About the West Burnside Multimodal Project

This project will implement the Preferred Alternative Design developed in the West Burnside Multimodal Study (more info below), improving pedestrian and bicycle access across W Burnside at 18th & 19th, as well as access to TriMet. New crosswalks, bike lanes, and vehicle turn lanes will be installed on NW 18th & 19th. Construction is scheduled for 2018.

This project is part of a series of other improvements on W Burnside Street. It will help to further the City’s Vision Zero safety goals on Burnside, which is a designated High Crash Corridor with a pedestrian crash rate ~3x higher than citywide. 

Please note that a NW Examiner article unfortunately included a design that we have discarded that requiring eastbound drivers headed for SW Alder to loop around the Fireman’s Memorial. See the correct current design here.

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For more information contact:

Gabe Graff, Project Manager
gabriel.graff@portlandoregon.gov
503-823-5291

About the West Burnside Multimodal Study

The Portland Bureau of Transportation is leading the West Burnside Multimodal Study to evaluate opportunities to improve safety and accessibility along and across West Burnside Street between 15th Avenue and 20th Avenue.

West Burnside Street is a major east‐west travel route through downtown Portland and connecting to the West Hills and areas to the west of the City. On an average day, between 21,000 and 25,000 vehicles use the undivided four‐lane facility to travel east or west in the blocks between Interstate 405 (I‐405) and the West Hills.

West Burnside Street also acts as a barrier to north‐south movement for bicyclists and pedestrians, due to crossing difficulties and a lack of facilities in some locations. Additionally, the existing configuration in the vicinity of 18^th Avenue, 19^th Avenue, Alder Street, and West Burnside Street is problematic in a number of ways:

• It does not allow for comfortable crossings of people walking and biking;
• Vehicle and TriMet operations are not intuitive, and
• Vehicle speeds traveling eastbound on Alder Street are excessive.