Have you heard about Move EUG? It’s the City of Eugene’s new community planning project designed to identify and prioritize walking, biking, and safety programs and infrastructure projects. The first step of Move EUG is now underway! The Transportation Planning Team will be listening to community members this spring about their experience with walking, biking and safely getting around in Eugene.
The City wants to know how you think walking, biking, rolling and taking the bus can be more accessible and enjoyable, in addition to how you think all ways of travelling could be made safer for everyone. Share your project ideas and transportation experiences with City Transportation Planners at the Move EUG Open House on April 20th at the Farmer’s Market Pavilion downtown from 4:30pm – 7:00pm. Or visit the Move EUG Engage Eugene page to share your ideas and experiences via online tools: https://engage.eugene-or.gov/move-eug
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Thank you for reaching out. Here is my feedback.
Suggestion 1: Beltline – The “Wall of China”
We need to invest in a bridge or tunnel to create a safe pedestrian connection from Santa Clara to River Road. Beltline is like the Wall of China. It serves a great purpose for commuters, but is a major fortress that blocks off Santa Clara from the Eugene and RR community.
The current River Road passage (which lies underneath Beltline) is very tight, narrow and over-saturated with vehicle traffic. Sadly, it is also a magnet for the houseless. It’s stressful and unpleasant to drive under, regardless of the time of day or night. There is no immediate cure for that, but we definitely have the means to address pedestrian safety and well-being by providing an alternative access.
A tunnel that runs under Beltline and links the two communities, such as the one near the rose garden that runs under the Coburg Rd. bridge, would be most helpful, especially if well lit. This would significantly support high school children with their twice daily commute to and from school/home, as well as offer rollers and bikers a safe passage to the River Road community and shops. Security Guards and hidden cameras could be set up during school hours, if necessary. A pedestrian bridge over Beltline is another alternative, but honestly it seems very costly, intrusive and a small mountain to maneuver…possibly resulting in a potentially unpleasant experience. Not to mention the noise pollution factor. How often are the current bridges utilized? I see very little pedestrian use of either of the current, two pedestrian bridges.
Allowing for easy, traffic free access would allow for bikes, pedestrians and families to cross into both neighborhoods safely. I asked about this at one of the community meetings in River Road, at the church, years ago. I’m sure others have expressed the same suggestion. I’m happy to see that it has been discussed. Is there a definite plan in action? What is the update, why and how? Please advise.
Suggestion 2:
My other thought is, please consider offering this community access update, (and other individual topics) to us residents via email, but only discuss one topic at a time. This is as opposed to wrapping it into a quarterly newsletter. I believe if you keep it simple, it will feel more local and less time consuming to respond to. Consequently increasing community input. Sometimes, everything just feels overwhelming and we intend to address it later, yet don’t.
Thank you for your time. I look forward to seeing new improvements.
Your comments posted here are helpful for the SCCO community, but the post was for neighborhood information only. To make yourself heard to the city, please communicate via the survey at the web page cited: https://engage.eugene-or.gov/move-eug
Thank you. I did fill out the survey. Never heard peep back. Leaves me feeling discouraged.
You wouldn’t necessarily hear anything back from submitting a survey. The survey results will inform the city’s decision-making process.