North Greeley Avenue, even with a protected bike lane, will put cyclists or joggers adjacent to a rush of fast-moving traffic (Andrew Theen/Staff)

A fix is finally coming to what might be one of the most dangerous bike lanes in Portland.

The Portland City Council on Wednesday blessed a plan to build a protected two-way bike path on North Greeley Avenue between Interstate 5 and Swan Island. The city will accept bids for up to $1.9 million to repave Greeley and build the bike path, with hopes construction will begin this summer and finish four to six months later.

Portland will create a concrete barrier separating a new 12-foot bike path from other traffic on the eastbound side of a one-mile stretch of Greeley. It eliminates two dangerous merging spots for southbound cyclists and adds a diagonal bike-only traffic signal at North Going Street as well as new traffic signs and pavement markings to alert motorists and cyclists.

Greeley will remain two lanes in both directions for cars and trucks, but it will be restriped with the relocation of the southbound bike lane. The city is budgeting the majority of the project costs, about $529,000, to repave the street. The concrete barrier, curb and sidewalk are projected to cost $303,000. The remainder of the budget includes construction management and traffic control fees, signs and the bike-only signal and contingency costs.

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A map of the proposed area of the multi-use path (PBOT)

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Andrew Theen/Staff

Hannah Schafer, a Portland Bureau of Transportation spokeswoman, said the bike path makes cyclists and industrial freight companies, many of which have hundreds of employees on Swan Island, happy because “everybody feels safer when there’s physical separation.”

It also adds a new route for cyclists coming from Overlook, Arbor Lodge or St. Johns to downtown or inner North Portland neighborhoods.

“Any opportunity to create additional connections to the network that feel comfortable to folks is something that we want to do,” she said in an interview.

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Robert Smith survived a terrifying crash on Greeley in December 2017 (Courtesy of PPB)

While the project addresses a section of road known as a safety hazard for years, the protected bikeway will still put cyclists steps away from cars and trucks that routine barrel past at more than 60 mph on the 45 mph zone. Greeley acts as an urban freeway, with much of the traffic coming from Interstate 5. As of 2016, Greeley had an average of 25,000 car trips per day.

The two-way “multi-use path” was identified in 2016 by a city working group as a potential fix. It’s been slated for construction since 2017 but was delayed. The largest share of the project, $650,000, comes from a tax on freight users. Another $600,000 comes from the state’s 2017 transportation package, while the remainder will be paid for by the city Transportation Bureau.

Two bicyclists have been seriously injured on the stretch of road between 2007 and 2016, according to city records.

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A picture of the bike-only signal at Going Street (Courtesy of PBOT)

That doesn't include a third case, which is the subject of an ongoing lawsuit by Robert Smith, who sued the city in August 2018. He was hit by a car traveling 60 mph at the junction with I-5, yet he survived despite a broken leg, ankle, pelvis, hand and ribs in addition to chipped teeth, collapsed lungs and a traumatic brain injury.

Southbound cyclists face two hair-raising merge situations on the short section of Greeley.

The first is just south of Going, where cyclists have to cross the onramp from Swan Island onto southbound Greeley with limited visibility. The second merge, at the onramp to I-5 south, is where Smith was struck in December 2017.

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A glimpse of what Greeley will look like, potentially by the end of 2019 (Courtesy of PBOT)

The new bike path will eliminate both situations.

Portland doesn’t have much recent traffic counts for cyclists, but the city expects the protected bike path will lead to more riders on Greeley.

According to the city’s most recent bike traffic counts, Greeley saw a total of 676 cyclists on September 26, 2016 (includes riders in both directions). For comparison, the city in February 2015 tallied 1,723 cyclists on North Williams Avenue.

Here are some more pictures of Greeley today:

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The northern area of Greeley Avenue will remain protected with plastic bollards on both sides of the street (Andrew Theen/Staff)

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Directional signs from North Interstate Avenue to Greeley Avenue (Andrew Theen/Staff)

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An example of a bike-only traffic signal, which puts riders from the Eastbank Esplanade to the Moda Center. A similar design will come to Greeley Avenue (Andrew Theen/Staff)

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A Google Maps screenshot of the merging situation on southbound Greeley Avenue

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Robert Smith survived a terrifying crash on Greeley in December 2017 (Courtesy of PPB)

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-- Andrew Theen

atheen@oregonian.com

503-294-4026

@andrewtheen

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