On September 13th, 2024, the Oregon Trails Coalition hosted approximately 75 elected leaders, agency leaders, and community leaders for a bike ride through Greater Beaverton to:
See inspiring community and regional trail segments including sections of the Waterhouse Trail, Westside Trail, and Fanno Creek Trail
Learn about how community investments came to be including recently completed projects like the Western Avenue Cycle Track and works in progress like the Beaverton Downtown Loop and TV Highway transit improvements
Experience firsthand some of the tougher gaps in the network, including challenging crossings of Cornell Rd and Highway 26, TV Highway, and Farmington Rd., and talk about opportunities for future collaboration and investment in our regional network
Talk with local champions of green community investments and elected leaders including Congresswoman Bonamici, Beaverton Mayor Beaty, Metro Council President Lynn Peterson, Metro Councilor Christine Lewis, and City Council members from Beaverton, Tigard, and Milwaukie.
Want to ride the route? 2024 Policy Makers Ride Route on Ride with GPS
The Policy Makers Ride has a long tradition of inspiring new collaboration toward bold goals by bringing together elected leaders, the agency leaders charged with implementing projects, and community leaders advocating for the changes to the built environment that local families need to thrive.
Emcee, Will Cortez, encouraged everyone present to think of everything they learned and gained on the ride as like food foraged for a meal. The work ahead is for everyone to collaborate in using all that good food to cook a nourishing community feast.
“It feels especially important to bring the Policy Makers Ride back now as we anticipate major statewide transportation legislation in the coming year. As we revisit how we fund our transportation networks, we have the opportunity to meaningfully invest in Oregon Community Paths in a way that could be transformative for families in our communities seeking safe places to walk, bike, and skate together.” - Steph Noll, Oregon Trails Coalition
ODOT-managed Oregon Community Paths, the program dedicated to helping communities create and maintain connections through multi-use paths, was oversubscribed by more than four to one over its first two funding cycles.
Thanks to all our speakers:
Beaverton Mayor Lacey Beaty
Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici
Shawne Martinez, Ride Westside
Will Cortez, Metro and BikePOC PNW
Stevie Moe, Push Movement Recovery
Tina Ricks, transportation advocate and local mom
Gery Keck, Bruce Barbarash, and Nicole Paulsen, THPRD
Steph Noll, Oregon Trails Coalition
Felicita Monteblanco, THPRD Board
Charlotte Trowbridge, Tualatin Soil and Water Conservation District
Tim Elsea, Beaverton Public Works Director
Bernadette Le, TriMet
Jordan Del Valle Tonoian, Westside Transportation Alliance
Tiffany Gehrke, Principal Transportation Planner, City of Tigard
This year’s event was hosted by the Oregon Trails Coalition, with support from Metro, TriMet, Parametrix, Bike Summer, and Westside Transportation Alliance and planned by a steering committee representing the City of Beaverton, Bike Summer, The Intertwine Alliance, Metro, Tualatin Hills Park & Recreation District, The Street Trust, Better Block PDX, ReBorn Bikes, Ride Westside, and Verde. It was made delicious by local food and drink providers: Donut King, Brickhaus Coffee, Ome Calli Frozen Treats, and BG's Food Cartel.
The event, last held in 2019, was brought back with the blessing of its originators, Jonathan Nicholas and Mike Houck of The Intertwine Alliance and Urban Greenspaces Institute.
All Photos Courtesy of Jonathan Maus at BikePortland.org.
From Top Left: Cyclists ride past "Welcome to Downtown Beaverton" sign; Congresswoman Bonamici addresses the crowd in front a cargo bike painted with 'Safe Streets for All'; Beaverton Mayor Beaty addresses the crowd; the crowd riding down the Westside Path segment adjacent to 158th with Indi Namkoong, Verde in foreground; emcee Will Cortez of Metro and BikePOC PNW address the crowd; the crowd gathers at the starting location; Zachary Lauritzen of Oregon Walks and ride co-founder, Jonathan Nicholas ride in the crowd; riders on the boardwalk section of the Waterhouse community trail led by a member of the Beaverton Bicycle Advisory Committee; Tina Ricks and fellow advocates tell the crowd about the very difficult crossing of Highway 26 and Cornell Rd for folks using the Waterhouse Trail; Randy Miller of The Street Trust and AAA Boards checks out THPRD visuals of a proposed new Highway 26 crossing and Westside Trail segment; folks on foot check out the current Highway 26 crossing; Oregon Trails Coalition Director, Steph Noll, addresses the crowd; Tara Wilkinson of The Intertwine Alliance; Beaverton Bicycling Advocates; Meghan Sinnot of Bike Summer; Shawn Martinez of Cycle Oregon and Ride Westside and Bruce Barbarasch of THPRD; riders pause by an Oak Tree along the Westside Trail; retired Metro Trail Planner, Mel Huie on an e-bike provide by WTA; riders chat along a section of the Westside Trail through a power line corridor; Bruce Barbarasch of THPRD and Jonathan Blasher, Metro Parks and Nature Director chat on the Waterhouse Trail; the group rides down the Westside Trail.
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