Pedestrian and Bikeway Advisory Committee - Jan. 7, 2025

Agenda

• 6:30 p.m. – Welcome and Approval of Prior Meeting Minutes
• 6:35 p.m. – Public Comment
• 6:40 p.m. – Safe Streets for All – Rob Sadowsky
• 7:00 p.m. – Courtney Avenue Complete Streets Update – Scott Hoelscher, Clackamas County Staff
• 7:20 p.m. – Hot Spots
  • Wilde Road & Capps Road
  • OR 99 & Park
  • Staircase at MAX Green Line Platform
• 7:40 p.m. – Project Updates | Open Discussion | E-Bikes | Recruitment and Chair & Vice Chair Seats
• 8:00 p.m. – Adjourn

Staff Liaisons

Scott Hoelscher
Senior Transportation Planner
Dept. of Transportation & Development
Phone: (503) 742-4533
Email: scotthoe@clackamas.us

Mya Ganzer
Planner 1
Dept. of Transportation & Development
Phone: (503) 742-4520
Email: mganzer@clackamas.us

Minutes

Attendance

Steve Adams, Joseph Edge, Emma Lugo, Dave Weber, Dick Weber, Lonnie Morse, Del Scharffenberg, Kelli Grover, Dale Guenther, Mindy Montecucco
Mya Ganzer, Rob Sadowsky, Scott Hoelscher, Nicole Perry

6:34 p.m. – Welcome and Approval of Prior Meeting Minutes

Minutes approved by unanimous consent.

6:35 p.m. – Public Comment

Lonnie Morse – grave concerns about random e-bike rules from higher up, worried it will cause a ripple effect and impact senior citizens. The throttle restriction will limit riders and make is unsafe when coming to stop and start or stalled on inclines. It’s dangerous and can create accidents, especially with the heavier e-bikes, the throttle is important. Throttle on class 2 e-bikes is logical for seniors, cargo bikes, and adaptive cycling. Some bikes the motor doesn’t activate until the pedal movement has started.

Del – I don’t understand why we are talking about this, higher level e-bikes should be considered motorcycles

6:42 p.m. – Safe Streets for All

Rob Sadowsky, Traffic Safety Outreach Coordinator Comprehensive safe system planning project: safe and inclusive systems of transportation. 30 people die each year on the roads in Clackamas County. The county went up in 2024, had previously been trending down. Motorcycles are overrepresented in the fatality rate. As our population as been going up, our rates have not risen comparably.

Four Projects:

• Safe Systems Approach- county Wide Evalutation and Implementation
• Integrate Civil right Elements into individual projects and develop alligned websites
• Develop Post Crash Evaluation and Trauma Support Framework
• Transportation Safety Action Plan Update

Post crash evaluation: Triage traumas support, how far upstream can we go, can we be early interventions in alcohol abuse and other risk factors. Tis will rely on the walk bike plan and other transportation plans. It will also feed into other county policy, such as the TSP, ClackCo roadway standards, and the ZDO. We are requesting one liaison from this committee to attend the below date, additionally we will have opportunities for stakeholder interviews, and review drafts of the safety plane update. This will guide our goals and priorities.

Dale: you brought in safe system experts, who are they?

Rob: Burgess and Neibolt (consultants) hired Abley, Johns Hopkins Behavioral Health Team, and Montana State University Health. Will include local elected officials, including one board member, fire, sheriffs, medical officers, first responders as well.

Scott: how would we like to determine who goes?

Rob: we could vote and appoint?

Joseph: we could do volunteers and have a primary and alternate

Dale: I motion we move on this since the first meeting is coming up

Jospeh: are there any volunteers.

Steve: I would be interested in getting involved.

Joseph: any other, including me

Dale motions for Steve and Joseph to represent the committee

Dave seconds

Unanimous support the motion passes

7:11 p.m. – Courtney Avenue Complete Streets Update

Brief overview of the project runs along Courtney from River Rd to 99E. connects to Trolley Trail and Arista Drive. Regional Flexible Funds from the federal government. In December we discussed the introduction of on-street parking, it was designed to the right -of-way, public comments indicated they wanted parking. The issues you raised at the previous meeting was raised to management, and the internal discussion led to the removal of off-street parking. We are back to the original plan in the grant. We have drafted a letter to enter into the record.

