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Protecting human lives is core to Vision Zero, the goal to eliminate traffic deaths and serious injuries on Portland streets.
Portland's Vision Zero commitment
No person should die or be incapacitated from simply going about their day.
Vision Zero, the goal to eliminate traffic deaths and serious injuries, originated in Sweden in 1997 and made landfall in the U.S. in New York City in 2014.
Portland committed to this vision in the city’s original Vision Zero Action Plan (2016). We reaffirmed again in the Vision Zero Two-Year Update (2019) and in the Vision Zero Action Plan Update 2023-25.
Traffic deaths and serious injuries are preventable. We have the tools to reverse the trend of rising traffic violence. The Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) is committed to using every tool we have to slow speeds, save lives, and build a culture of shared responsibility.
Timeline
This timeline highlights many actions the City of Portland and PBOT have taken to advance our Vision Zero goal.
2015
- Portland City Council commits to Vision Zero
- State authorizes Portland to pilot speed safety cameras (HB 2621)
- PBOT issues protected bike lane directive
2016
- Portland City Council adopted the Vision Zero Action Plan, committing to:
- Prioritize investments in low-income communities and communities of color
- Not lead to racial profiling
- PBOT installed two speed safety cameras on SW Beaverton-Hillsdale Highway
2017
- SW Beaverton-Hillsdale Highway Multimodal Safety Project (30th Avenue to Shattuck Road)
- State authorized 20 mph residential streets in Portland (HB 2686)
- City launched speed safety camera diversion class in lieu of citation
- PBOT installed four speed safety cameras on SE 122nd Avenue and SE Division Street
2018
- Portland City Council enacted 20 mph residential speed limit (Ordinance 188774)
- City adopted guidelines for the spacing of pedestrian crossings
- PBOT adopted vision clearance guideline
- PBOT installed two speed safety cameras on NE Marine Drive
- Struck and 20 is Plenty campaigns
- Safe Ride Home DUI-prevention program
2019
- NE 102nd Avenue Corridor Safety Project (Weidler Street to Sandy Boulevard)
- NE Glisan Safety Project (122nd to 162nd avenues)
- Halsey-Weidler Streetscape Project (NE 102nd to 122th avenues)
- SW Capitol Highway Complete Streets Project (Huber Street to Kerr Parkway)
- PBOT piloted turn calming at 42 intersections
- High-visibility crosswalks become new standard
- PBOT adopted protected left turn guideline
- Sideguards required on all city heavy trucks
- "Thank You Crew" campaign encouraged safe driving
- PBOT updated the Vision Zero Action Plan
2020
- NE Broadway Bike and Safety Project (NE Hoyt to SW Oak streets)
- PSU 20 mph residential speed limit study finds safety benefit
- PBOT adopted turn calming as routine safety intervention
- State eliminated license suspension for failure to pay fines and feeds
- Community-led safe speed campaigns in five languages
2021
- Lombard Multimodal Safety Project (N Fiske to Boston avenues)
- SE Hawthorne Pave & Paint Project (23rd to 50th avenues)
- SE Hawthorne and Madison Multimodal Improvements (Grand to 12th avenues)
- Removed parking at 380 intersections on the High Crash Network for better visibility
- PBOT hired fellow to examine equitable traffic enforcement opportunities
- State granted Portland permanent use of speed safety cameras (HB 2530)
- PBOT re-issued protected bike lane directive
- Vision Zero dashboard launched to share progress on actions
2022
- NE Glisan Street Safety Project (102nd to 122nd avenues)
- SW Broadway Bike Improvements Project (Oak to Clay streets)
- Outer Division Safety Project (80th to 174th avenues)
- State allows local jurisdictions to apply for speed limit setting authority (pursuant HB 3055)
- State prohibited police stops for certain minor violations (SB 1510)
- For PBOT, PSU students studied safety for pedestrians living unhoused
- Slow the Flock Down campaign in partnership with Seattle
- Pedestrian head starts became standard on High Crash Network
- City installed two intersection safety cameras on SE Stark Street
2023
- Installed eight new speed safety cameras along High Crash Network
- Finished evaluating SE Hawthorne Boulevard Multimodal Improvements Pave & Paint Projects (bridge to 12th Avenue and 24th to 50th avenues)
- Secured $33.8 million in U.S. Department of Transportation funding for safety improvements on SE 122nd Avenue in East Portland and for replacing the Bugard Bridge in North Portland
- Completed construction on SW Capitol Highway - Multnomah Village to West Portland Project (Multnomah Boulevard to Taylors Ferry Road)
- Reconfigured lanes on E Burnside Street (Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard to 12th Avenue) to convert a through vehicle lane to a new business access and turn (BAT) lane.
