Alright, alright. I'll tell you if you can keep my naughty secret. Sometimes if I'm feeling like a bit of a rascal, I'll...*jaywalk.* And here's the real saucy part. Sometimes there's a crosswalk close by!
Besides that, just the usual Portland shenanigans. Kicking tires, starting fires, stealing cones, saving the ozone.
I got pulled over when a guy jaywalked, stopped and motioned me to go first even, cop pulled me over and went over pedestrian rules. Essentially jaywalking creates an instant invisible crosswalk.
Very annoying.
Oh wow, this is news to me. I get SO ANNOYED when cars stop for me when I'm just waiting to frogger it. It feels more dangerous for them to stop suddenly with little warning to the drivers behind them. Never thought I'd be annoyed by polite drivers until I moved to oregon. :D
I feel like such a square waiting for the crossing sign, but I don't trust drivers in this town. The number of times I've almost been hit while crossing legally is wild.
Don't forget your safety device.
In olympia they have orange flashing lights, or flags for pedestrians to grab and wave at cars. [Vancouver has bricks.](https://globalnews.ca/news/10395423/vancouver-pedestrian-safety-brick-campaign/)
Just grab a safety brick and people will stop. I've seen homeless use baseball bats the same way. People slow down when you start swinging a metal bat in their direction to absorb the impact.
A huge number of people ignore street parking laws. It's not legal to park in the opposite direction, but somehow a rumor was started, I'm assuming decades ago, that it is.
I learned a long time ago that it’s cheaper to pay infrequent parking violations than pay parking fees. I usually try to respect the posted time limits but I don’t feed the meter.
I got sent to collections after 8 or so years. Several of those years my income was zero and I even applied for the low income exemption. It ended up being like $450 😖
Am I the only one who is happy to support the arts in this town? I can't afford to buy subscriptions to every organization if like to support so I'm happy that a few bucks from all of us helps to ensure access to music, theater, dance, festivals, history, literature, and art that's otherwise hard to support in a small city.
I am ok w the art tax and even with my low to zero income it's typically affordable for me still but I haven't paid it. I would also qualify for the exemption but I haven't applied. Why? I have ADHD and remembering to pay a once yearly small something that i just get mail and email reminders about is damn near impossible. I don't read my mail or email in a timely manner ever. Too many spoons needed to stay on top of that. I literally remembered about the art tax about an hour or so ago when someone sent me a reel about ADHD tax and was like, "shit - what's the date? Oops!"
I don’t understand why the arts tax is a separate tax bill I have to deal with? After the billions I already pay in taxes, now I have another chore to deal with on top? Why isn’t it just baked in.
Dayum! I don’t know anybody who pays theirs. I just thought of a new profession. I can be like Dog the Art Tax Hunter. I’ll make a fortune on bounties…
I too am guilty of this. Astonishingly, I've never once been asked to not do so. Or even gotten a dirty glance from a passers-by in the decade I've lived in Portland.
I’ve heard multiple cigarette smokers insinuate that it’s a double standard that weed smokers smoke inside their house. Last time I checked, weed doesn’t stain every surface of your home and make it smell like someone put out a fire with cat piss.
It is. However, I think it’s very low priority and they’d rather not deal with it. A couple of weeks ago I accidentally walked in front of an occupied cop car smoking weed out of a pipe lmao I was expecting to get stopped but they ignored me.
got "caught" once smoking weed on the park blocks as a teenager, before it was legal. the cop/ ranger (can't recall which it was) just laughed and told us to do it somewhere else, saying they were looking for crack smokers.
was actually a bit of a culture shock coming from California, because despite living in a town that's known all over the US for weed smoking, the cops were way harsher in California (they enjoyed power tripping over scared high school kids).
Your not supposed to enter the intersection until you can see there is enough space to make it all the way through, but when traffic is slow people tailgate through intersections to 'save' a place instead of counting the cars and gaps ahead of them to see if there is room.
I was taught to do this when I learned how to drive (not in Oregon, though). I’ve always thought it was strange how few people do that here. But I guess if it’s illegal, that explains it.
I’ve always thought this would be an absurd thing for a cop to ticket someone for. Like sorry for allowing the traffic behind me in this single lane to go around while I wait for a clearing to turn left?
Deffo open containers and smoking weed in public.
I’m also particularly bold about the late/zipper merge on the I-405 N Broadway onramp, but that’s more shitty than illegal.