Steve: what are the thoughts of having a multi-use path vs a buffered bike lane, it has less vehicle overlap, and parking in the bike lane, like on Linwood?

Scott: we are building that on Monroe and proposing it on Jennifer. We are moving in the direction of separated bike lanes

Scott: Reasons the County decided to remove the parking for several reasons:

- There is enough off-street and on-street parking
- The placement would feel odd
- Adding intermittent parking would create confusion and impact safety
- Vehicles are more likely to park illegally

7:27 p.m. – E-Bikes

Scott: Oregon P&R is going to start looking at E-bike rules on beaches and state parks. There are currently no rules regarding e-bike usage. There is a public comment period starting in February regarding this rulemaking. If they make substantive changes, hypothetically what rules they pass, cities and local parks may adopt the same rules and default to the state. HB passed that formalized the definition of e-bike classes, class 1 has no throttle, class 2 has a throttle.

Lonnie: e-bikes are saving the bicycle industry and are well established. The throttle doesn’t create unsafe conditions, but people cycling irresponsibly. The removal of the throttle will create precarious situations for those who need the additional assist. These three categories came from the Netherlands, where it’s flat.

Joseph: The letter was very substantive for representing our discussion, perhaps we could review and make corrections and send out and vote on next meeting, though I am happy to support as is.

Del: Motion to send out the letter as is.

Mindy: I second

Motions passes unanimously.

Scott: one idea, is to do a letter by the committee to share for the OPRD.

Emma: I am a pedestrian and consider e-bikes terrifying. They ride on sidewalks and terrify
me.

Bruce: it is worth noting that e-bikes (and regular bikes) are not allowed on sidewalks but are allowed on MUPs.

Lonnie: people who break these rules need to face enforcement.

Bruce: Lonnie is local bike mechanic, and vice president of recumbent bicycles.

Scott: couple of issues at play, the state rulemaking, we would only do a letter if there were a consensus, I can share what Bruce put together for the City of Canby. I get a lot of comments regarding e-bike speed on the trolley trail.

Del: the problem with e-bikes, the higher-powered ones should be classified as motorcycles and be on the roads, the slow ones are fine. We need more enforcement.

Mindy: Canby is running into a lot of conflicts among e-bikes and pedestrians

Bruce: e-bike accident happened, and maintenance posted a no e-bike sign, and chief of police said you couldn’t do that. The city of Canby will adopt whatever OPRD.

Lonnie: and this could limit the recumbent bicycle with throttle, and the recumbent

Mindy: I understand the seniors and became very vocal about the use of e-bikes, want a speed limit. Some e-bikes are very stealth, it’s hard to tell if they are e-bike.

Joseph: for people who driving is not an option, they may be commuting by e-bike, to capture trips by riding we need to get more people riding, and more people ride their e-bikes. It’s made them a more practical for commuting. Getting passed at high speeds is scary regardless of if it’s e-bikes, we just need good etiquette, for the whole transportation network, not just e-bikes. We shouldn’t try to regulate that mode out of use, and out of safe areas to ride, like trails.

Mindy: we need to start rethinking trail design and the markings to mediate those
interferences.

Bruce: I think we can reach a consensus. Class 1 and 2 should be allowed, unsafe behaviors
need to be addressed with a fine and posting of speed limits Motion is suggested.

Kelli and Emma: we should review the letter before we motion
Bruce, the motion is to write the formal letter. Joseph, if there is no objection we can draft a letter a bring it back to the committee.

7:57 p.m. – Hot Spots

Deferred to February meeting:

• Wilde Road & Capps Road
• OR 99 & Park
• Staircase at MAX Green Line Platform

7:40 p.m. Project Updates | Open Discussion | Recruitment and Chair &
Vice Chair Seats

Hans considers himself a former member
Recruitment will hopefully come up next meeting

8:00 p.m. – Adjourn