Under the direction of Professor Marc Schlossberg, 42 students in the University of Oregon Department of Planning, Public Policy, and Management’s Bicycle Transportation course reviewed and examined critical elements of an urban bikeway system and proposed projects that would encourage and increase bicycle ridership and safety in Medford. This course was offered to upper-level undergraduates and graduate students from a variety of academic disciplines.
Course projects were generally chosen by surveying elements of Medford’s environment including:
• Existing and proposed bike lanes
• Automobile traffic volumes on all roads
• Residential population density in Medford
• Connecting neighborhoods, schools, parks, and destinations.
One of the city’s primary goals was to think about ways to build upon and highlight the amenity of the Bear Creek Greenway. The Bear Creek Greenway provides Medford an excellent source for bicycling and walking, but routes connecting to and from the greenway into neighborhoods, business districts, or recreation areas around Medford are lacking.
Students focused on various areas surrounding the Bear Creek Greenway and researched potential recommendations for enhancing its use and connections between destinations. Projects developed for this course considered current bicycle parking capacity, average daily traffic (ADT) counts, neighborhood demographics, local economy, and nearby destinations. Students collaborated with city staff to identify locations where the Greenway intersects key Medford streets.
This report outlines ways to better utilize this asset. Some students introduce the concept of a neighborhood greenway and different strategies developed to better connect schools and neighborhoods safely. Some present a set of approaches that enable bicycle riders to share the road safely with automobile traffic. Other students focus on non-design bicycle and active transportation related projects including education campaigns, wayfinding and branding, and other forms of encouragement, or programs that can increase community
awareness and participation in cycling. Recommendations vary from easily implemented changes that complement existing infrastructure, to more challenging road redesigns and treatments. Consistent across course projects, however, was a focus on connectivity throughout Medford that can provide citizens of all ages and abilities with bicycle access to this source of untapped
potential from both arterial and neighborhood streets.
Read the final student report delivered to the local gov/community partner.
Sustainable City Year Program Contact Info
Megan Banks
Sustainable City Year Program Manager
mbanks@uoregon.edu
(541) 346-6395
University Faculty Contact
Marc Schlossberg
Planning, Public Policy and Management
schlossb@uoregon.edu
Local Government / Community Contact
Chris Olivier
GIS Coordinator