When will the Portland 2025 Deadly Traffic Crash Report be available?
Each winter, Vision Zero staff evaluate and analyze the previous calendar year's deadly traffic crashes in Portland and reports on local trends.
Understanding the circumstances and factors associated with the loss of each life is core to our work. The people who have died on Portland's streets were children, parents, siblings, aunts and uncles, neighbors, and friends. Their lives were cut short. Their loss has left gaping holes in the hearts of those who knew them and loved them.
The city expects to publish a final deadly traffic crash report with preliminary 2025 figures in the first three months of 2026. Vision Zero staff analyze all deadly and serious injury crashes for all modes — pedestrians, people on bikes, people on motorcycles, and people in motor vehicles. The program also analyzes all other crashes involving pedestrians and people on bikes, regardless of severity.
Learn more about Annual Deadly Traffic Crash Report
How to get the latest deadly crash information
To learn about deadly crashes in a timely manner sign up for Portland Police Bureau news releases via email. The news releases include updates on deadly crashes as well as public safety, critical incidents, and efforts to build trust and transparency.
Sign up for Portland Police Bureau news releases
Preliminary deadly crash data updated monthly
Also available is the Vision Zero dashboard, which provides crash statistics on all deadly and serious injury crashes and all other crashes involving pedestrians and people on bikes, regardless of severity. Additionally, the Vision Zero dashboard displays information about traffic safety improvements from the past five to 10 years and data relating to performance measures. Preliminary deadly crash data is updated monthly, while other data is updated quarterly or annually, based on availability.
Access the Vision Zero dashboard
People-focused safety interventions at Portland's highest crash intersections
Vision Zero uses a Safe System approach to prevent traffic deaths and serious injuries. That approach includes safe speeds, safe streets, safe people, safe vehicles, and post-crash response. Data shows that certain factors have outsized impacts to traffic safety. In the winter, visibility is one we pay particular attention to as more travel happens in darker conditions.
Safe people means we share responsibility
"Safe people" means we all share responsibility for keeping ourselves and others safe on Portland streets. The Vision Zero Action Plan Update 2023-25 outlines actions that support this goal, including education, community engagement, and tools that help people travel more safely. The Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) has already completed several of these actions, including the Beyond Traffic Safety: Building community belonging and safety in public spaces report and toolkit, which helps PBOT and community partners incorporate personal safety into street projects and public space programming.
Focusing on communities most impacted by traffic violence
This winter, PBOT is continuing work that focuses on communities disproportionately impacted by traffic violence, including East Portland. Many of Portland's highest-crash intersections are located in East Portland and typically it experiences a higher rate of traffic deaths than the rest of the city.
Low visibility is another major risk factor, especially for people walking, biking, rolling, and accessing transit at night. In 2024, 83% percent of traffic deaths and 86% of pedestrian deaths occurred in nighttime conditions, from dusk to dawn. Five-year averages show similar trends, with 74% and 87% respectively. These numbers help explain why PBOT is prioritizing visibility improvements across the city.
Light up the night for safety
Improving visibility is a critical step in preventing deadly crashes. This winter, Vision Zero staff and volunteers are returning to Portland streets to distribute handheld safety lights, reflectors, and safety information directly to community members. Teams are also sharing positive, safety-focused messages with people driving motor vehicles who are stopped at signals. Outreach is happening at several high-crash intersections in East Portland, including:
- NE 122nd Avenue and E Burnside Street
- NE 122nd Avenue and Glisan Street
- SE 122nd Avenue and Division Street
- SE 122nd Avenue and Powell Boulevard
- SE Stark and 122nd Avenue
- SE Stark and 143rd Avenue
- NE 82nd Avenue and Jonesmore Street
The effort kicked off on New Year's Eve at NE 122nd Avenue and E Burnside Street, where community partners, including Cultivate Initiatives, requested lights and reflective gear for residents of the nearby Menlo Park Safe Rest Village. PBOT will continue outreach and visibility efforts at high-crash locations through January and February.
