Speed humps planned for two Bend streets

Bend’s future could have some humps in the road.

Speed humps are planned for two neighborhood streets in northeast and northwest Bend. They’re part of a larger Neighborhood Greenways project. The Greenways will be streets that serve as safer and more comfortable routes for walking and biking than nearby, busier arterial and collector streets. Other planned improvements include more signage and pavement markings.

The streets slated for speed humps include Northeast Sixth Street between Butler Market Road and Greenwood Avenue, as well as Northwest 15th Street between Simpson and Galveston avenues.

City of Bend Project Engineer Rory Rowan said he’s received good feedback from people living in the neighborhoods where the speed humps will be installed.

“Speed humps are a pretty cost-effective feature. It’s been designed with our fire department’s input,” Rowan said.

“It’s not to effect emergency vehicles if they’re trying to respond to the area,” he said. “But basically, it’s really to slow down anyone using the street, and to some extent it may discourage some of the cut-through traffic that perhaps doesn’t live there but is just cutting through major roads.”

Speed humps are wider and less tall than speed bumps. Their objective is to slow cars to between 20 and 25 miles per hour.

The entire greenways project is budgeted at $900,000 over four years. The two corridors, on Sixth and 15th streets, will cost about $100,000 each.

For more details on the Neighborhood Greenways plan, visit the city’s website: https://www.bendoregon.gov/city-projects/infrastructure-projects/neighborhood-greenways