Comment 2747

By Rudy Schwartz (anonymous) | Posted December 23, 2006 at 11:05:47

Nice article. As a resident of Portland considering a move to Canada, it's interesting to see your perception of Portland. I happen to think it's the most livable U.S. city by a long shot, and it's the one thing that would be likely to keep me in a country governed by unspeakably stupid men. I would throw out one comment, however. While I understand the advantages of two way streets for calming traffic, it's worth noting that most of Portland's downtown consists of one way streets, and it's extremely amenable to pedestrians. In fact, one of the most difficult streets to cross is Burnside, which is two-way. The key, I think, is to not have freeways disguised as streets running through your downtown. Perhaps reducing the number of lanes by adding BRT/LRT lines and wider pedestrian paths with lots of trees would accomplish your goals, while still maintaining the advantages of one-way streets for normal downtown driving. And by normal, I don't mean whizzing through downtown to commute from suburb to suburb. That should be discouraged, and the only way to discourage it is to make it a pain in the ass. Good luck with your city. You have some good ideas.

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