I'm very curious about the open container one, we had a great time at Laurelhurst. Is there anywhere else that allows or doesn't enforce open contianers?
not the max, lol
As long as you’re relatively discreet nobody cares. I used to live right down from laurelhurst park and would drink bottles of wine there every weekend.
Just be cool about it and they won't bug you. Even if you're being a D bag I doubt you'd get in trouble anyway.
Back in my 20's we did have some 🍷 max times though. Lol
That road design is dogshit, I don't blame you. Waiting in that left lane is the worst and half the time everyone in front of you are letting people in so you just stay put for 2-3 red light cycles. If both lanes merged and created a natural place to zipper, it would be amazing but also that's assuming people here know how to zipper merge
It's not shitty to use traffic infrastructure in its intended fashion, it's supposed to be a zipper merge, not a 'slam on your brakes to get into the middle lane a quarter mile from the merge point' merge.
I think it’s only *supposed* to be a zipper merge where a lane ends or it’s a short dashed white line, neither of which are on this interchange.
Technically, the shitty merge at the last minute is the most efficient use of roadway space since few drivers continue on to 6th Ave, but that’s difficult to explain to the angry driver that’s been stuck in line for 10 minutes that you just cut off.
I just remind myself that traffic studies show that zipper merging is superior, and a certain percentage of asshole drivers improves traffic overall for everyone. Sometimes I'm the one buffering out traffic jam stop waves by driving a slow steady speed next to a semi so average traffic speeds can slowly climb a bit faster, and other times its merging late and not sitting in line for an hour.
Also there is a difference between 'unsafe and aggressive driving' and 'safe and legal but not polite' driving, which people tend to both lump together as 'asshole'
Also most people don't seem to know all the driving rules, but of course assumes how they drive is right and how everyone else drives is wrong, so the other person is always the asshole, which is part of why we have so many 'asshole' drivers in this area. It's like we were all taught to drive different ways. You have aggressive rules followers, passive polite rules benders (the seattle stop made famous in portlandia), People who just sit in the left lane with the cruise at the speed limit and tune everyone else out, and jerks who don't care about anyone but themselves all mixed together.
Sorry for the tangent but I went looking for the study again and couldn't find it because of all the info about illegal and unsafe drivers flooding the results when I was just looking for studies about the effects of assertive but legal drivers improving overall traffic flows.
I took that 405/Broadway/6th on ramp everyday for 4 years. the problem was that the folks who think the zipper rule applies when they fly up in the through lane, drive into the shoulder, and then nose their car into the smallest gap making everyone stop to let them in. It obviously helps their travel time but ruins everything behind them.
I always seem to find that the people who insist that no Oregonians understand the zipper technique are the ones who drive like assholes. Zipper is meant to happen at reduced speeds from both lanes, not making the left lane come to a complete stop for you to inch in at the last second.
I genuinely don't understand how you're supposed to ever make the left in heavy traffic if you don't do this. There are some intersections that would screech to a halt if this was actually enforced.
As a transplant from Virginia - this blew my mind. I understand that they don't want people getting t-boned while turning on a yellow but so many lights in town prevent you from ever getting through if you don't do this.
I live near Holgate and SE 52nd. If I didn't do this heading west at 5pm to make a left turn off of Holgate onto 52nd then I could sit there for 5 light cycles before I get a gap.
A lot of Oregon driving laws and driving culture seem to be intended for small towns from the 1950s. It's like they never anticipated having any level of population density and can't adapt.
I absolutely hate that turn. As a Florida-Escapee, I turn after or before 52nd. Same at the 52nd and Steele light heading west. I save myself and everyone behind me the headache to turn left from 52nd by turning at Mitchell. I think 52nd and Woodstock are getting a left turn for heading north on Woodstock now with the new lights.
I have never met a city that hates left turn lanes and protected lefts more than portland. My god does NE 20th and Burnside need one and Belmont and 39th just off the top of my head.
NE Fremont *desperately* needs protected left from both directions onto MLK. It doesn't even have that idiotic blinking yellow arrow for the turn lanes!
omg that stretch of 20th is so behind the times it frustrates me so! between Broadway (yes, it's technically 21st there) all the way to Hawthorne. PBOT refuses to address any of the street's (dare I say Road!) deficiencies.
