The Portland Bureau of Transportation is making an attempt out a brand new technique to encourage individuals to commute downtown by biking, strolling or public transit: free espresso. Each Wednesday morning in March and April, PBOT employees will maintain a pop-up someplace downtown with espresso and $50 Kuto present card credit for anybody who traveled downtown and not using a automobile.
PBOT’s “Journey Each Wednesday” initiative is a part of Right here for Portland’s bigger “Each Wednesday” program, which intends to focus on Wednesday occasions taking place in Portland’s central metropolis to encourage individuals to get out of the home and go to some locations downtown that might use some love.
“‘Each Wednesday’ is a brand new custom we hope you’ll embrace,” the Right here for Portland web site states. “It’s a collection of perks and pop-up occasions to brighten up your midweek and make your time on the town as enjoyable and productive as potential.”
Realizing the divisive reactions which might be fast to observe most discussions about downtown Portland, Right here for Portland provides a disclaimer about their new initiative:
“Each Wednesday just isn’t a cover-up or Band-Assist for the very actual challenges going through our metropolis. Revitalization requires structural change,” the web site says. “However on the similar time, we acknowledge change is simply potential if individuals present up and spend time in affected neighborhoods.”
It’s good to see PBOT encouraging individuals to commute with energetic transportation — although it may not look like a lot, some free caffeine actually generally is a game-changer for overcoming your late-winter hump-day blues. Nevertheless, given this initiative is going on within the midst of a regarding decline in bike ridership, one wonders if applications like this may actually make a dent. Like Right here for Portland stated, revitalization requires structural change, not simply espresso pop-ups.
At a Bicycle Advisory Committee (BAC) assembly earlier this month, members mentioned methods to immediate PBOT to extra assertively incentivize biking for transportation, and the way doing this would possibly imply some laborious choices for the bureau.
“It doesn’t look like there’s a lack of awareness on PBOT’s half [about declining bike ridership],” BAC member David Stein stated. “It’s extra the the willingness to exit and do work which may not initially be politically common.”
There’s additionally the query of how many individuals are literally bodily commuting downtown given the prevalence of working from house. On the February assembly, BAC Vice Chair Joseph Perez requested whether or not PBOT ought to rethink how they measure bike ridership within the age of distant work.
“It’s considerably difficult to conceptualize that ridership is definitely declining in Portland if persons are working from house and never commuting to work,” Perez stated. “So why are we completely measuring commuting relative to Portland ridership?”
Advocates assume ways like closing streets off to vehicles on a weekly or month-to-month foundation and enhancing security for individuals strolling and biking could be the best measures for reversing declining bike ridership. It’s an ongoing downside on which the BAC will proceed to focus. However hey — I’m positive they wouldn’t say no to free espresso, too.
So, again to the espresso: PBOT will maintain the kickoff “Journey Each Wednesday” occasion this Wednesday, March 1st. You’ll have the ability to seize espresso and obtain the Kuto present card from 7:30 to 10:00 am on the Congress Heart at 1001 SW fifth Ave. Discover out extra about this system at PBOT’s web site.
Taylor has been BikePortland’s employees author since November 2021. She has additionally written for Road Roots and Eugene Weekly. Contact her at taylorgriggswriter@gmail.com
