Page 159 - TransportationPlanUsetsGuide

Trail Name, Description and Status
Washington Square Loop Trail. A proposed loop trail would encircle Washington Square Regional Center and connect to the Fanno
Creek Greenway Trail at two points.
Westside Trail. Generally following a north-south power line corridor across Washington and Multnomah counties, the Westside
Trail will eventually connect the Tualatin River near King City with the Willamette River in far northwest Portland. Many portions are
complete between Barrows Road in Tigard and TV Highway in Beaverton. Major challenges in the remaining sections include steep
topography on Bull Mountain, and costly crossings of Sunset Highway and the Tualatin River.
Yamhelas Westsider Trail. The Yamhelas Westside Trail Coalition is working to acquire an abandoned Union Pacific railroad con-
necting McMinnville and Carlton in Yamhill County with Gaston in Washington County. The abandoned segment stops just east of
Hagg Lake.

Future Trail Needs
In terms of identifying and prioritizing trail needs, the County largely defers to the jurisdictions that would build and
main¬tain these trails. Washington County policy (included under TSP Objective 8.4) supports filling gaps in existing
regional trails, since these projects would have a greater potential to improve countywide trail connectivity. The Crescent
Connection (Beaverton Creek and Fanno Creek Greenway trails) and Westside Trail are probably the best examples of
this. However, County policy also supports new trail development efforts in areas that lack them, including the Ice Age
Tonquin Trail, Council Creek Trail, and Yamhelas Westsider Trail. Because the County’s role in trail planning focuses
more on transportation and less on recreation, County policy tends to support trail projects that provide active trans-
portation access to major employment hubs, transit stops, and mixed-use centers. Similarly, County residents, and
workers involved in the 2014 TSP update voiced a strong interest in building trails for transportation, not just recreation.
This means facilitating efficient and safe movement of people 24 hours a day, all year long, on appropriate urban trails.
Design and management solutions to achieve this goal include:
• Avoiding flood-prone areas (horizontally or vertically) and using pervious asphalt to provide a surface that
is durable, watershed-friendly, and resistant to ponding during the region’s rainy winters;
• Minimizing sharp curves and out-of-direction travel that slow down travel times and create blind spots;

• Considering trail lighting in appropriate urban areas;
• Keeping trails legally open during night hours to facilitate all types of commuting schedules; and

• Ensuring regular maintenance and debris clearing by the responsible jurisdiction.

Not all trails would be appropriate for this level of service. For example, soft surface nature trails are typically not intend-
ed for commuting.

Rural Pedestrian Considerations
Walking as a means of transportation is less common in rural areas of Washington County. Distances between destina-
tions are typically too long to feasibly walk between them. However, rural residents still have plenty of reasons to walk
or run along rural roads – among them, exercise, visiting a neighbor, making an on-road trail connection, or getting to a
reasonably close destination such as a farm stand, school, or church.

Rural Walking Facilities
There are very few designated facilities for walking in the rural area. Sidewalks are not required along rural roads in
Washington County, and the intensity of land development that would trigger a need for sidewalks is limited by land use
policies for the rural area. Many rural roads in Washington County are narrow, forcing pedestrians to share the roadway
with automobile traffic. A limited number of rural roads, including Roy Rogers Road and Cornelius-Schefflin Road, have
been intentionally improved with wide shoulders to accommodate farm equipment and bicyclists. These roads can also
safely accommodate pedestrians. Additionally, portions of some rural arterials have reasonably sized shoulders (four
feet or more) that can facilitate walking or running, such as Highway 47 between Forest Grove and Gaston, and Scholls
Ferry Road west of Roy Rogers Road. The Oregon Bicycle and Pedestrian Plan recommends that shoulders to accommo-

PART 3: TRANSPORTATION MODAL ELEMENTS 139
Effective November 27, 2015 • Updated December, 15 2016