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crossing the Columbia River, where the

the world, found that neighborhoods with

three southbound lanes shrink to two

high homeownership rates tend to have

lanes for just 0.8 miles. The result is

higher unemployment rates than communi-

ties with high rental rates.70 High housing

huge traffic backups as all the Portland

workers who found affordable housing

prices make the cost of moving unaffordable,

in Vancouver try to get to work each

effectively immobilizing the population.

morning. Metro's 1995 transportation

Harvard economist Edward Glaeser has

plan estimated that it would cost only

found that growth management makes both

$10 million to add a third lane to this

housing prices and local employment rates

segment, but to this date nothing has

more volatile. "In the long run, firms general-

been done.77 In 1998, Henry Hewitt,

ly leave high-cost areas," says Glaeser, so

"places with rapid price increases over one

chair of the Oregon Transportation

five-year period are more likely to have

Commis-sion, told a legislative commit-

income and employment declines over the

tee that Metro had asked the depart-

next five-year period."71 It is not surprising,

ment not to fix the bottleneck.78

· U.S. Representative David Wu (D), who

then, that in much of 2001 and 2002

Portland had some of the highest unemploy-

represents west Portland, earmarked

ment rates of any major metropolitan area.72

federal funds to expand state highway

217, which may be the second-most

congested freeway in the Portland area

Problem #2: Congestion

after I-5. Metro turned the money

down, saying it had other priorities.79

· Portland's 82-year-old Sellwood Bridge,

Between 1982 and 2003, the amount of

time the average commuter wasted in traffic

the busiest two-lane bridge in Oregon,

increased more rapidly in Portland than in

is structurally failing and was closed to

Atlanta, Boston, Denver, Los Angeles, New

trucks and buses in 2004. The Bechtel

York, Phoenix, or San Francisco--more, in

Corporation offered to replace the

fact, than in almost any other U.S. urban

bridge by 2010, but Metro and

area.73 This was not an unintended conse-

Multnomah County (which owns the

bridge) turned them down. Due to

quence of Portland's planning--in fact, it was

their lengthy planning processes, they

part of the plan.

don't even expect to begin construction

Increased congestion will "signal positive

before 2010.80 When they finally do,

urban development," says a 1996 report from

Portland's Metro.74 Three years later, Metro's

they almost certainly will not add

When U.S.

capacity for anything except bicycles.

regional transportation plan declared, "trans-

· Rather than increase roadway capacity,

portation solutions aimed solely at relieving

Representative

congestion are inappropriate."75 In fact, Metro

Portland is actively reducing the capac-

David Wu (D)

ity of many arterials and collectors to

has decided that "level of service F"--the trans-

earmarked funds

handle traffic. Speed humps and curb

portation engineer's term for near gridlock--is

extensions have been added to such

"acceptable" during rush hour throughout

to expand one of

collectors as Belmont and Stark streets,

most of the Portland area. Why? Because, says

the most congest-

while arterials such as Sandy, Barbur,

Metro's leading transportation planner, relieving

congestion "would eliminate transit ridership."76

ed freeways in

and McLoughlin have been slated for

boulevarding, also known as arterial

Following are just a few examples of how

Oregon,

traffic calming, which means removing

Portland planners are letting congestion increase.

Portland-area

right- and left-turn lanes.

· The biggest bottleneck in the Portland

planners turned

The Texas Transportation Institute esti-

area is on Interstate 5 between Portland

the money down.

mates that congestion cost Portland-area

and Vancouver, just south of the bridge

13