What are Complete Streets?
Complete Streets are roadways designed to provide safe, accessible travel for everyone, including children, older adults, all income levels and ethnicities, those living with disabilities and more. All types of travel are supported: Vehicles, pedestrians, bicycles, wheelchairs and public transportation.
Designing for Complete Streets achieves the following goals:
- Balance. Many of our streets do not provide safe and comfortable access for everyone. Missing or poor sidewalks and bicycle facilities, limited crosswalks and wide streets with high speed limits can create an uncomfortable and potentially less safe environment.
- Plan Implementation. Washington County’s Transportation System Plan prioritizes Complete Streets design. It includes policies that support separate facilities for different users, when possible. This can include separated bicycle lanes and well-marked pedestrian crossings which can improve safety and accessibility.
- Coordination. Considering all transportation users in the design process can lead to more streamlined coordination with our agency partners and stakeholders including TriMet, utilities and school districts. Better coordination helps to take all users into consideration.
Washington County’s Transportation System Plan contains policies and strategies to achieve these complete streets principles. The proposed Complete Streets Design Update will be implemented through changes to the Road Design and Construction Standards and decision-making processes.
What are Road Design and Construction Standards?
The Road Design and Construction Standards establish the technical engineering design and construction requirements for public road and bridge improvements under Washington County’s jurisdiction.
