eugene's transportation system.
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View All Transportation Organizations
What You Can Do
To find out what you can do we have pulled together a few resources
we think will be of some help. [Go]
Other Featured Sections:
Brownfields Redevelopment
Certification & Labeling
Food
Gardening
Home
Investing
Lifestyle
Residential Energy
Smart Consumption
Volunteer Opportunities
Waste Reduction & Recycling
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