A reader who's knowledgeable about the slow-moving road widening project on NE Sandy Boulevard east of 122nd in outer Portlandia writes:

ODOT's improvements from 122nd to just a little east of 141st (in the Argay neighborhood, not Parkrose) stem from a high accident rate on heavily traveled Sandy where westbound drivers would get rear-ended while waiting for a break in traffic to turn south at 141st into Argay's residential section and the strip mall at that location.

I seem to recall that ODOT was urged by City of Portland to include marked bike lanes, an unwise decision IMHO. Good luck to westbound cyclists trying to turn south across fast-moving oncoming traffic. Fortunately, few cyclists are seen in this area, and local folks are hoping the newly striped lanes don’t encourage more foolhardy souls to become targets.

There are several wheelchair-bound and some blind folks living in the area as well as numerous apartment dwellers without cars who have to navigate a block south to Prescott Drive and then up along Shaver – a confusing route to those with guide dogs – to access the post office and KMart and numerous businesses along NE 122nd because they can’t navigate the sloppy winter mud on the south side of Sandy, so the sidewalk will be very welcome.

Thank you, helpful reader, for that information. We did note that the sidewalks were to be applauded. The bike lunacy, not so much.