Portland, OR

A friend of mine and I were talking the other night, and she asked me about recycling plastic bags. We started talking recycling and all that greenness that comes with it, and I noted that I felt that Portland was a bubble when it came to people being green or environmentally-conscious and responsible.

I get lots of email updates from the gazillion environmental action groups of which I am a member or subscriber of newsletters and action updates. And I am also on the mailing lists of many a governmental agency, including my love-hate relationship, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Today, the EPA sent out an press release regarding shopping for new cars. There are two reasons I am bringing this up: Portland is way ahead of the curve (we think) and the advice to shop for a car is timely and mixed.

We all like to think that Portland, Oregon is, like, the “greenest city” in America, and you know, it most probably is. But I still see huge trucks and SUVs on our roads, so it’s not like everyone is a member of the Church of Hybrid. But as a girl who moves around more than the average re-locator (what can I say, I get bored easily), and having lived or spent considerable time in rather diverse areas of this great nation of ours, I can safely say that Portland is by far the most environmentally-aware and -conscious city I know of. Does that mean that everyone recycles and has switched to CFL’s? No, of course not, some people don’t bother and then some people may disagree with some actions (CFL’s have mercury in them, as an example), but if you drive around on a neighborhood’s trash pick-up day, you may be amazed how many big blue recycling bins are right alongside glass bins and the green compost bins. In my neighborhood (Reed), I rarely even see the straight-up trash bins some weeks. My neighbor and I were complaining about the only bi-weekly compost curbside pick-up. Heck, most cities don’t offer curbside yard/kitchen waste pickup at all.

And secondly, the EPA’s press release…

Celebrating the Environment: Trading up your Sleigh this Holiday Season?

‘Tis the season for giving, and if you’re in the process of shopping for a car or light truck this year, EPA can help. Environmentally friendly vehicles come in all shapes and sizes, and there are some simple ways to find the best one for your family. There are also easy ways to improve your fuel economy, regardless of what model sleigh you drive.

* When shopping for a car, go to EPA’s Green Vehicle Guide to look for vehicles that earned EPA’s SmartWay designation, meaning that they are among the cleanest, most fuel-efficient available; and
* As you do your holiday shopping, be sure to maximize your vehicle’s fuel efficiency by combining trips, driving gently, and keeping your car well-maintained.

For sh*ts and giggles, I checked out the EPA’s green vehicle guide, and out of the cars with average MPG’s above the current (and finally raised) CAFE standards –which is 27.5 mpg by the way– nearly all of them are Japanese or German. There are 17 vehicles listed that have an average city mpg of 28 or more, 13 of those vehicles are not American. When we look at the 15 vehicles that are just shy of CAFE, at 27 mpg, the America cars make a better showing at 8 out of 15. When I looked at the list from the lowest mpg, starting at the bottom I had to scroll more than 2/5 of the way up the screen before I hit a Japanese make. The only exception was Mercedes, and the rest where almost GM models. And of nearly all the models listed, they are all designated to burn gasoline/ethanol blends, and ethanol is bringing about it’s own “blend” of problems.

And the Big Three are asking for a bailout? I wonder why. And the EPA is not helping at this point, telling car shoppers to choose models with good gas mileage, which probably means you will not be purchasing a GM or a Ford.

*disclaimer: As a Michigan native, a bailout is probably necessary, as everyone and their brother in Michigan depends on the auto industry, be it directly or indirectly. And I have a brother that works for a company that writes the diagnostic manuals for vehicle, so I also know how much paid time off the Union dictates for its employees and in turn, if the auto workers are off, so is everyone else.

Portland, Oregon, green, environment, environmentally, conscious, aware, responsible, government agency, EPA, Environmental Protection Agency, cars, automobile, autos, makes, models, Japanese, German, hybrid, ethanol, gasoline, American, GM, Ford, recycling, waste, trash, CFL, mercury, compost, green vehicle guide, CAFE, Mercedes, Big Three, bailout, Michigan, union

Hey Portland, our representative in Congress made the pages of Outside Magazine, talking about biking and how the government can encourage more people to bike both recreationally and as commuters.