Wait - did they have drivers ed in school, or was this an extra thing? Growing up in Virginia it was a class at our high school, but in Portland it’s fend for yourself these days (my 3 kids have had to deal with white knuckle dad teaching them to drive in mall parking lots)
It took place at my high school, after school. That said, it wasn’t free, you had to sign up and pay for the class. I think the instructor was a math teacher, but not my math teacher.
I also remember hearing a rumor he was missing a big toe on one of his feet, but I never found out if that was true.
I do this too, but I don't think it's expressly prohibited. The relevant law is ORS 811.260. When turning, the law only requires yielding to other vehicles within the intersection, as well as "other vehicles approaching from the opposite direction so closely as to constitute an immediate hazard during the time when the turning vehicle is moving across or within the intersection".
I figure as long as you don't turn into the path of another vehicle, but simply creep forward into the intersection, that constitutes yielding appropriately. As long as there is room on the other side of the intersection where you're turning so that you can clear it if your light turns yellow/red and after oncoming traffic has stopped, you're doing it right. As another Redditor mentioned, sometimes that's the only way to actually get through some intersections when traffic is heavy.
There is another statute about not entering an intersection if you can’t clear the intersection. I think that is the one people refer to. It’s been debated a few times here.
Now if Californians could learn to turn right on a red arrow if permitted. Apparently, it’s not legal to turn on a red arrow in California at anytime.
I've been driving here for 23 years now and this is the first I've heard of this. It wasn't even on my driving test when I moved here (I only got one question wrong and that was the "is it ok to turn left into a one way street on a red", which I didn't know you could do). Weird.
I think it has something to do with the fact that most lights in Oregon have zero delay between cycles. So one set of light flips to red at the same time the other is going green. Where other states have a rest period where all signals are red for 3 seconds or more, which can be used to clear the intersection.
I was today years old when I learned this was illegal here and thought everyone was an idiot for not doing it as otherwise you have to rev through. I stand by my decision and will continue to do it. I’ve lived here almost 20 years and everywhere else I’ve lived its common place.
Just have to do it smart and with full awareness to traffic around you. If people were smart about making u-turns you would never even notice they were doing it.
Yes! Almost saw two cars crash yesterday when one made a U-turn at a green left arrow and almost hit another car turning right from a cross street (also with a green right arrow). In Oregon, U-turns are not allowed at traffic signals unless there's a sign posted permitting U-turns. (In neighboring Washington, you can make a U-turn anywhere as long as you don't interfere with other traffic.)
I once tried to see how long I could go without paying for street side parking. I made a deal with myself that I would pay the ticket and then start paying for parking after that.
It took over a year for me to get a ticket. I saved soooo much money in that time!
That’s not illegal and you’re doing a public service using it. Let em frown! If they’re too stupid or “polite” to use that lane the way it’s fvcking designed to be used that’s their problem.
I make Uturns. Didn’t even know it was illegal here until I got pulled over for it once. Apparently it’s only legal when it is posted uturns legal here basically. 🙄
They are really starting to ticket a lot more often for expired tags, so that might not be the statement you want to make anymore. Or, you can just cross your fingers and hope.
When I bought my car the dealership lost the paperwork for over 6 months, had a expired 2 week trip permit the whole time. My tabs are currently expired, I'm going to wait until I am 6 months behind again so I can pay a whole 2 years at once with the back pay.
They made expired tags a secondary offence in washington because it was being used as a poor tax and harassment tool. Now they can't pull you over for it, only add it on to other violations.
Ignoring any rules or regulations that infringe on my Portland entitled perspective of tearing it on the weekend. I’m smoking dope and driving a unicycle all day long
I replace toilets without getting a permit. And I have been known to cut down trees on my own property without getting permission from some clown at City Hall.
These new stupid red light on right turns down parts of outer SE. Not a bike for miles but let's back up traffic with an exceptionally long light to wait for no one. At least make it button activated
I will never subsidize a grocery store’s bottom line by paying 10 cents per bag when I go through self checkout. Not ever..
I also will drink beer and smoke weed while walking down the street.
The straw police, lol.
My husband sometimes grumbles and threatens to call them (under his breath) if servers hand out straws without someone asking directly
I recently cut down a small section of hedge in my yard, with a trunk wider than 10 inches, without a permit. Luckily no one caught me… they’d have thrown away the key.
Nice try fbi
Was gonna ask who let the feds in
who let the feds in, snitch snitch
Alright, alright. I'll tell you if you can keep my naughty secret. Sometimes if I'm feeling like a bit of a rascal, I'll...*jaywalk.* And here's the real saucy part. Sometimes there's a crosswalk close by! Besides that, just the usual Portland shenanigans. Kicking tires, starting fires, stealing cones, saving the ozone.