Long-term visibility investments on high-crash streets
PBOT's work to improve visibility goes beyond short-term outreach. Long-term investments include:
- Investing more than $16.5 million in street lighting improvements on Portland's highest-crash streets and intersections.
- Managing over 50,000 LED streetlights citywide, which provide better illumination and use about 50% less energy than older lights.
- Improving signal visibility by replacing older 8-inch lenses with standard 12-inch lenses and adding retroreflective yellow borders to signal backboards.
- Restriping the entire High Crash Network with more reflective materials to make lane markings easier to see at night.
- Installing 32,000 new, high-visibility street name signs across Portland.
Together, these short- and long-term efforts help reduce crashes in dark conditions and support Portland's Vision Zero goal to eliminate traffic deaths and serious injuries.
Learn more about Vision Zero's Safe System approach
Vision Zero dashboard: How to find traffic safety data in Portland
The Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) created the Vision Zero dashboard to share clear, up-to-date information about its work to eliminate traffic deaths and serious injuries. The dashboard shows data about efforts to reduce speeding, improve street design, help people travel safely — as well as summarize citywide traffic crash data.
PBOT recently shared a video of Alyssa Pichardo, Vision Zero Data Analyst, explaining how to use the dashboard and what information is available, including:
- Safer streets projects and safety infrastructure
- Speed limit reductions
- Safety camera violations and traffic citations
- Traffic crash trends and statistics
Staff update the dashboard regularly. Preliminary deadly crash data is updated monthly. Other datasets are updated quarterly or annually, depending on when information becomes available. The dashboard also links to detailed crash data from the Oregon Department of Transportation and Portland Police Bureau.
Learn more about how to use the Vision Zero dashboard
PBOT sponsored more than 2,380 Safe Ride Home trips in December
On New Year's Eve, the Portland Bureau of Transportation's Safe Ride Home program helped thousands of people get home safely through more than 1,900 discounted rides. Earlier in the month, the program provided more than 260 rides during Portland SantaCon. In all, that's more than 2,380 safe rides in December.
Want to know how to get a Safe Ride Home coupon? Check the program webpage for events throughout the year. The next event will be Saint Patrick's Day in March.
Safe Ride Home helps reduce impaired driving, a top contributing factor to traffic deaths on Portland streets. From 2019 to 2023, 70% of deadly crashes in Portland involved alcohol and/or drugs. In that same period, 470 people died or suffered life-altering injuries in crashes involving impairment.
The program began in 2017 and offers discounted ride options for people celebrating certain holidays and at events where people may be drinking. The program is partially funded by the permit charges to taxi companies and the city fee charged for every Uber and Lyft ride taken in Portland. These fees also pay for safety inspections and the PDX WAV program, which seeks to improve service for people who use a wheelchair or mobility device traveling in Portland.
Learn more about Safe Ride Home
Ask a PBOT expert
Our Vision Zero inbox is filled with thoughtful questions from community members about traffic safety — and our team strives to provide equally thoughtful answers. These exchanges often spark meaningful conversations, and we believe they deserve a bigger audience! That's why we're sharing some of these questions and answers in our newsletter, edited for clarity and brevity, to highlight insights and ideas that benefit us all.
Question: Why do traffic deaths seem to increase in the winter months?
Answer: Pedestrian traffic deaths tend to rise in the winter months with dark, low-visibility conditions. As daylight hours shrink, a greater share of trips happen between dusk and dawn when people driving motor vehicles are less likely see people in the roadways in time to stop. Research shows that pedestrian deaths at night have been rising for years, especially on wide, high-speed streets where speed, poor visibility, and distraction make nighttime crashes more likely and more severe.
In Portland, the data reflects this risk. Pedestrian crashes increase sharply as days get shorter. Over the last 10 years, Portland averaged 14 pedestrian crashes of all severity levels in July compared to 27 in December.
Together, darker conditions and reduced visibility compounded with existing risk factors of higher speeds and impairment further increase risk in the winter months. That increased risk means it's even more crucial for everyone traveling — whether driving motor vehicles, biking, walking, rolling, or taking transit — to slow down, stay alert, and take extra care when visibility is limited.
The Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) is addressing these risks by improving visibility on Portland's highest-crash streets. Investments in street lighting, signal visibility, more reflective lane striping, and high-visibility signs support Portland's Vision Zero goal to eliminate traffic deaths and serious injuries. Together, these improvements help reduce crashes in dark conditions and make Portland's streets safer for everyone, year-round.
Learn more about how we're making street safer through Vision Zero
Speed limit changes
The Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) is updating speed limits citywide to set safe travel speeds. Why? Because speed is a top contributing factor to traffic deaths. Safe speeds lower the risk of crashes, and when crashes occur, safe speeds make it less likely that people are killed or seriously injured. We track speed limit changes online.
Recent changes
Locations where PBOT reduced the speed limit in the past three months.
35 to 30 mph
- N Schmeer Road from Interstate to Vancouver avenues
30 to 25 mph
- SE 92nd Avenue from Stark Street to 91st Place
- SE 92nd Avenue from Lincoln Street to 91st Place
25 to 20 mph
- N Russell Street from Interstate to Kerby avenues
Upcoming changes
Locations where PBOT recently received approval from the Oregon Department of Transportation to reduce the speed limit. PBOT will post new speed limit signs in the upcoming months.
45 to 40 mph
- SE McLoughlin Boulevard from Franklin to Harold streets
- NE Lombard/Killingsworth streets from 450' east of 82nd Avenue to Sandy Boulevard
45 to 35 mph
- NE Lombard/Killingsworth streets from 82nd Ave to 450' east of 82nd Avenue
40 to 35 mph
- N Columbia Boulevard from Portsmouth Avenue to Upland Drive
40 to 30 mph
- 138th Avenue from Marine Drive to Sandy Boulevard
35 to 30 mph
- N Whitaker Way from 122nd to 138th avenues
- SW Bertha Boulevard from Barbur Boulevard to Chestnut Drive
30 to 25 mph
- NE Killingsworth Street from 42nd Avenue to Lombard Street
- N Mississippi Avenue from Cook to Russell streets
- SE Division Street from Third to Eighth avenues
- SE Thorburn Street and Gilham Avenue to Washington Street and I-205
Establish 25 mph speed limit
- NE Holman Street from 80th Avenue to 82nd Avenue Frontage Road
- NE 82nd Avenue Frontage Road from Holman Street to 82nd Avenue
25 to 20 mph
- SE Belmont Street from Grand to 49th avenues
- S Corbett Avenue from Grover to Hamilton streets
Learn more about speed limit changes in Portland
High Crash Network safety projects
Portland Bureau of Transportation prioritizes safety investments on our highest crash streets and intersections in areas with higher proportions of people of color and people living with lower incomes. In 2024, 71% of traffic deaths occurred on the High Crash Network. We track recently completed and currently under construction High Crash Network projects online.
Learn more about High Crash Network safety projects
Learn more about Portland's Transportation System Development Charges
Portland's Transportation System Development Charges (TSDCs) are one-time fees paid by developers that the city invests in transportation projects. These improvements support growth and make streets safer for everyone traveling in Portland. Since 2017, more than $79 million in TSDC revenue has helped deliver major capital projects citywide and leverage millions more in state and federal transportation grants.
The Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) updates the TSDC program every 10 years. The 2027 update will focus on balancing Portland's need for new development, especially housing, with the need for added capacity in the transportation system. PBOT will engage community members, technical experts, and the development community to shape the update.
Stay informed about Portland's Transportation System Development Charge
Get home safe: Snow and ice travel tips
During winter storms, crews with the Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) work 24/7 to clear hazards from city streets and keep emergency routes open. Before the storm arrives, plan for winter weather:
- Create an emergency plan for winter with family and co-workers. Plan to work from home if you can or take public transit.
- Make a checklist for your home, business, and vehicle. Have ice melt and snow shovels ready to clear sidewalks. Consider overhead dangers such as trees or powerlines. Be prepared to keep ditches, culverts, and trash racks clear of debris if your home or business is in an area prone to landslides. Carry snow chains for your vehicles.