Photo provided to Outside by Blumenauer’s DC office

Seems that bow-tie wearing, biking to work in DC Blumenauer is a biker’s silent assassin in Washington. Ok, not really, but he did tell Outside that the recent Energy Act (which opens up the coasts to off-shore drilling) has some sneaky clauses providing bicycle-riding commuters fringe benefits for riding to work on two-wheels-sans-motor. Neat. I ride my bike to work, so what does that mean?

I just read the text of the bill, the Comprehensive American Energy Security and Consumer Protection Pact, and it’s true that there is a small “rider” (he he) that would allow employers give a $20 a month reimbursement for bicycle-related expenses. Here is the main chunk of the text as it relates to this fringe benefit.

QUALIFIED BICYCLE COMMUTING REIMBURSEMENT- The term `qualified bicycle commuting reimbursement’ means, with respect to any calendar year, any employer reimbursement during the 15-month period beginning with the first day of such calendar year for reasonable expenses incurred by the employee during such calendar year for the purchase of a bicycle and bicycle improvements, repair, and storage, if such bicycle is regularly used for travel between the employee’s residence and place of employment.

As this benefit won’t start until 15 months after the beginning of the first calendar year after this benefit can begin, which is January 1st, 2009, so really, bikers won’t see any real benefit from this until, I believe, April 2010. I could be way off on this, and if Congressman Blumenauer stumbles across this little post, maybe he can clear things up for me. Is this a benefit that my employer can offer me, or does my employer have to offer me this benefit? Who actually pays the monies going to commuters? Is it the employer that then gets reimbursed by the government? Why not give the tax benefit directly to the employee, rather than making the business owner the middle man?

Seriously, I need these questions answered, so if anyone out there wants to clear this up, that would be just super. And I can pass on the information, of course.

Still, kudos to Earl for taking his message to the streets, er, rather the pages of a considerably more and more trendy magazine that I used to enjoy, but now only tolerate. I think it’s the “fashion spreads” that seem to adorn every issue. If I want to look at lame models faking it, I would read Vogue or some other lame rag. I read Outside because I want kewl pics, interesting adventure stories, practical advice, equipment reviews and guides, and not stories about some former pro-snowboarder that now sells real estate and hangs out with his trustfund college friends.

/End/ rant.

Earl Blumenauer, Congress, Washington DC, representative, Portland, Oregon, Third District, Energy Bill, Comprehensive American Energy Security and Consumer Protection Act, Outside Magazine

Ok, so it may not be as glamorous as the so-called jet set, but then again, would you really want to hang around those people?

I finally got a bike, and riding around Portland is a totally “cool” experience. Other than those people, mostly older men, that insist on wearing those dreadful biking shorts, the people I see out in the bike lanes are, well, cool. I saw quite a few really hot guys, so a tip to all you single ladies, get yourself a bike.

I unfortunately went for the retro 3-speed bike, which is all well and good in certain situations, mainly those that do not involve elevation changes. Guess what, Portland is pretty hilly. Not San Francisco hilly, but hilly all the same, especially for someone like me who has let my bike riding thighs fall out of shape. I need to get a true commuter bike, with a lot of gears, but then again, first I will have to get some strength in my legs to really get around town.

All in all, fellow bicyclists are very friendly in this town, much like the drivers. Yes, it is true that Portland must have some of the nicest drivers in the US. I mean, I stand next to a road, not even remotely by a crosswalk or anything, and more often than not, someone stops for me. That is so nice. In fact, the Ross Island Bridge on-ramp could never happen in most towns. It is not often that motorists will stop without being told to in order to allow those at a cross-street to enter heavy traffic.

But I digress…the Portland bicyclist is polite and courteous. Biking in Portland is equally pleasurable. The city is immensely bike-able (other than for wusses like me). Bike lanes are a-plenty, and the city is going even further in making Portland super-bike-friendly with bike boxes at intersections.

