To the City Manager and Council of West Linn:

We, the undersigned, are concerned about the dangerous traffic pattern surrounding Willamette Falls Drive in the vicinity of West A Street and Broadway.  Dozens of children attend Atlas Immersion Academy situated directly across Willamette Falls Drive from West A.  And while the children only occasionally cross the street during their time there, the teachers and staff do so on a daily basis.

Due to the very limited parking area, many end up parking on the opposite side of Willamette Falls Drive.  There are two designated crossing locations in the area: one directly west of Broadway (which is poorly marked and simply unrecognized by many drivers), and one spanning the intersection between Willamette Falls Drive and Highway 43 (around which the traffic flow can become extremely chaotic).  At this time of year, it is already dark outside when school ends and the overflow traffic from I-205 makes this area particularly perilous; if it is also raining at this time, both crossings become functionally invisible to drivers.

We are asking, with the support of both parents and staff at Atlas Academy, for the City to consider this location a priority with regard to upcoming planning efforts.

We know that the City of West Linn has put significant effort into planning for the future of Willamette Falls. The 2021 Concept Plan includes a plan for consistent pedestrian walkways all the way from the Tualatin River to I-205, as well as for improved pedestrian crossings. While the final alignments of the road in this section adjacent to Atlas are still subject to change, what is clear is that the final phase of improvements is years off due to planning and funding cycles. There are real needs now, particularly considering the bus stop placement and design coming out of the new routes from TriMet’s Forward Together effort. Oregon State Law gives pedestrians the legal right to cross at any intersection, with motor vehicles required to yield. The convergence of traffic and design challenges at the intersections closest to Atlas makes this right near-impossible to exercise safely.

We are asking for the City to consider any immediate measures that can be taken in the meantime to alleviate  risks to pedestrians of all ages and ability.  Please consider interventions such as a pedestrian crossing with warning lights spanning Willamette Falls Drive further south, across from Bus Stop #11762. This community of West Linn families and employees stands ready and willing to champion this investment in order to leverage any funds that could be available to match local funding sources in order to move a solution forward with haste.

We look forward to seeing these processes move forward.

Thank you.