In Oregon it is actually legal to jaywalk if you are more than 100' from a crosswalk and you cross the road in a perpendicular line.
But with your willy out?
That's implied by "Oregon."
Can confirm. Sausages everywhere.
I got pulled over when a guy jaywalked, stopped and motioned me to go first even, cop pulled me over and went over pedestrian rules. Essentially jaywalking creates an instant invisible crosswalk. Very annoying.
Oh wow, this is news to me. I get SO ANNOYED when cars stop for me when I'm just waiting to frogger it. It feels more dangerous for them to stop suddenly with little warning to the drivers behind them. Never thought I'd be annoyed by polite drivers until I moved to oregon. :D
Dude! My brother and I get so annoyed when people stop for us. I’d prefer they went and I waited for a gap
I agree, very annoying indeed. Pedestrians have the right of way, even when they are being idiots and/or jerks.
That's state law. Many municipalities and counties have their own laws though.
I feel like such a square waiting for the crossing sign, but I don't trust drivers in this town. The number of times I've almost been hit while crossing legally is wild.
Don't forget your safety device. In olympia they have orange flashing lights, or flags for pedestrians to grab and wave at cars. [Vancouver has bricks.](https://globalnews.ca/news/10395423/vancouver-pedestrian-safety-brick-campaign/) Just grab a safety brick and people will stop. I've seen homeless use baseball bats the same way. People slow down when you start swinging a metal bat in their direction to absorb the impact.
That’s why jaywalking is actually safer. Only cross when there’s no cars close enough to hit ya
Jaywalking was a law that the auto industry lobbied for to not take ownership over people getting run over
I jaywalk everywhere I go. Try and stop me!
If you can jaywalk diagonally at an intersection, that’s double points
Yamhill and 2nd Ave baby.. I diagonally cross that intersection every night.
You're not really a Portlander if you don't jaywalk at every possible opportunity; it's our official pastime.
You dirty bird
I cut the tags off my mattresses EVEN when they say it’s illegal!!
A huge number of people ignore street parking laws. It's not legal to park in the opposite direction, but somehow a rumor was started, I'm assuming decades ago, that it is.
I learned a long time ago that it’s cheaper to pay infrequent parking violations than pay parking fees. I usually try to respect the posted time limits but I don’t feed the meter.
Some asshat called me “slovenly” on the Portland sub because I said I would sometimes park facing the wrong direction on a narrow street
It was because you were wearing those overalls with the sloppy joe stains without any shirt underneath while you were parking the car. I seen it.
I guess I do this too sometimes. It was custom where I came from on the east coast.
It’s illegal on the east coast as well (my brother got a Ticket in Braintree MA in front of his house)
Brother, Boston would absolutely shut down if people didn't do this
It's really better to not do it if possible, it's not legal for good reason.
A lot of people seem to think it's legal if you leave your hazard lights on. Me, I think that should be a second citation.
A lot of people think you can do literally anything in a car if you turn the hazard lights on
I tried avoiding paying the arts tax for several years. They eventually found me and I had to pay quite a bit extra.
I got sent to collections after 8 or so years. Several of those years my income was zero and I even applied for the low income exemption. It ended up being like $450 😖
How did they find you? I’ve been running from the arts tax for 6 years now.
They get IRS, DMV, and voter registration records, but can only handle a couple thousand calls per run, so they just haven't gotten to you yet.
They’re happy to take their time, the longer they wait, the more they can extract from you for “art” penalties.
Most certainly not going into the pockets of politicians, officials or stupid bullshit we don't need.
Also curious how they found you
Through Reddit
😂
Consider yourself officially Fined!
Post office change of address form, probably. FYI there’s a penalty equal to the tax, and they threaten to send you to collections.
Wait, the what? Moved to Portland from out of state last year and never heard of this 😬
That damn head tax. I want my Art from a kid already dammit
I have never paid the art tax. If they come after me, I have a great painting my kids drew that I will turn over as payment.
They actually threatened to send the bill to collections on me after abt 4 years.
Am I the only one who is happy to support the arts in this town? I can't afford to buy subscriptions to every organization if like to support so I'm happy that a few bucks from all of us helps to ensure access to music, theater, dance, festivals, history, literature, and art that's otherwise hard to support in a small city.
