Q: I've noticed that traffic jams on Interstate 5 in Portland are substantially worse than they were just a few months ago -- and they're not just hitting during the morning and evening commutes. I keep running into bumper-to-bumper congestion in the middle of the day. I've noticed what appear to be far more freight trucks on the highway. In fact, it's not unusual for me to be surrounded by big, slow-moving semis during my commute. How much of that increased traffic can be linked to international shipping companies recently pulling out of the Port of Portland?

A: A lot. Probably.

In early March, amid local labor strife at the docks, South Korea-based carrier Hanjin Shipping stopped anchoring its ships in Portland. That eliminated 80 percent of business at Terminal 6, Oregon's only international container port. A month later, German carrier Hapag-Lloyd pulled out.

You can take the Hanjin out of Portland, but you can't take the "port" out of Portland.

Farmers and manufacturers in Oregon and Southwest Washington still need to export their goods. Meanwhile, with consumer spending climbing, regional retailers are relying on timely deliveries of everything from big screen TVs and coffee beans to Taylor Swift CDs and high-waisted mom jean shorts (yep, they're trendy again).

As a result, businesses are relying increasingly on trains and trucks to move goods to and from ships docking at ports in Seattle and Tacoma.

However, thanks to the Northwest economy finding new pluck, rail carriers have very little capacity to handle the containers once loaded onto and unloaded from colossal ocean vessels, said Susie Lahsene, the port's senior manager of planning and policy.

So the vast majority of that cargo is now being moved on the highways.

Of course, at this point, it's still hard to come up with an indisputable, cause-and-effect data showing the port drama is frustrating your daily commute.

In the months before Hanjin and Hapag-Lloyd waved goodbye to Portland, congestion on metro area highways - where freight trucks account for about 8 percent of traffic -- was already worsening.

Now, according to the port's quick math, the metro area probably sees about 2,000 more truck trips a day as a result of the shipping giants pulling out.

"A good portion of (the trucks) are using the Interstate Bridge," Lahsene said.

On average, more than 130,000 vehicles a day cross the Interstate Bridge. So a boost of 2,000 trucks a day may seem like just a little hiccup.

But consider this: Fully loaded 18-wheelers are lane hogs, stretching up to 80 feet -- or the equivalent about six compact SUVs. Also, they usually take longer to get going after stopping in creeping congestion. You can see why, suddenly, it might feel like there are 12,000 more vehicles on I-5.

The port is a little more conservative, using a 3-cars-for-every-freight-truck formula. Either way, "there are absolutely more freight traffic" on the highways, Lahsene said. "I've experienced it myself."

Q: My husband came home with bruises and horrible scrapes on his arms from a bike crash. He was riding in the bike lane along Southeast Clinton Street in Portland, approaching the green bike box at Cesar Chavez Boulevard, when he passed another bicyclist who was in the car lane to the left. As he passed, she shouted, "No passing on the right." She then intentionally swerved toward my husband, causing him to crash. He eventually caught up to her and asked why she did that. She just repeated, "No passing on the right." Is there a law that firmly says bicyclists can't pass on the right?

A: Your husband did nothing wrong. In fact, it was the other bicyclist who likely broke Oregon law -- by not using the available bike lane to approach the green box.

Sure, when two bicyclists are in a bike lane on the right side of the road -- like the short one at that intersection -- pedaling etiquette dictates that you overtake a slower cyclist by entering the adjacent auto lane and passing on the left. But there's no hard-and-fast law. And that scenario doesn't really apply to this nutty situation.

Actually, Judge Dredd on the other bicycle committed far more serious crimes.

For starters, cyclists can be charged with reckless driving for muscling another bike rider over. But that's small potatoes. Because your husband wiped out and was injured, he was also the victim of second-degree assault, said Ray Thomas, a Portland attorney specializing in bicycle law. "That's a felony that comes with a maximum prison sentence of 10 years," Thomas said.

To make matters even worse, the woman didn't stop to help, meaning she likely committed felony hit-and-run.

A whole lot of trouble for making an ill-informed point. Bicyclist-on-bicyclist road rage can be prosecuted just as aggressively as anything that happens between motorists.

Did your husband get the woman's license plate? Oh. Wait. Never mind. Unfortunately, unless he knows his attacker or encounters her again on Clinton, it would be tough to pursue charges.

I hope he has a speedy recovery.

-- Joseph Rose

503-221-8029

jrose@oregonian.com

@josephjrose