Portland Ghost Bikes

 

Bicycling in Portland, Oregon is a common activity. According to the Portland Bureau of Transportation 6% of commuters go by bike, which is significantly higher than the national average of 0.5% [2]. This translates into 17,000 commuters choosing bike as their primary mode of transportation. 319 miles of bikeway run throughout the city, with 50 more already funded and in planning [3].

 

While the vibrant bike culture has become a fixture of the city’s identity, the increasing levels of participation has brought stress. Since 2003, twenty five cyclists have been killed in Portland [4]. The antagonism between automobile drivers and cyclists is palpable, occasionally resulting in verbal and physical assault in addition to heedless death. The passionate cycling community has responded by banding together, actively protesting for safer roads by organizing group rides, lobbying legislators, and memorializing their deceased. They mourn their dead and advocate for their cause by erecting makeshift memorials, all of which are centered around the use of white painted bicycles known as a ghost bike. This bicycle is often erected by a cycling community member, rather than the family, and display symbols that further the cycling advocates push for justice, while also functioning as mementos for loved ones to personally memorialize the deceased.

Bicycle commuting has grown 408% in Portland from 1990 - 2013 [5]. With this in mind, I expected the symbols and application of ghost bike memorials to become more general over time, reflecting the larger scope of the evolving cycling community. However, the ghost bikes analyzed began generalized, representative of their advocacy motivations, rather than personal loss, but occasionally evolved as family and friends assumed responsibility over the legacy of the memorial site. Using symbols relevant to the community cause, as well as personal loss, makeshift memorials attain a dual purpose, functioning as a grieving tool as well as an instrument of social justice. Ghost bikes are symbols of death that share this complicated dual purpose, alternating between tools for social advocacy and grieving. The use of these memorials turned out to be less structured than I imagined.

 

 

 

 

 

[1]  Maus, Jonathan. “Chris Burris Ghost Bike - September 22, 2005.” Flickr - Photo Sharing! Accessed August 4, 2015. https://www.flickr.com/photos/bikeportland/45600430/.

 

[2] The City of Portland, Oregon." Bicycling Info RSS. Portland Bureau of Transportation, n.d. Web. 9 Aug. 2015. <http://www.portlandoregon.gov/transportation/article/407660>

 

 

[3] Ibid.

 

 

[4] "The City of Portland, Oregon." Safety Vision Zero RSS. Portland Bureau of Transportation, n.d. Web. 4 Aug. 2015. <http://www.portlandoregon.gov/transportation/40390>.

 

 

"2014 Portland Traffic Safety Report." N.p., 27 Mar. 2015. Web. 7 Aug. 2015. <http%3A%2F%2Fwww.portlandoregon.gov%2Ftransportation%2Farticle%2F524195>.

 

Oregonian/OregonLive, Stuart Tomlinson | The. "Officials Identify Bicyclist Killed in SE Portland Collision with Tow Truck." The Oregonian, 28 Mar. 2015. Web. 4 Aug. 2015. <http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2015/05/officials_identify_bicyclist_k.html>.

[5] "Bicycle Commuting Data." League of American Bicyclists. N.p., 16 May 2013. Web. 10 Aug. 2015. <http://bikeleague.org/commutingdata>.