With help from a federal transportation grant, Portland is planning one of its most ambitious bikeways -- a north-south route connecting several east side neighborhoods.

Project managers of the so-called

will hold an open house Wednesday night to discuss potential improvements for street crossings, signage, and space for cyclists.

“We’re excited about this project because it fills a major gap in Portland’s bicycle network,” said PBOT project manager Rich Newlands. “Neighborhood leaders, commuters, parents of schoolchildren and planners have wanted a safe, convenient bikeway linking Rose City Park, Mount Tabor and Woodstock for years.”

Newlands said the agency is looking for as much feedback and participation as possible on what cyclists and neighbors face along the proposed route, including ideas for possible solutions.

The NE/SE 50’s Bikeway is a proposed 4.5-mile north-south bike route from Northeast Thompson Street and 57th Avenue in the Rose City Park neighborhood to Southeast Woodstock Boulevard and 52nd Avenue in the Woodstock neighborhood.

The bureau is considering safety improvements at major crossings, traffic calming, enhanced signage and bicycle lanes in an area with high traffic volume and speed, said PBOT spokesman Dan Anderson.

Anderson said the new bikeway would be different than most bikeways already built. “We’re working with larger streets and looking at different things,” he said.

The proposed $1.5 million project would be funded mostly by a nearly $1.4 million federal grant. Total cost however is to be determined because it may require additional city funds, depending on final design, Anderson said.

In recent years, bicycling in east Portland has become easier and safer, largely because of an ever expanding network of bicycle friendly streets, Anderson said. Most have been east-west streets.

North-south bicycle commuting, however, remains difficult due to a less interconnected north-south street system and limited crossings of Interstate 84.

“PBOT has been working with a citizen advisory committee since August to identify possible routes, safer crossings, and ways to keep cyclists safe and comfortable where traffic speeds and volumes are high,” Anderson said in a new release about the project.

The public open house about the bikeway on Wednesday runs from 5 to 8 p.m. at the Our Lady of Sorrows Parish,

.

For more information or to be added to the email notification list, contact Newlands at 503-823-7780 and

, or Sarah Figliozzi at 503-823-0805 or

.

-- Joseph Rose; Twitter, pdxcommute