- Completed the first round of critical fixes to 82nd Avenue, upgrading street lighting, adding high-visibility crosswalks to 22 intersections, and improving 561 signs to make them larger and easier to read, along with other fixes to improve visibility on existing median islands
- Started construction on more critical fixes to 82nd Avenue, improving crossings and adding lighting where the corridor crosses SE Ash, Beech, Klickitat, Schuyler, Clinton, and Schiller streets with more fixes planned
- Started construction on the Central Eastside Access and Circulation Project to add new signals along SE Sandy Boulevard and Salmon Street
- Engaged with hundreds of Portlanders in-person and virtually on topics ranging from personal safety and local project impacts to safe street design and traffic safety education
- Restarted bimonthly newsletter after a 1.5-year hiatus and increased engagement by 150%
- Drove the conversation about the negative impact large vehicles with higher front ends have on pedestrians and people biking. Pushed out primarily through social media and our newsletters, this sparked both a local and national conversation
- Petitioned the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration to require pedestrian safety technology before a vehicle gets a five-star safety rating.
- PBOT updated the Vision Zero Action Plan
2024
- Reduced speed limited on 23 miles of streets
- Installed 10 more safety cameras at crash hot spots
- Designed and installed new street lighting on several High Crash Network streets, including NE Halsey Street (144th to 162 avenues), 82nd Avenue (NE Killingsworth to SE Clatsop streets), and NE Glisan Street (82nd to 162 avenues)
- Installed red in red at SE Powell Boulevard and 28th Avenue
- Broke ground on major projects on High Crash Network:
- Building a Better 82nd
- SE Fourth Avenue Improvement Project
- NE Halsey Street Roadway Reorganization (70th to 80th avenues)
- SW Capitol Highway - Multnomah Village to West Portland Project (Multnomah Boulevard to Taylors Ferry Road)
- Began integrating the Safe System approach into PBOT processes
- Installed low-cost safety treatments near new temporary shelter site on N Portland road
- Released and updated evaluation reports for projects on High Crash Network:
- NE 102nd Avenue Safety Project (Weidler Street to Sandy Boulevard)
- East Burnside Bus and Bike Lane Improvements Project
- Outer Division Safety Project (SE 80th to 174th avenues)
- Developed Beyond Traffic Safety report with Division Midway Alliance and Coalition of Communities of Color
- Brought transportation safety education to students at three high schools and five middle schools
2025
- Reduced speed limited on 22 miles of streets
- Upgraded 25 existing safety cameras at crash hot spots
- Broke ground on major projects on High Crash Network:
- Attended 124 community events, conducted 31 safety trainings and workshops, and collaborated with 41 groups, community-based organizations and partner agencies
- Funded vision clearance at 18 schools
- Conducted traffic safety-focused workshops in partnership with six organizations representing immigrant, low-income, African American, and African immigrant communities
- Adjusted signal timing to slow driving speeds on SE Hawthorne Boulevard, NE Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, and NE Broadway
- Released and updated evaluation reports for projects on High Crash Network:
- NW and SW Broadway Bike Improvements Projects (NW Irving to SW Clay streets)
- Outer Division Safety Project (SE 80th to 174th avenues)
- SW Capitol Highway Project (Huber to Hidalgo streets)
- SE Hawthorne Boulevard Projects (bridge to 12th Avenue and 24th to 50th avenues)
- Completed expansion of no turn on red in the Northwest Pedestrian District, upgrading 15 intersections
- Installed at least 30 pedestrian head starts, 14 protected left turn signals, and larger 12" signal heads at seven intersection on street segments with a high concentration of crashes