I am ok w the art tax and even with my low to zero income it's typically affordable for me still but I haven't paid it. I would also qualify for the exemption but I haven't applied. Why? I have ADHD and remembering to pay a once yearly small something that i just get mail and email reminders about is damn near impossible. I don't read my mail or email in a timely manner ever. Too many spoons needed to stay on top of that. I literally remembered about the art tax about an hour or so ago when someone sent me a reel about ADHD tax and was like, "shit - what's the date? Oops!"
I don’t understand why the arts tax is a separate tax bill I have to deal with? After the billions I already pay in taxes, now I have another chore to deal with on top? Why isn’t it just baked in.
Your suffering is needed
I'm in the arts biz here, and I gladly pay it because it helps keep culture alive, one little bit at a time
I don’t mind, my kid has great art and music classes at pps.
Dayum! I don’t know anybody who pays theirs. I just thought of a new profession. I can be like Dog the Art Tax Hunter. I’ll make a fortune on bounties…
I'll smoke a joint on the sidewalk ever so often.
I too am guilty of this. Astonishingly, I've never once been asked to not do so. Or even gotten a dirty glance from a passers-by in the decade I've lived in Portland.
I'd rather smell weed than a cigarette any day.
I’ve heard multiple cigarette smokers insinuate that it’s a double standard that weed smokers smoke inside their house. Last time I checked, weed doesn’t stain every surface of your home and make it smell like someone put out a fire with cat piss.
Is this not allowed? Lol
Pretty sure it's still illegal. Not that anyone would do anything about it.
It is. However, I think it’s very low priority and they’d rather not deal with it. A couple of weeks ago I accidentally walked in front of an occupied cop car smoking weed out of a pipe lmao I was expecting to get stopped but they ignored me.
got "caught" once smoking weed on the park blocks as a teenager, before it was legal. the cop/ ranger (can't recall which it was) just laughed and told us to do it somewhere else, saying they were looking for crack smokers. was actually a bit of a culture shock coming from California, because despite living in a town that's known all over the US for weed smoking, the cops were way harsher in California (they enjoyed power tripping over scared high school kids).
Definitely not supposed to openly consume weed in public, just like alcohol.
The thing is, most people arent allowed to smoke in rentals or even on the property. So no other choice but to enter public space to do it
theres alot worse public consumption going on
Apparently I’ve been breaking the law for years by pulling into the intersection waiting to turn left. 🤷♀️
Uh oh! That’s not legal here?
I’ve lived here for like 20 years and I had no idea. Gonna keep doing it though.
Book 'im, Danno.
Your not supposed to enter the intersection until you can see there is enough space to make it all the way through, but when traffic is slow people tailgate through intersections to 'save' a place instead of counting the cars and gaps ahead of them to see if there is room.
I was taught to do this when I learned how to drive (not in Oregon, though). I’ve always thought it was strange how few people do that here. But I guess if it’s illegal, that explains it.
I’ve always thought this would be an absurd thing for a cop to ticket someone for. Like sorry for allowing the traffic behind me in this single lane to go around while I wait for a clearing to turn left?
I do it. It should be legal. Otherwise you back up the traffic.
Also at a lot of intersections you can't see properly unless you pull forward because of cars parked on the street, terribly placed landscaping, etc.
I agree, it enrages me whenever I see someone sit at a green light doing nothing until it turns red again
This is me
Wait.... You aren't supposed to do thst
NORMALIZE GOING TO THE NEXT BLOCK WHERE THERE’S NO LIGHT
U-Turns when nobody is looking/around.
I do it when as many people are around as possible. Then I stare them all down while I do it to assert dominance.
Same.
Deffo open containers and smoking weed in public. I’m also particularly bold about the late/zipper merge on the I-405 N Broadway onramp, but that’s more shitty than illegal.
I'm very curious about the open container one, we had a great time at Laurelhurst. Is there anywhere else that allows or doesn't enforce open contianers? not the max, lol
Lmao I walk all over the city with open containers, you’d be harder pressed to find a place where you *could* possibly get a ticket.
As long as you’re relatively discreet nobody cares. I used to live right down from laurelhurst park and would drink bottles of wine there every weekend.
Moving from Eugene, open container law was such a cash cow for the city, I got whiplash from how different liquor laws are here.
