The City of Eugene has added bike lanes to several streets in recent years, including 8th Avenue and High Street. Now, the city is eyeing a 16-block corridor of Polk Street to add a north-south biking connection.
Polk Street, which connects the Whiteaker neighborhood with the Friendly neighborhood, was identified in 2017 as a key, but unsafe route for bicyclists. The corridor has two lanes of traffic, with on-street parking on both sides of the street. In 2023, the MOV Eugene community group identified the portion of the street from 2nd Avenue to 18th Avenue as the target for bike lanes.
Funds from the 2022 street repair bond are set to cover the cost, and Eugene’s Public Works spokesperson Marion Suitor Barnes said residents can help shape the design.
“The intention is bike lanes,” Suitor Barnes told KLCC. “What those look like, we have a lot of different types of bike lanes in Eugene: protected, buffered, just regular, non-protected. Obviously we're not just going to take away dozens and dozens of parking spots without community input.”
Barnes said the city wants to hear from neighbors, as well as those who bike or travel on Polk Street. An online survey is available until Feb. 6, and an in-person community meeting is set for Jan. 21.
The city expects to finalize the design this spring, and engineering and construction will occur over the next two years.
