River Road Multimodal Safety Plan
River Road is an important connection for the River Road and Santa Clara neighborhoods. It links residents to schools, parks, businesses, bus service, and other destinations throughout Eugene. People use the street every day to get to places like North Eugene High School, Emerald Park, work, shopping, and community services. Yes, River Road is also identified as a high-crash corridor in Eugene's Vision Zero Action Plan.
Project Description
The River Road Multimodal Safety Plan builds on past planning efforts, including the River Road/Santa Clara Neighborhood Plan and Action Plan, to identify practical improvements that make the street safer and easier for people to get where they need to go. Instead of creating a new vision for River Road, this project will confirm community priorities already identified and focus on improvements that can move toward being built.
Plan Outcomes
Community members have shared concerns about crossing the street safely, reaching destinations, accessing bus stops, traffic congestion, and traveling by bicycle. Areas near Beltline can be especially challenging for people walking and biking. This project will explore improvements to make River Road safer and easier for everyone to use, no matter how they get around.
The result of the project will be a set of practical design recommendations that improve safety, access, and connections while helping guide future investment for River Road.
River Road Transportation Engagement Opportunities
The City ran a short survey for transportation on River Road that sought to confirm priorities for the street. That survey closed on August 9th, 2026. Results are below.
The first question asked respondents to rank their top transportation priorities for River Road. The closer the number is to 10, the more people agreed on that priority being a high priority.
The survey found that eliminating traffic injuries and fatalities ranked at 9.1, improving walking conditions ranked at 6.6, improving biking connections ranked at 5.9, improving crosswalks ranked at 5.8, reducing traffic and congestion ranked at 5.7, reducing speeding ranked at 5.6, improving access to bus stops ranked at 4.5, decreasing bus delays ranked at 4.2, accessing businesses and destinations ranked at 4.2, and improving bus stop amenities and quality ranked at 3.3.
The next question asked respondents to rank the different transportation elements for the greatest community benefit for River Road. The closer the number is to 10, the more people agreed on that element having high community benefit.
The survey found that safer crosswalks ranked at 6.7, separated bicycle lanes ranked at 5.9, medians and crossing islands ranked at 5.3, wider sidewalks ranked at 4.2, maintaining existing number of driving lanes ranked at 4.2, landscaping, trees, and streetscape improvements ranked at 4.1 bus only lanes ranked at 3.9, and on-street parking ranked at 1.8.
In fall 2026, the City will launch another survey looking at design options for River Road that can help achieve the priorities from the first survey. Sign-up for the project newsletter to stay informed.