Here’s what that means for our community.
Oregon communities, since 1973, have been obligated under statewide planning law to adopt Transportation System Plans. These plans, also known as TSPs, are essentially roadmaps for future policies and investments.
A key requirement for these plans is to reduce reliance on automobiles as our main mode of transportation. Yet, despite multiple plan updates since 1973, it’s safe to say that every Oregon community — including Ashland — still has an auto-centric transportation system.
That’s a problem.
About one-third of Oregon’s climate-warming carbon emissions come from the transportation sector. On top of that, a car-dependent transportation system means less accessible streets for the roughly 30% of us who don’t drive, less space for children to play, and fewer opportunities for building community among neighbors.
Improving the city’s transportation system so that everyone can walk, bike, or roll is fundamental to reducing transportation impacts on climate, helping those of us without cars get around, improving resilience, and reducing the cost of living. (It costs roughly $1,025 per month to own, maintain, repair, insure, license, and fuel an automobile. Money that could be spent on food or housing.)
This year, we have an opportunity to plan for a transportation system that’s safe, equitable, and climate-friendly. The City of Ashland is updating its TSP. This update has been a long time coming — the current plan has been in place for more than 12 years. (The Oregon Department of Transportation recommends that cities update their TSPs every seven years.)
The update of the Ashland TSP will take roughly two years.
This year, we can expect a few things to occur (although when these steps occur is still up in the air): First, the city will choose and hire a third-party consultant to assist in the development of the plan. The name of that consultant will be announced in May or June. Soon after, there will be a kick-off meeting with an opportunity for public input. By the end of 2025, the consultant could begin their analysis of future transportation needs. Throughout that time, there will be ample opportunities for community members to provide input.
Streets for Everyone (SFE) is advocating for an updated TSP that prioritizes walking, biking, and rolling so that these transportation modes become safe and practical ways for people of all ages and abilities to get around town.
We are confident that Ashland’s updated TSP will be the best yet. Among the changes we anticipate are separated bike lanes on major streets (as exists on parts of Ashland Street) and a new set of bike/walk streets — existing residential roads redesigned to slow or divert through-traffic so that bicycling and walking become safer.
A plan is only as good as its implementation. Most of the city’s transportation funds are dedicated to maintaining and operating the existing streets, so it will take persistent advocacy to ensure that the city allocates funding to projects that support safe streets. Only by shifting more existing funding to the improvement of bicycling and walking infrastructure or securing new local sources of transportation funding will it be possible to create the bicycling and walking network that is needed.
Join Streets for Everyone in advocating for a great plan and the funding to implement it.
The first step is to stay informed and look out for opportunities to participate in the TSP process. For regular updates, sign-up with Ashland Climate Collaborative and indicate an interest in Streets for Everyone. We’ll be sure to keep you informed and up-to-date.