I went to the city’s transportation website and requested a bunch of maps, information on biking, and even bumper stickers for both my bike and my car that state how much I “share the road.” If you too would like to see the online maps or request paper versions, check out this website link. There are maps for the whole city as well as the quadrants. The maps even feature walking tours. How cute is that…

Ah, TriMet. Truthfully speaking, the public transit in Portland is tops! Absolute tops! Well, ok, it could run a little later on some of the main lines, but I understand that this is really not a “late night” kind of town. That is really my only gripe about TriMet. Well, the only gripe that TriMet can do anything about…

So I have noticed a certain universal seating chart on most buses in this town. It seems that the front of the bus, unless occupied by moms with strollers, seems to be the seat of choice for crazy people. Let me define crazy. They may or may not be homeless, they may or may not be clean and relatively well-groomed, but they are definitely crazy for conversation. With you, themselves, the bus driver, some odd voice they hear in their heads.

I was riding the 17 Holgate the other day, in the late afternoon, and maybe it was just because the traffic was bad downtown, but I heard an old man tell anyone listening that he had been to Johnny Cash’s house in Tennessee back in the day. He also sang an original song which he had sang to Cash during the visit. Now, this wouldn’t be so bad, except that I heard the story twice. In its entirety.

Now, the heart of the matter is that the old man was lonely, and he used the bus to gain an audience. See, crazy doesn’t always mean dangerous. There are many of this type of crazy riding the TriMet on a daily basis. If you don’t have the patience to either listen or pretend to listen, you should seek a seat farther back on the bus.

However, though I prefer the back of the bus, actually the second seat on the driver side behind the door is my personal fav, sometimes the back of the bus has the crazy people. Or worse yet, teenagers. Cue ominous music.

So my best advice is to shoot for the middle of the bus. It’s usually quiet there, and there is sufficient light by which to read. Because in Portland, everyone reads on the bus. And if you do talk on your cell phone, be aware that no one else is, so keep your voice down. Unless I am sitting next to you, because I am an unabashed eavesdropper, and so are most people.

In fact, to the girl who was sitting behind me earlier last week, I hope that your “date” that took you to see Bela Fleck didn’t get the wrong idea since you did agree to accept his invitation, even though you have no inclination to date him at all. You were just using him to go to the show…I hope he took it well when you didn’t kiss him goodnight.

Peace.

Portland, TriMet, public transit, Holgate, Johnny Cash, Bela Fleck

I remember once when I was in high school, my parents took a trip to San Francisco. I had been the Southern California a few times, but never San Fran, so naturally, I wanted to go. But no, I had school, and too many absenses already, so instead of waiting for Spring Break, my parents took off without me. Something about frequent flier miles or some other little lie to prevent me from crashing their party. I understand it now, but back then, I pouted. My dad reported that San Francisco was pretty dirty and “full of bums.”

When I finally made it to San Francisco, I had to agree with the old man. There were a lot of homeless people. I had studied the homeless problem, exacerbated when Reagan shut down the state mental hospitals in the 80’s, so I considered myself empathetic and wouldn’t reduce the homeless population to an invisible sector of society. But getting hit up for change constantly does wear on your soul after a while.

Chicago had its fair share of the homeless, and I knew how to avoid some of them after a while. I know, I know, how deplorable to try and avoid the homeless, but a quarter here and there is not going to change anything for them. Something much bigger must happen for that.

Anyway, the point of today’s post is not the politics of homelessness, but instead a musing on which cities have large homeless populations, and how Portland, Oregon stacks up. Speaking from personal experience, Portland has a visible and plentiful homeless population. Under the ramp to get on the Ross Island Bridge from the West side of town, there seems to be a permanent emcampment, and a very sad, very dirty man living there. There may be roommates, but he is the only one I have seen regularly.

Why not pick Portland if you are homeless? The weather is temperate, lots of liberals that rock out the handouts, and lots of parks.

