We all want great communities where our children can safely walk to school, where the elderly and infirm have sufficient transportation options to attend medical appointments, where workers can afford their commute, and where our global warming impact is small.
Unfortunately, nearly 50% of our state highways through our cities lack sidewalks (not to mention other streets), 25% of Oregonians cannot drive, gasoline prices continue to rise, and the transportation system contributes more than a third of Oregon’s global warming pollution.
The solution is to plan our cities to be better places to live. By connecting the way we travel to where we live, our local governments can help build great cities. Cities where you can walk to the local grocery store. Where kids can walk to the local park. Where seniors and the disabled can ride on buses and light rail to visit friends and family. Where more employees and customers can arrive to work and shops by less expensive means. And where we drive less and pollute fewer greenhouse gases.
These towns and neighborhoods will be focused on friendly streets and sidewalks – like Joseph in Eastern Oregon or the Pearl District in Portland – and they will be connected to other towns and neighborhoods by buses, streetcars, light rail, and high speed rail. Each town and city will continue to highlight its own unique personality based on each community’s decisions.
Planning Climate-Friendly Cities
Environment Oregon worked in 2009 and 2010 to pass strong planning requirements for our state's largest city-regions in order for these places to reduce transportation-related global warming pollution 50% by 2035. Portland is now required to meet this standard. The city-regions of Salem-Keizer, Corvallis-Albany, Eugene-Springfield, Medford-Ashland, and Bend-Redmond are also required to begin the planning to meet this standard. Further legislation will be required for the plans in these five cities to be implemented.
Funding Local Transportation Options
We know that for too many people driving is either not an option or is too costly, not to mention also too polluting. We need to increase transportation options -- sidewalks, bikeways, buses, streetcars, and light rail. A big part of the problem are state constitutional and federal regulatory restrictions that constrain how much money we can spend on non-highway infrastructure. By securing new dedicated funds for transit for seniors and people with disabilities, using all available federal funding for non-highway projects, increasing the transit payroll tax, and increasing the bike set-aside funds, we can build a 21st Century transportation system for Oregon communities.
Building Fast Trains Now
Imagine being able to go from Portland to Eugene in 45 minutes, and Portland to Seattle in 2 hours. Now, think a nearly silent ride, fully electric powered by solar panels along the tracks. That's what high speed rail can do. Whether the train is powered by diesel or the sun, high speed rail can make a big difference in reducing global warming pollution and our dependency on oil and cars.