- Stay informed. Sign up for PBOT alerts via text or email. Follow @PBOTInfo on all social media. Visit PBOT's Guide to the Winter Weather Center to learn how to track the latest weather, traffic, road closure, and snowplow information.
- Stock up on food, water, clothes, and medications you, your family, your pets, or your business will need in case you are stranded by winter weather — at home or in your vehicle.
- Check in with vulnerable neighbors who may need help ahead of a storm or clearing their sidewalks afterward.
- Prepare to move your car off PBOT's "snow and ice" routes to give room for snowplows and other equipment.
Learn more about how to plan for winter weather
Use ranked-choice voting to select the next five snowplow names
For the second year in a row, Portland Bureau of Transportation and the Portland City Elections Division are teaming up to name five more snowplows in the annual Snowplow Naming Contest. Now, they need your help to vote for the top names. Practice your ranked-choice voting skills to rank your favorite snowplow names. Choose your top six names out of 20 — the top five names will be chosen. Vote between now and Sunday, January 25 at 5 p.m. Choose wisely, you can only vote once! Winners will be announced the first week of February.
Learn more about the PBOT Snowplow Naming Contest
Access the latest deadly crash data
Our Vision Zero dashboard provides an overview of traffic safety improvements from the past five to 10 years — as well as data relating to our performance measures. Staff update the dashboard regularly. Preliminary deadly crash data is updated monthly, while other data is updated quarterly or annually, based on availability.
Learn more about the Vision Zero dashboard
Remember to say crash, not accident!
We want to change the way we talk about crashes and remind each other that they are predictable and preventable. A Vision Zero approach refuses to accept the idea that crashes are inevitable. That's why we're saying crash, not accident! Will you join us?
Learn more about why we say crash, not accident
Free Vision Zero materials and yard signs
Help educate the people in your community about Vision Zero, Portland's commitment to eliminate serious and fatal traffic injuries. Order and receive reflective stickers and pins, brochures, and fliers in the mail or pick-up a yard sign. Materials are available in English, Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, Lao, Romanian, Russian, Somali, Spanish, Ukrainian, and Vietnamese.
Return of "20 is plenty" yard signs!
You loved them, and now they're back! Come get your "20 is plenty" yard sign at the Portland Building (1120 SW Fifth Ave.) Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
20 mph speed limit supports safety
Most residential streets in Portland are narrow, have few marked crosswalks, and no bike lanes. Given the neighborhood use and lack of protection for people walking, using mobility devices, and biking, it is important that people drive slowly on residential streets.
Slower speeds lower the risk of crashes. When crashes occur, slower speeds make it less likely that people are killed or seriously injured. A pedestrian struck by a person driving 20 mph is four times more likely to survive than a pedestrian struck at 40 mph.
Learn more about how to get free Vision Zero materials
Personal safety community resources
We want to help create a transportation system that allows all people to feel safe getting where they need to go. We put together free, accessible personal safety resources for community members, including how to report anon-urgent traffic safety concern, report bias and hate, participate in a self-defense workshop, and more.
Learn more about personal safety community resources
What we're reading
- Austin sees 46% drop in pedestrian crashes after left-turn safety pilot (Community Impact)
- Dallas traffic fatalities fall by nearly half in 2025 (Dallas Observer)
- Kansas City saw traffic deaths drop by 30% in 2025. Its effort to make roads safer is working (NPR)
- Drop in SF traffic deaths last year was largest in 10 years (San Francisco Examiner)
- Traffic deaths surge in Denver (Axios)
- Confirmed: Non-driving infrastructure creates ‘induced demand,' too (Streetsblog)
- Crash data reveals how dangerous riding a motorcycle can be compared to driving a car (Jalopnik)
- When it comes to US transportation, 2025 had some wins, too (Bloomberg CityLab)
- States invest in public health and safety through transportation policy (Association of State and Territorial Health Officials)
- Communication strategies to improve roadway safety (American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials)
Parts of this document were edited with the support of ChatGPT. City staff reviewed and fact-checked all content.