Traffic called "public health threat"

Transportation director calls traffic 'public health threat'

Portland Tribune
Created on Tuesday, 22 April 2014  | Written by Jim Redden

Portland Bureau of Transportation Director Leah Treat declared war on cars Tuesday, saying her top priority was providing more alternatives to automobiles for city residents.

"We have a growing public health crisis in Portland — traffic," Treat said during a lunch jointly sponsored by the Portland City Club and the Oregon Active Transportation Summit at the downtown Sentinel Hotel. The summit is a gathering of bicycle, walking and alternative transportation advocates being held this week at the hotel.

Citing statistics that show more Portanders are being killed in traffic accidents than by homicides, Treat said her guiding philosophy is Vision Zero, a movement she said started in Sweden in 1997 that makes safety the top transportation priority with a goal of eliminating all traffic-related deaths.

In her first major public address since taking over the transportation bureau in July 2013, Treat said Portland needs more transit, bike lanes and walking paths to maintain its reputation as American's most livable city.

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"More Portlanders are being killed in traffic accidents than by homocides."  Interesting factoid, obviously designed to shock and titillate and stir people to action to fight the "growing public health crisis" in Portland!

"You never want a serious crisis to go to waste. But what I mean by that is it's an opportunity to do things that you could not do before."   Rahman Emanuel,  Nov. 2008

Considering that Oregon has 770 autos per capita (Wikipedia), this could mean roughly 1 automobile per adult in the state, or about 450,000 in Portland alone.  Considering the other causes of death that top the list, why pick homocide instead of suicide, or cancer, or heart disease?   Because homocide paints a more sensational and urgent picture - it creates a chill of evil and death that clings to the notion of driving a car.  We are asked to engage in a war on cars just as we are compelled to be incensed with murder.  We might just be inclined to fall into the pity trap if the rhetoric wasn't so exaggerated and manipulative.  This shows how to capitalize on a crisis - first you must manufacture the crisis before you can express outrage and issue a call to action.  

FAVORITE PORTLAND TRIBUNE ONLINE COMMENT:

Dave Lister

I have news for the director. Portland declared war on the automobile when Goldschmidt killed the Mt. Hood Freeway and the eastside MAX was built. Her predecessors have been trying to get people out of their cars for the last forty years. Guess what? People still prefer to get around by automobile. Why? Because it is convenient, it is quick and you can go where you want when you want. All this newspeak about "transportation choices" is actually about eliminating your choice to drive, pure and simple.

And just what exactly is so great about "imaginging you could take your kids to OMSI without having to drive"? Last I checked, you can do that now. What the director is really saying is "imagine how great it would be if no cars could get to OMSI". That, for her, is a turn on.