Sen. Bonham: Road diets, real damage, Feds act

By State Senator Daniel Bonham
Newsletter excerpt

Road diets. Another classic case of bureaucrats pushing bad ideas on everyday Oregonians. Across the state, transportation planners, politicians and activists are embracing “road diets” — shrinking lanes and reducing car capacity in the name of “climate goals” and “livability.”

The reality? These projects create traffic nightmares, delay emergency response times, more congestion, higher emissions and punish families and businesses that rely on cars to live and work. In cities across the state, residents are already voicing their outrage over clogged streets, longer commutes, and poorly planned road changes that no one asked for.

Government-forced road traffic means less time spent at home with family, missing key moments and being late for the things that mean most.

With these arguments in mind, the U.S. Department of Transportation announced they will be rethinking federal funding for road diet projects, because they’re proven to create more problems than they solve.

Oregonians deserve real transportation solutions that prioritize safety, efficiency, and economic growth — not ideological experiments that make life harder for residents. It’s time to put practical needs above political agendas.