Portland Considered Most Bicycle-Friendly City in America

[Moralvorstellung7]

@JoachimderZweite First of all. I'm an Asian woman, not some MR. Secondly, you are a pussy.Thirdly, I don't know your e-mail address. Forthly, Fish bait remark has nothing to do with threatening. I'm talking about fishing.Fifthly, it's none of your business what my finances are. Sixly, you are still a big pussy.

[superearthbender]

I want to move there so bad... if only I could pay for out of state tuition! I would move there..

[trx1961]

i wouldnt drive a car if i had to...BIKES RULE!!

[bigfonsie]

@krunckyJD I was talking about the dam drivers in the cars! I'm all about a car free nation!

[matthewboddy]

Elly Blue is annoying. Why didn't they get someone on who doesn't talk like a bored teenager?

[TheFreedomly]

That 's it, As the coordenator told, in Portland, the infrastructure of bicycles has been since the 1970's, so they have in their blood, their veins are for bicycles, so Portland was highlighted in the 1990's and therefore helping to promote, or fostering the bicycles and pedestrians, consequently less car on the streets.

Congratulation for Portlanders, i would like my seeing my country being like that one day, but unfortunately it is at bay, or so far from bikes reality here in Brazil.

[KrunchyJD]

Um, Second to Amsterdam, hardly, What about Denmark?

[PortlandsTransport]

Portland second to Amsterdam?

What a bunch of baloney, no way.

Every city in Europe is much more friendly to bikes than Portland!

But what Portland does have, is a superior ministry of propoganda. Probably the best in the world!

[kardentyrell]

pfff...portland can't hold a candle to the dutch ;)

[NWforager]

@kardentyrell not yet, but the NW is trying

[helmsbarn]

Portland got a lotta niggers?

[jefflunar]

How the heck do you have The Beatles and Bob Dylan in your fave videos?

[deadshot666]

@helmsbarn it is postively infested with niggers

[portlandspitman]

It's to bad that 99 % of our bike riders run stop signs and hold up traffic on main roads. If they want to be on the road they all need to wear helmets and have lights,horns ect and carry insutance like a mtorcycle

[KrunchyJD]

@portlandspitman You Americans and Australians I have to say are Rednecks!

Motor vehicles produce pollution. When you produce the same pollution as a bicycle then argue bikes should be insured otherwise .... I dont care what you think

[jcpelly]

@KrunchyJD Try constructive criticism dude

[KrunchyJD]

@jcpelly We drive cars too much, we need to ride bikes more, is that constructive enough?

[jcpelly]

@KrunchyJD Yep :)

BTW I ride a bike a minimum of 8 miles a day and I would be one of your afore mentioned rednecks :)

[KrunchyJD]

@jcpelly What I was talking about is the culture of car dependency. I am from Australia so I am criticising my own country by saying what I said.

Further No American city or Australian city holds a candle on places Like Copenhagen, or many other dutch cities, in terms of numbers of cyclists. Look at the comments of people like Jarek4 below to see redneckism in action.

[KrunchyJD]

@jcpelly Further, look at the comments by the bicycle haters. It is cars that cost society money not bikes. How many times do you see the headline, man run over by bicycle rider, or car crushed uner bicycles wheel. Cars pose the danger to society not bicycles.

[Jarek4]

yea, most friendly, more like filled with absolutely fucking stupid jerk off bicyclist in the country. They're all stupid as hell! you're not a damn car get out of the middle of the road and stop jumping in front of cars

[jpete3027666]

Just like there are stupid drivers, there will be stupid bicyclists. Nothing like a little rash generalizing over the internet. You really are dumb as a nail.

[Jarek4]

and where do you live? Cali, you clearly have no idea what it's like here in portland so fuck off dipshit. It's not generalizing it's truth

[jpete3027666]

I've been to Portland many times and never seen problems with idiot bikers. Maybe you're a shitty driver. Pull your head out of your ass.

[Jarek4]

Yes, I'm a bad driver when bikers think they're a car and drive in the middle of traffic, or hold up traffic once a year to do a share the road bullshit. Maybe you should get your head out of your ass and pay attention because you clearly have not been to portland for very long or didn't drive.

[Jarek4]

@jpete3027666 Then you have OBVIOUSLY not looked very hard or at all. Bicyclists have a habit of not paying attention at all and thinking they're a car. They just ride right in front of your car all the damn time. Stop signs apparently mean nothing to bikes right?

[bigfonsie]

Your a strait up dumbass.

[JethroDynamics]

hmmm...that is odd. Since when I got knocked off my bike by a hit and run driver(it was actually a purposeful assault as he was calling me names as he did it) as I rode safely and legally in Pdx.. Even though I had FOUR adult witnesses ; an excellent description of the driver; and his license plate number...the cops refused to do anything about it. So I went to the deputy D.A's office and they would not pursue it either. 'Friendly bike town' my ass.

[BlarneyMedia]

i'm from portland, and i've visited Amsterdam- no one in Western culture can compare to Amsterdam. That said, the bicycle boulevards system is really wonderful here in Berkeley CA, and I know its top notch in Portland as well.