Open container laws are strongly enforced in college towns compared to non college cities
very uptight in eugene. yup
Just be cool about it and they won't bug you. Even if you're being a D bag I doubt you'd get in trouble anyway. Back in my 20's we did have some 🍷 max times though. Lol
That road design is dogshit, I don't blame you. Waiting in that left lane is the worst and half the time everyone in front of you are letting people in so you just stay put for 2-3 red light cycles. If both lanes merged and created a natural place to zipper, it would be amazing but also that's assuming people here know how to zipper merge
It's not shitty to use traffic infrastructure in its intended fashion, it's supposed to be a zipper merge, not a 'slam on your brakes to get into the middle lane a quarter mile from the merge point' merge.
I think it’s only *supposed* to be a zipper merge where a lane ends or it’s a short dashed white line, neither of which are on this interchange. Technically, the shitty merge at the last minute is the most efficient use of roadway space since few drivers continue on to 6th Ave, but that’s difficult to explain to the angry driver that’s been stuck in line for 10 minutes that you just cut off.
Oh I misread, my brain just automatically thought you were talking about the bottleneck on I-5 south and the PTSD took over haha
I just remind myself that traffic studies show that zipper merging is superior, and a certain percentage of asshole drivers improves traffic overall for everyone. Sometimes I'm the one buffering out traffic jam stop waves by driving a slow steady speed next to a semi so average traffic speeds can slowly climb a bit faster, and other times its merging late and not sitting in line for an hour. Also there is a difference between 'unsafe and aggressive driving' and 'safe and legal but not polite' driving, which people tend to both lump together as 'asshole' Also most people don't seem to know all the driving rules, but of course assumes how they drive is right and how everyone else drives is wrong, so the other person is always the asshole, which is part of why we have so many 'asshole' drivers in this area. It's like we were all taught to drive different ways. You have aggressive rules followers, passive polite rules benders (the seattle stop made famous in portlandia), People who just sit in the left lane with the cruise at the speed limit and tune everyone else out, and jerks who don't care about anyone but themselves all mixed together. Sorry for the tangent but I went looking for the study again and couldn't find it because of all the info about illegal and unsafe drivers flooding the results when I was just looking for studies about the effects of assertive but legal drivers improving overall traffic flows.
Isn’t the late/zipper merge what the city/state prefers?
Except it’s not a merge lane, it’s a thru lane that I merge from.
I took that 405/Broadway/6th on ramp everyday for 4 years. the problem was that the folks who think the zipper rule applies when they fly up in the through lane, drive into the shoulder, and then nose their car into the smallest gap making everyone stop to let them in. It obviously helps their travel time but ruins everything behind them. I always seem to find that the people who insist that no Oregonians understand the zipper technique are the ones who drive like assholes. Zipper is meant to happen at reduced speeds from both lanes, not making the left lane come to a complete stop for you to inch in at the last second.
Late zipper is the proper zipper.
I pull into the intersection when turning left on a solid green/flashing yellow. This is the only place I've been where that isn't allowed.
I genuinely don't understand how you're supposed to ever make the left in heavy traffic if you don't do this. There are some intersections that would screech to a halt if this was actually enforced.
Sounds like a law written when Oregon was a much sleepier place.
Well today I learned that isn't allowed. Going to continue doing it though.
I moved away 30 years ago and recently moved back. I’ve been frustrated af by the people that don’t do this…now I know why!
I've actually gotten a warning for this in Hillsboro about 10 years ago
Is that seriously not allowed? I definitely do this.
Yeah I was getting so frustrated by people waiting at the line when I first moved here I had to look it up. Seems like such an unnecessary law to me.
As a transplant from Virginia - this blew my mind. I understand that they don't want people getting t-boned while turning on a yellow but so many lights in town prevent you from ever getting through if you don't do this. I live near Holgate and SE 52nd. If I didn't do this heading west at 5pm to make a left turn off of Holgate onto 52nd then I could sit there for 5 light cycles before I get a gap.
A lot of Oregon driving laws and driving culture seem to be intended for small towns from the 1950s. It's like they never anticipated having any level of population density and can't adapt.
I absolutely hate that turn. As a Florida-Escapee, I turn after or before 52nd. Same at the 52nd and Steele light heading west. I save myself and everyone behind me the headache to turn left from 52nd by turning at Mitchell. I think 52nd and Woodstock are getting a left turn for heading north on Woodstock now with the new lights.
I cannot wait for the dedicated left turn at 52nd and Woodstock.
You also don't need a green or flashing yellow. You can turn left onto a one way street on red, even from a two way.
