 News media contact:
Hannah Schafer
(971) 235-8472
News Release:
Commissioner Eudaly and PBOT Interim Director Chris Warner cut the ribbon on the SE 50th Avenue Fixing Our Streets Paving Project
 Transportation Commissioner Chloe Eudaly and PBOT Interim Director Chris Warner cut the ribbon on the SE 50th Paving Project with PBOT staff and crew members. Photo by Stacy Brewster, Portland Bureau of Transportation.
 (Dec. 6, 2018) At a news conference this morning, Transportation Commissioner Chloe Eudaly and PBOT Interim Director Chris Warner cut the ribbon on the newly-completed SE 50th Paving Project, funded by Fixing Our Streets.
As part of the Fixing Our Streets program, the Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) repaved SE 50th Avenue from SE Division to SE Hawthorne to prevent further pavement deterioration. The work also updated all street corners that did not meet ADA standards to improve overall street accessibility. Over the course of the paving work, PBOT removed 109-year-old trolley tracks that were underneath the southbound section of the roadway. The trolley rails were built on SE 50th Ave in 1909, but when the trolleys were decommissioned of the rails were paved over to make roads for vehicle use. Since the 1980s through the mid-2000s, much of the road maintenance on SE 50th was to grind and repave asphalt on top of the buried rails.
|
For years, residents of the area, and all other Portlanders who utilize this street, have witnessed hazardous potholes, with a few areas with rail exposure potentially causing bike crashes, slippery conditions for pedestrians and tire damage to vehicles.
 Crews work on the trolley tracks at SE Hawthorne and 50th in 1936. Photo courtesy of the City of Portland Archives.
 109-year-old railroad ties being removed as part of the SE 50th Paving Project. Photo by the Portland Bureau of Transportation.
“ADA compliance and safe accessibility for all Portlanders was given the highest level of consideration in this project,” said Transportation Commissioner Chloe Eudaly. “It is vital to ensure that our streets are safe for walking, biking, and rolling throughout the city and I look forward to additional transportation improvements that prioritize accessibility.”
“This project shows the power of Fixing our Streets to deliver more and better street repair projects for Portlanders,” said PBOT Interim Director Chris Warner. “With Fixing Our Streets funding we had the resources and will to do the job right. By taking the time to remove the 109-year-old trolley tracks from the road, the pavement on this stretch of SE 50th from Hawthorne to Division will last much longer and we will not only recover the additional expense of removing the tracks, we will save money on future maintenance work.”
 ADA compliant curb ramps and a marked crosswalk at SE 50th and Sherman. Photo by Stacy Brewster, Portland Bureau of Transportation.
 Before (left) and after (right) on SE 50th between Hawthorne and Division. Photos by the Portland Bureau of Transportation.
The Fixing Our Streets program, paid for by a local gas tax approved by Portland voters in May 2016 and a heavy vehicle use tax, is Portland’s first street repair and traffic safety program financed with local funding. 56 percent of Fixing Our Streets funding is invested in street maintenance and 44 percent is invested in safety improvements. The City Council ordinance included a project list that shows specific projects that are intended to be funded. The list of projects can be found at www.fixingourstreets.com.
Over $50M will be invested in maintenance and traffic safety projects in Portland in 2019, including numerous Fixing Our Streets projects. Among them:
East Portland:
North Portland:
NE Portland:
SE Portland:
- Montavilla-Springwater Connector (SE and NE) connecting the 70’s and 80’s Bikeways with the Springwater Trail
NW Portland:
SW Portland:
###
About the Fixing Our Streets Program
The Fixing Our Streets program is the result of the passage of Measure 26-173, a 10-cent tax on motor vehicle fuels and Portland’s first local funding source dedicated to street repair and traffic safety projects. Passed on May 17, 2016, Measure 26-173 will raise an estimated $64 million over four years. PBOT will invest this money in a wide variety of street improvement and safety projects across the entire city. Fixing Our Streets will help PBOT expand preventive street maintenance that saves money and prevents potholes. It will support our work to make it safer for children to walk to school. It will allow us to build more sidewalks, traffic signals, street lights and bike lanes. The Portland City Council also unanimously passed a Heavy Vehicle Use Tax, for vehicles weighing more than 26,000 pounds, which will also fund the Fixing Our Streets program.
The Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) is the steward of the City’s transportation system, and a community partner in shaping a livable city. We plan, build, manage and maintain an effective and safe transportation system that provides access and mobility. Learn more at www.portlandoregon.gov/transportation
|