[totoroben]

This is true Blarney. Its not just Amsterdam though, drag streetview to any part of the Netherlands and you will probably be able to find a cyclist within a few clicks. Try that in USA, you will really have to search. Its quite obvious our infrastructure is not very inviting to cyclists. Just busy roads with drivers that don't want us there.

[vansinnesvisor131]

Mr. Activist Chris Smith is FAAAAAAAATTTTT he should actually ride a bike... instead of saying he does...

[reconeix]

true it is a false statement to say that Portland is SECOND in the world behind Amsterdam in bicycle ridership/friendliness.

Copenhagen, Stockholm, Oslo and even Berlin has a large percentage of the population that ride bicycles -- with separate lanes for bikes removed from car traffic. Portland deserves accolades for being a consistent player in the drive towards sustainability, etc.

But many of the comments are just false and bloated.

[asbadastv]

I'd hope portland is bicycle friendly because they sure screwed up their freeway system.

[sevegarza]

P-town number 1!

[mariojragucci]

When Amy Goodman begins this talk and says "Worldwide, Portland is seen as 2nd to Amsterdam as far as bicycle friendly cities" this is clearly a false statement. Who ever wrote her script is trying to say nice things about Portlands "greeness" The statement is funny and a good laugh. No fault to Portlanders, but Portland was built with automobilies as king, as all American towns and cities are. Car-culture is a money making business where bicycles are not. It would take a serious revolution

[pavilionking06]

Actually Portland is one of the most bicycle friendly cities in the world, especially when compared to other American cities. Just because Portland may have been built around the idea of the automobile does not mean it hasn't taken dramatic steps to become extremely bicycle friendly.

[nyyguy36]

Having bicycles on the sidewalk-- unless there are separate and adequate lanes for bikes and pedestrians-- is extremely dangerous. It is dangerous to people walking, and it creates confusion when a cyclist then gets of the sidewalk to ride across the street. SideWALK. It would be great to have separate platforms/lanes for bikes. But the most cost-effective and immediate solution is to slow down cars, tax automobiles and gas more, calm traffic, and create more bicycle only streets, not just lanes

[mariojragucci]

You can ride a bicycle at a walking pedestrian speed. Believe me, I'd rather ride in a dedicated bicycle lane. However, I am a American and a HUMAN, and forcing bicycle riders to "walk the blank" so to say, by squeezing us in on roads with 35 MPH speed limits is sick and wrong.

[nyyguy36]

I ride in Oklahoma City and Norman (Norman´s the most progressive town in O.K. and people STILL scream at cyclists for following OK law and being on the road). Sure, one can ride at a safe speed on sidewalks, but statistically, riding on the sidewalks is most dangerous for cyclists (cars don´t know they´ll act from the sidewalk). We must CALM traffic. Speed limits are too high. On a 40 MPH street, the avg speed is 30. At stake is the RIGHT to PUBLIC space. Cars use 12x more space than bikes.

[Jarek4]

people should scream at bikers, they're fuckin stupid

[Teganor]

And that's EXACTLY why I want to go to Portland.

[jpete3027666]

You're a moron.

[Jarek4]

you're not very clever troll, fuck off

[bigfonsie]

You scream at me I will get your tag number. Then your address, and finnally at 3am I will blow a bullhorn at your front door. Yell see if im playing.

[Jarek4]

@bigfonsie I'm up all night. You do that I'll simply shoot you. I always keep a mossberg 88 loaded by my desk "see if I'm playing"

[KrunchyJD]

@bigfonsie You are why any American city is not a candle on Europe. Still a bunch of car centric rednecks

[wadekirtley]

A lot of Portland's bicycle friendly rating stems from the sole fact (due to the efforts of the BTA)that the city has more miles of bicycle lanes than most cities. However, the city has a looong way to go in changing the mindset of (many, not all) car drivers in regards to understanding the needs of cyclists and driving in a manner that insures their safety.

[mariojragucci]

Yeah? Try riding on the sidewalk and you'll be arrested. Keep your helmet on at all times because it is so safe. You can fall on your head at any time, so safe, so friendly. So friendly, you keep helmet on at all times to protect you from all the cars that buzz you most times. There are a couple places to ride without being buzzed by the majority of car people, maybe OMSI and around the bridges, but thats it. At least in Seattle you can ride on the wider sidewalks, seperate from auto :-)

[mariojragucci]

I don't want to be too harsh on PDX, which is bicycle friendly, compared to other American towns. Not allowing you to ride on sidewalk is UNfriendly though. Saying it is second to Amsterdam for bicycles is false. Remember: any American city is built off suburban sprawl, and that includes PDX. SEattle is, IMHO, more friendly to bicycles because armed men will not force you walk your bike on the sidewalk, like they do in PDX. There are more true bike paths here, and better scenery.

[pavilionking06]

Actually your completely wrong, but since you live in Seattle I can see why you made the comments you did.

[gregpdx1970]

mariojragucci: Spoken like a true Seattle provincial. Downtown Portland is the only area where you are not allowed to ride on the sidewalks (they are sideWALKS), and the question of scenery is purely subjective. You were forced to walk your bike on the sidewalk by armed men? Sad. We usually hold them in reserve just to keep the Washington drivers off the sidewalk. And on the subject of good-natured rivalry, how's that light-rail coming along??? Get back to me while you're stuck in traffic. ;-)