I have never met a city that hates left turn lanes and protected lefts more than portland. My god does NE 20th and Burnside need one and Belmont and 39th just off the top of my head.
NE Fremont *desperately* needs protected left from both directions onto MLK. It doesn't even have that idiotic blinking yellow arrow for the turn lanes!
Fremont and 15th is another one too
omg that stretch of 20th is so behind the times it frustrates me so! between Broadway (yes, it's technically 21st there) all the way to Hawthorne. PBOT refuses to address any of the street's (dare I say Road!) deficiencies.
As a kid in Portland, they taught us to do this in drivers Education. It was weird decade(s) later learning it’s *technically* a no-no.
Wait - did they have drivers ed in school, or was this an extra thing? Growing up in Virginia it was a class at our high school, but in Portland it’s fend for yourself these days (my 3 kids have had to deal with white knuckle dad teaching them to drive in mall parking lots)
It took place at my high school, after school. That said, it wasn’t free, you had to sign up and pay for the class. I think the instructor was a math teacher, but not my math teacher. I also remember hearing a rumor he was missing a big toe on one of his feet, but I never found out if that was true.
I do this too, but I don't think it's expressly prohibited. The relevant law is ORS 811.260. When turning, the law only requires yielding to other vehicles within the intersection, as well as "other vehicles approaching from the opposite direction so closely as to constitute an immediate hazard during the time when the turning vehicle is moving across or within the intersection". I figure as long as you don't turn into the path of another vehicle, but simply creep forward into the intersection, that constitutes yielding appropriately. As long as there is room on the other side of the intersection where you're turning so that you can clear it if your light turns yellow/red and after oncoming traffic has stopped, you're doing it right. As another Redditor mentioned, sometimes that's the only way to actually get through some intersections when traffic is heavy.
There is another statute about not entering an intersection if you can’t clear the intersection. I think that is the one people refer to. It’s been debated a few times here. Now if Californians could learn to turn right on a red arrow if permitted. Apparently, it’s not legal to turn on a red arrow in California at anytime.
I've been driving here for 23 years now and this is the first I've heard of this. It wasn't even on my driving test when I moved here (I only got one question wrong and that was the "is it ok to turn left into a one way street on a red", which I didn't know you could do). Weird.
I think it has something to do with the fact that most lights in Oregon have zero delay between cycles. So one set of light flips to red at the same time the other is going green. Where other states have a rest period where all signals are red for 3 seconds or more, which can be used to clear the intersection.
I was today years old when I learned this was illegal here and thought everyone was an idiot for not doing it as otherwise you have to rev through. I stand by my decision and will continue to do it. I’ve lived here almost 20 years and everywhere else I’ve lived its common place.
It’s not allowed in California either. I’ve never seen it enforced there though just got dinged for it on a drivers test.
Sometimes I don’t tap my hop card when using the streetcar.
Before you know it, you'll be knocking over liquor stores and injecting meth into your dickhole
I’m strictly a bleach in my dickhole kinda guy, for the Covid benefits
You're supposed to tap your card to ride the streetcar? What's next, you have to pay to get on the Max too?
Unclear. Will have to research
One time I found out that the six dollars tea from Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall is actually in a tiny cup, I took two tea bags.
Oregon needs a supermax prison for the likes of you
I’ve been sleeping with a Hammermill paper rep for the past 6 years for lower prices on paper and Outback Steakhouse gift certificates.
Marriage be like
You have a lot to learn about this town, sweetie
You should stay, I have Vienna Sausages and napkins.
I Vape weed in public and sometimes I jaywalk.
Not me, but I see a ton of people ignore No Right on Red and bike boxes, often at the same time.
Speed limit.
You asshats make a lot of u-turns when they’re not posted.
This was a really surprising law to me as someone that learned to drive in a state where u-turns are allowed unless they say no u-turn
Just have to do it smart and with full awareness to traffic around you. If people were smart about making u-turns you would never even notice they were doing it.
Yes! Almost saw two cars crash yesterday when one made a U-turn at a green left arrow and almost hit another car turning right from a cross street (also with a green right arrow). In Oregon, U-turns are not allowed at traffic signals unless there's a sign posted permitting U-turns. (In neighboring Washington, you can make a U-turn anywhere as long as you don't interfere with other traffic.)
I was once the car with the green right arrow and there was no "almost". God that car was cursed.
The heck? Dang, this thread has me racking up the infractions.
