The Portland City Council is considering the Portland Bicycle Plan for 2030 at a hearing recently. The plan was a product of two years of work by the Portland Bureau of Transportation and its partners in the community.

"There has been some commentary that 'we can't afford to do this.' I believe we can't afford not to do it. As the manager of our multi-billion dollar transportation system during a time of declining funding, it's my job to make efficient use of what we already have. The most cost-effective way to do that is to shift trips from driving alone to walking, bicycling, and transit," Mayor Sam Adams said in a speech available online at http://bit.ly/awSmyl. "Dollar for dollar, investing in bike infrastructure makes economic sense. For less than two percent of our transportation budget since 1996, we have seen bicycle use grow from one percent to more than six percent of commute trips in the city. That's a good return on investment."

The principles of the new plan are to attract new riders, strengthen bicycle policies, form a denser bikeway network, increase bicycle parking, expand programs to support bicycling and increase funding for bicycle facilities. If adopted by City Council, the Portland Bicycle Plan for 2030 will guide the Portland Bureau of Transportation in expanding its bicycle network over the next 20 years. The new plan supersedes the Bicycle Master Plan, which was adopted in 1996.

"Our efforts have been guided by a distinguished steering committee and an inclusive public process - hundreds of Portland residents participated," said Ellen Vanderslice, project manager for the Portland Bureau of Transportation. "Throughout the process we listened to the people who know their neighborhoods best and responded with changes."

Since the 1996 plan was adopted, Portland has doubled its bikeway network to more than 300 miles, added thousands of bicycle parking spaces, has a successful Safe Routes to School program and seen bicycling increase more than 300 percent

By passing the plan, the city council would direct PBOT and other city bureaus to form a finance task force to find funding, promote implementation and report back in nine months. The Portland Planning Commission voted 5-0 on November 10, 2009, to "enthusiastically and warmly support" the Portland Bicycle Plan for 2030 and recommend it to city council.

More information: www.portlandonline.com/transportation/bicyclemasterplan.