Many of the recent posts in this blog have pointed out characteristics, for example the “cream colored” brick buildings of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, that help give that location a “sense of place.” For Portland, Oregon, that characteristic could be its “foot friendliness.” The city is compact; it has a great light rail, streetcar, and bus network; many of its neighborhoods have very high “walk scores”; and it is always easy to find a great place to walk. You can find several previous posts about walking in Portland by entering “Portland” in the search box.

Earlier this month, I had another opportunity to experience the “foot friendliness” of Portland. In the course of several walks with my grandson, daughter, and son in law, we found many items to add to why Portland is a great place to be on foot.

For starters, there is the newly opened (September 2015) Tilikum Crossing Bridge. It is the largest car-free bridge in the United States. It was built to accommodate a new streetcar and light rail route and has lanes for both pedestrians and bicycles. It is extremely attractive and is a great way to cross the Willamette River, even in the middle of an ice storm, without the noise of cars zooming by you.

As you can see, it was a very snowy and icy day when my grandson and I walked across the bridge.

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