January 24 2021
Work on the Flanders Crossing in Northwest Portland is expected to be completed in the spring.
Crews finished work early on the bike and pedestrian bridge over Interstate 405, leading to the reopening of both directions of the freeway Sunday morning, Jan. 24.
The Flanders Crossing connects Northwest Portland with the Pearl District and the central city over I-405.
A stretch of freeway through the area had been closed since Friday morning and was not slated to reopen until Monday, Jan. 25.
Designed for two-way pedestrian and bike traffic, the bridge adds a seismic lifeline in the case of a major earthquake. As part of the Portland Bureau of Transportation s design for the project, there will be new traffic signals at Northwest 14th and 16th avenues, along with a four-way stop sign at 15th Avenue.
I-405 reopens after Flanders Crossing installation; pedestrian, bike bridge to open this spring
Updated Jan 24, 2021;
Interstate 405 is now open in both directions after it was closed Friday evening for the installation of Portland’s new pedestrian and bicycle bridge.
Construction of the 355,000-pound Flanders Crossing began in June 2020, and the bridge span and was installed over the freeway Saturday. The bridge is 24 feet wide and designed for two-way pedestrian and bike traffic.
It spans I-405 at Northwest Flanders Street and is part of a “Neighborhood Greenway route” connecting Northwest Portland, the Pearl District, Old Town Chinatown and downtown, according to the project site.
January 22 2021
Three people with Portland Bureau of Transportation experience have been appointed to position in the President Biden administration.
President Joe Biden has appointed people with Portland Bureau of Transportation experience to positions in his administration.
One is Irene Marion, who most recently served as PBOT s equity and inclusion manager. She has been appointed to serve as director of the Departmental Office of Civil Rights for the U.S. Department of Transportation.
Another is Maurice Henderson, who formerly served as PBOT assistant director and chief of staff to Mayor Ted Wheeler, who has been appointed senior adviser to the U.S. Department of Transportation.
Jan 20, 2021
Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) crews reopened West Burnside at about 5:15 p.m. today, after clearing debris from a recent landslide and working to make the area safe from imminent risk of additional slides. Crews from Portland General Electric, Portland Parks & Recreation, and PBOT worked through the Martin Luther King, Jr. Day holiday weekend to mitigate the issues caused by the landslide and reopen the road as soon as possible.
The closure was needed to clear a large landslide that came after a heavy rain-and-wind storm. At about 11 p.m. on Tuesday Jan. 12, a landslide pushed large trees and soil from Forest Park onto West Burnside. About a half dozen large trees were down, with others looming over the roadway. At least one tree was leaning on the Barbara Walker Crossing, Portland Parks & Recreation’s pedestrian bridge that opened in 2019 to safely connect the popular Wildwood Trail across West Burnside.