The only problem I have is that I have a hard time telling who is homeless in this town. The homeless seem fairly clean and well-dressed for the most part, much like the San Francisco homeless. Portland is definitely not known for a well-groomed and -dressed populace, so picking out the real bums from the fake is kind of a fun little game while waiting for the bus.

By the way, the worst city I have visited when it comes to high numbers of homelessness seems to be Washington, D.C. There are literally dozens of campsites in parks within throwing distance from the Capitol and the White House. Very sad that the wealthiest nation in the world could have such abject poverty in plain sight. It made me think of “Hoovervilles” from the Great Depression Era.

Another sad graph. I wonder if these numbers will go up with the current housing crisis.

Portland, Oregon, San Francisco, Homeless, Reagan, Chicago, Washington DC, Hoovervilles

I ride Tri-Met’s public transit all the time and tonight a classmate and I got to discussing the insanity that we’ve seen on either the streetcar, the MAX or even the busses. We both used to frequently ride the #8 bus up to Oregon Health & Science Unversity which lead to some good stories (and then the quote; “I feel bad, we just laughed about crazy veterans.”), but other Portlanders who have ridden that bus absolutely understand, I am sure.

We were briefly mentioning things that people on public transit should be aware of … etiquette-wise and I thought I would share some of our random observations from the evening.

1. Let people off the vehicle before you get on. The driver is not going to close the door as soon as everyone disembarks … he or she has to wait for you to get on, I am pretty sure they are trained this way.

2. There is no need to stand RIGHT in front of any of the doors the entire time you are going. There was a man on the streetcar tonight standing right in front of the front door and every time someone needed to get on or off of the streetcar, he heaved a huge sigh, stepped either off the streetcar or back into the aisle and then clomped back to his spot. He did this for EIGHT stops. I was amused watching him, but people getting on and off the streetcar were not too pleased.

3. Let the old lady have your seat! I was on the inside of the seats tonight and a young man was sitting next to me. An elderly lady boarded at 10th and Glisan and needed a seat. The guy did not move. When I went to move, he stared at me like I was the annoying one. The lady was grateful that I gave her my seat, but I think the guy next to me was really pissed off that he had to stand up for a whole 15 seconds!

Then there are the:
endless-talkers: they talk to you from the time they get on until one of you leaves … this morning it was a woman telling my seat-mate all about LOST and how great it was. I agree, but I do not feel the need to tell everyone!
seat-changers: they get up and move as soon as a seat is empty … even if it’s the entire vehicle away. I am pretty sure you had a seat. Stay there.
cell-phone talkers: I really do not care about your drunk weekend and your lost panties. I’m pretty sure the pervert staring at you right now does though!
my bag needs a seat-people: move your bag … it doesn’t need it’s own seat!

Who else do you see on Tri-Met?

About Portland OR, Portland OR, Portland, Tri-met, bus, riding the bus, streetcar, MAX, public transit ettiquette

I love the bridges in Portland. Moving on to number seven I thought I’d talk a bit about the bridges in Portland. My favorite is the Fremont Bridge and especially driving over it at nighttime back into NW Portland. B-E-A utiful!

With a little help from some fellow DamnPortlanders, I made sure I had the entire list of “major” Portland Bridges. Ten of ‘em and a few lines about or a picture of each!

Fremont Bridge - my favorite, newest to Portland (1973), gorgeous at nighttime! (The picture at the top of this entry is my Fremont Bridge.)

Burnside Bridge - marks the absolute center of Portland, done in 1926 and is the dividing line between North & South Portland

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Moving down the list of 10 Things I Love About Portland I get to the fact that “I love driving in Portland.” Yeah, I do. It sounds crazy, and probably really is, but I don’t mind the traffic, being flipped off for using my turn signal or the Sunday drivers on the way to the coast.

I love to drive in Portland because it allows me to see the city. I look at everything when I drive, am a very observant driver, and love to listen to music. So, being “stuck” in my car isn’t a bad thing for me! However, for most people in Portland, this isn’t the case. So, you want to avoid traffic in Portland?

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