Portland makes pedestrian-friendly signal updates along Washington Avenue
A pedestrian crosses Washington Avenue in a crosswalk in August 2025. (Daryn Slover/Staff Photographer)
The city of Portland has implemented new traffic signal timings along outer Washington Avenue that are meant to improve pedestrian safety.
The changes reflect the city’s “prioritization of vulnerable road users and safety in general” as officials continue a Vision Zero campaign aimed at eliminating pedestrian injuries and deaths, according to a news release Wednesday.
City staff said the improvements include updated signals known as “leading pedestrian intervals” that give pedestrians an advance walk signal, allowing them to enter the crosswalk and become visible to turning drivers before vehicles receive a green light.
The intersection of Washington Avenue and Veranda Street is often a source of such road conflicts, with pedestrians coming to and from the Back Cove Trail often trying to cross in a location where heavy traffic flows from Interstate 295.
A walk signal at the intersection of Washington and Ocean Avenue in Portland. (Courtesy of City of Portland)
The work also included new signal timings that apply a minimum 2.5-second all-red clearance phase “to ensure intersections are entirely clear before conflicting traffic movements receive a green light.”
The updates were made at the intersections of Veranda and Presumpscot streets, Ocean Avenue, Canco Road and Allen Avenue, and on Auburn Street at the intersections of Chapman and Lyseth streets.
Officials behind Portland’s Vision Zero effort have been under renewed pressure this year to address pedestrian safety following a string of crashes that caused deaths and serious injuries. The accidents have led to calls from advocates to consider more robust intersection redesigns, including automatic walk cycles at all signalized intersections, and a more controversial “20 is Plenty” initiative that would lower speed limits to 20 mph on most city streets.
In recent months, the city has also rolled out a pedestrian safety awareness campaign, partnered on a road demonstration on Commercial Street, and conducted a traffic enforcement operation that witnessed widespread distracted driving.
Last year, the Greater Portland Council of Governments led a temporary demonstration project on Washington Avenue in an attempt to slow down traffic.
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Tagged: portland maine, traffic safety, transportation
Andrew Rice is a staff writer at the Press Herald covering the city of Portland. He's been working in journalism since 2012, joining the Sun Journal in 2017, then the Press Herald in 2026. He lives in. More by Andrew Rice
