New bike lanes coming to 8th, Pearl, Oak, and High streets this construction season
2 min read
from Willow Hamilton, City of Eugene
Protected bike lane construction is underway on Eighth Avenue and High Street, with repaving for Pearl and Oak streets scheduled for July.
The bike lane on Pearl Street will also be relocated to the west side of the street.
Several road construction projects this summer will transform downtown into a more accessible, sustainable, bike-friendly and pedestrian-friendly environment.
The projects stem from a 2019 community engagement process called “Central Eugene InMotion.” That process included three open houses, an online survey, stakeholder meetings, mapping activities, and more that drew more than 1,600 responses from community members, businesses and stakeholders.
The City of Eugene Transportation Planning team integrated the community’s ideas and suggestions into planning and design.
Protected bike lanes on Eighth Avenue and High Street emerged as a priority, aligning with the community’s desire for safer and more accessible biking infrastructure.
Eighth Avenue will become a two-way street from Lincoln Street to High Street, providing enhanced connectivity between downtown and the riverfront for all modes of travel.
The frontage along Eighth Avenue and the Park Blocks will also be raised, creating a more pedestrian-friendly environment.
Pearl Street and Oak Street will be repaved. After deliberative consideration of community input, the bike lane on Pearl Street will be relocated to the west side of the street to enhance visibility and safety for people riding bikes.
Pearl and Oak will also receive numerous curb extensions to shorten street crossing distances for people walking.
Construction is underway on Eighth Avenue and High Street. Work on Pearl and Oak streets is scheduled to begin in July.
To follow the weekly downtown construction updates, email Transportation Community Engagement Coordinator Willow Hamilton at whamilton@eugene-or.gov.
To follow ongoing discussions of active transportation, the advisory Active Transportation Committee meets the second Thursday of each month from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.
The city’s current community engagement process, Move EUG, has three main objectives:
- Develop a list of walking, biking, and safety infrastructure projects that will be recommended to City Council for funding through the 2025-2029 Street Repair Bond Measure, The bond measure, approved by voters, will provide $3 million for active transportation projects.
- Update the walking and biking infrastructure project lists in the Eugene 2035 Transportation System Plan, and
- Develop a list of programmatic ideas to encourage more trips by walking, biking, rolling, and taking the bus. This list will help inform a future update to Eugene’s 2015-2020 Active Transportation Strategic Plan.
Visit the Move EUG Engage Eugene page to share infrastructure ideas on an interactive map and take a survey on how you feel about walking, biking, and safety in Eugene.
Staff will rank projects and programs in June and July, then review and refine that list with the Active Transportation Committee, stakeholders, and the community in August.