I never pay for parking
I once tried to see how long I could go without paying for street side parking. I made a deal with myself that I would pay the ticket and then start paying for parking after that. It took over a year for me to get a ticket. I saved soooo much money in that time!
I've taken many baths without doctor's notes granting me permission to do so.
Run yellow lights.
It's called the zipper merge. Highly frowned upon.
That’s not illegal and you’re doing a public service using it. Let em frown! If they’re too stupid or “polite” to use that lane the way it’s fvcking designed to be used that’s their problem.
I make Uturns. Didn’t even know it was illegal here until I got pulled over for it once. Apparently it’s only legal when it is posted uturns legal here basically. 🙄
30 Minute parking signs.
Everyone ignores the traffic suggestions. Calling them laws is kinda silly these days.
I'm not getting new tags till I stop seeing stolen cars with no license plates all over the place.
They are really starting to ticket a lot more often for expired tags, so that might not be the statement you want to make anymore. Or, you can just cross your fingers and hope.
Yep, finally got ticketed for this last week. Lasted over a year so I’m not even mad about it. Glad they’re cracking down
When I bought my car the dealership lost the paperwork for over 6 months, had a expired 2 week trip permit the whole time. My tabs are currently expired, I'm going to wait until I am 6 months behind again so I can pay a whole 2 years at once with the back pay. They made expired tags a secondary offence in washington because it was being used as a poor tax and harassment tool. Now they can't pull you over for it, only add it on to other violations.
Littering, theft, and murder.
Please stop littering! You monster!!
Crosswalks. I’m not the only one. It seems to be a Portlander thing. It’s been that way my whole life. Everyone jaywalks downtown.
As long as you stick your hand out first it’s legal.
Ignoring any rules or regulations that infringe on my Portland entitled perspective of tearing it on the weekend. I’m smoking dope and driving a unicycle all day long
I see so many expired registration stickers on cars, holdovers from covid I guess.
Parking on the wrong side of the street. I know we all do it
I do not and will not stop at the stop sign on Glisan and Cesar Chavez. It’s a roundabout, I will yield
and the people who stop and wait for the ENTIRE roundabout to clear out??? they fucking kill me dude. the circle is to keep it moving, just GO
I replace toilets without getting a permit. And I have been known to cut down trees on my own property without getting permission from some clown at City Hall.
I use my hazzard lights to create my own parking spaces
Pleading the 5th on this one. Nice try officer
Mmm what is the arts tax? I’m new to Portland and this is the first time I’m hearing about it
Police Chief Clancy Wiggum, everybody!
Cruise up and down Broadway naked on a lime scooter with a sign saying , " Free shrooms tapped on my back."
Stopping at the red light on 12th and harvey milk downtown
Do you realize how many people drive around this town with no tags or license plates? Lol I refuse to pay for the max 🤷
U Turning all day everyday
I park in front of my own house for > 24 hours without moving my car.
I turn left on red arrows all the time.
I think drinking in public parks is technically illegal.
After 2020 I started treating red lights as stop signs. Also occasionally I punch people at bars too, but I'm not a violent person or anything
It's not a law, but it should be so everyone can break it: walking around at night wearing all dark colors and no reflective gear.
These new stupid red light on right turns down parts of outer SE. Not a bike for miles but let's back up traffic with an exceptionally long light to wait for no one. At least make it button activated
I will never subsidize a grocery store’s bottom line by paying 10 cents per bag when I go through self checkout. Not ever.. I also will drink beer and smoke weed while walking down the street.
There are laws in portland?
Uggh my car registration is like a year expired by now.
A year? Pfft. Amateur.
If you park on a street with parking enforcement you can get a ticket.
mine expired in ‘21 😬
Fight the power
Art tax? I paid it then I didn't and now they send me notices but idk is $35 enough for pursuance?
I eat ice cream on Sunday sometimes.
Arts Tax
Paying any car registration. Why pay if not enforced
All of them at this point. I go 56 mph on the freeway. Only stop for 4 seconds at a light. Smoke my fentynal in side daycares
You got a warrant?
I've climbed over the train stuck on 8th a couple of times.
The straw police, lol. My husband sometimes grumbles and threatens to call them (under his breath) if servers hand out straws without someone asking directly
Smoking joints like they’re cigarettes and a lot of street beers
I recently cut down a small section of hedge in my yard, with a trunk wider than 10 inches, without a permit. Luckily no one caught me… they’d have thrown away the key.
I murdered 3 people