Detail from PBOT’s new gravel clean up map. View it here.
Gravel in bike lanes has been a thorn in the side of Portland cyclists for many years. I realized today that as far back as 2007 BikePortland has shared stories of woe from Portlanders concerned that the gravel sprayed onto the road by the Portland Bureau of Transportation after snow or ice storms becomes a hazard long after the storm (and the need for the gravel) has passed.
One of the issues we struggle with is a lack of transparency about how long it will take PBOT to sweep it back up, and where they are focusing efforts to do so.
I’m happy to report that this year, PBOT has taken a great step forward in not only transparency, but in having focused attention on clearing gravel from bike routes. They’ve published a new map that shows a live view of where gravel pick-up is happening. As of 10:30 am this morning, PBOT had swept 299.4 miles of roads. Of those roads, 17.9 miles of protected bike lanes have been swept.
Video of a PBOT sweeper on the N Rosa Parks Way protected bike lane posted by The eBike Store on Wednesday. (Sped up 2X).
Protected bike lanes have become a source of particular concern because they their plastic flexi-posts and curbs tend to corral gravel and debris that would otherwise be whisked away by passing car tires and traditional sweepers.
From the looks of PBOT’s new map, they’ve already made several passes of the protected bike lanes on North Rosa Parks Way between Willamette and Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd, NE Multnomah between N Interstate and 16th, SW 2nd between NW Everett and SW Washington, NW Broadway between Burnside and NW Flanders, and a few other spots.
According to data compiled by local bike advocate and BikeLoud PDX Board Member Joe Perez, PBOT manages 31 total miles of protected bike lanes — so the city is a little over half-way through.
PBOT Communications Director Hannah Schafer tells BikePortland they are upping their game this year when it comes to cleaning bike lanes. “We’re focusing on bike routes,” Schafer shared in an email a few minutes ago. “With our bike coordinator working in partnership with Maintenance Operations to prioritize high volume bike routes first, in recognition of the fact that post-storm gravel on the streets is particularly dangerous for people on bikes.”
(Photo: Kiel Johnson)
The sweeper at Bike Happy Hour last night (Photo: Jonathan Maus/BikePortland)
That’s great news! Not only does gravel pose a serious slippage hazard, but it also grinds away pavement markings many bike riders rely on for safety. The sooner it gets picked up, the better.
On that note, Schafer says they’ve got crews working on this day and night citywide and that, “We do ask for people’s patience, as our sweepers can only move at about 3 mph.”
When can we expect PBOT to finish the job? “It depends on a lot of factors,” Schafer said. “Assuming equipment, staffing, and weather are in our favor, we think we’ll be able to do a first pass on all our routes in about a month.”
In a related effort, BikeLoud PDX is putting a lot of miles on their Bike Lane Sweeper. BikeLoud vice-chair Kiel Johnson shared a video on social media this week that showed him towing the innovative gadget behind his bike. It worked so well he ended up with a large yard bag full of gravel to use for home projects. And Perez showed off the sweeper at Bike Happy Hour last night.
It’s great to see everyone working together to get this gravel cleaned up as soon as possible. Go team!
