67th traffic death of 2024, highlights PPB, PBOT shortcomings [Video]

PORTLAND Ore. (KPTV) – Early Wednesday morning, tragedy struck in Southeast Portland when a man was killed in a marked crosswalk on Division Street. The fatality marked the 67th traffic death this year, bringing the city perilously close to last year’s record-high 69 fatalities.

This somber milestone coincided with a long-scheduled press conference by the Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) and the Portland Police Bureau (PPB) to address the rising tide of traffic deaths. Officials faced tough questions about the city’s Vision Zero program, an initiative launched nearly a decade ago intending to eliminate traffic deaths and serious injuries.

PBOT spokesperson Dylan Rivera acknowledged the growing public frustration with the initiative’s lack of progress. “It’s taken generations to build the streets we have for speed instead of safety. It’s going to take, decades, if not, potentially generations to redesign them for safety instead of speed,” he said in an interview …