Speed table installs in Portland run through the Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) Neighborhood Greenways and Traffic Calming program. On bus-route corridors we coordinate with TriMet; in historic districts where brick-inlay tables integrate with the streetscape, design review gets involved. PBOT has installed tables on Vision Zero priority corridors and on greenways that overlap with TriMet service. We handle design coordination and installation across the Portland metro. Below: how the local approval process works, plus the service-area context.
How Does Portland Approve Speed Table Installation?
Portland's approval process for speed tables on residential streets runs through PBOT's traffic-calming program:
- Citizen petition or city-initiated request. Residents file a traffic-calming application or PBOT identifies a corridor through Vision Zero priority programming
- Speed and volume study. PBOT collects baseline 85th-percentile speed and ADT data
- Engineering design review. PBOT specifies table profile (parabolic, sinusoidal, or brick-inlay) and location
- TriMet coordination (where applicable). TriMet reviews the proposed table on any bus-route segment
- Historic design review (where applicable). Streets in Portland's listed historic districts require additional architectural review for brick-inlay or paver tables
- Construction approval. PBOT issues a permit; cost-share funding may apply
Timeline runs 6 to 24 months from petition to install. Vision Zero priority corridors run shorter; bus-route or historic-district installs run longer because of the additional coordination.
The current PBOT program documentation is published on the PBOT Vision Zero and Neighborhood Greenways pages. Always verify current program eligibility, funding levels, and waitlist with PBOT before assuming a particular cost-share rate.
What Local Codes Apply?
Portland Title 17 (Public Works) governs work in the public right-of-way. Title 33 (Planning and Zoning) governs site design including private street tables. Relevant references:
- Title 17 Chapter 17.32: Surface improvements
- Title 17 Chapter 17.36: Traffic and street use
- ADA Standards section 403 (where the table crosses an accessible route)
- MUTCD Sections 3B.18 and 3B.26 (pavement marking and warning signs)
- Portland historic district design guidelines (where applicable)
Always verify current requirements with the issuing jurisdiction. This article reflects May 2026 published guidance.
Where Are Brick-Inlay Speed Tables Used in Portland?
Portland's listed historic districts and design-review-overlay zones often require visual integration with surrounding streetscape, which makes brick-inlay or paver-inlay speed tables a natural fit. Areas where Cojo has worked or coordinated brick-inlay tables include:
- Pearl District / Old Town Chinatown. Historic streetscape, paver-inlay tables on commercial cross-streets
- Northwest Portland District. Brick-inlay tables on residential streets connecting to commercial nodes
- Ladd's Addition. Inner Southeast historic neighborhood with traffic-calming installs that respect Olmsted-era streetscape
- Irvington / Northeast Portland. Historic residential district with brick-inlay tables proposed on greenway corridors
- Sellwood / Southeast Portland. Older residential with paver detail on speed tables that double as marked crosswalks
Brick-inlay tables typically cost 50 to 90% more than standard asphalt tables, so they are reserved for streets where design review specifically requires visual integration. PBOT and the Portland Historic Landmarks Commission jointly review proposals.
Why Choose Cojo for Speed Table Work in Portland?
Cojo is a Portland-area asphalt and traffic-calming contractor with experience on PBOT projects. We coordinate the city traffic-calming application packet, field survey, paving, traffic control, and pavement marking in one scope. We form standard parabolic, sinusoidal, and brick-inlay speed tables; the brick-inlay configuration involves a separate hardscape crew that lays paver inlay over the asphalt structural slab.
For bus-route projects we coordinate with TriMet during design review on table location relative to bus stops and on profile selection (sinusoidal preferred on primary routes). For historic-district projects we coordinate with the Portland Historic Landmarks Commission on paver selection, edge detail, and pattern alignment.
Local Project Context
Project A -- Inner Southeast Greenway
A Inner Southeast neighborhood association coordinated with PBOT on a 5-table install along an east-west greenway corridor. The corridor included a TriMet bus stop and a school crossing. PBOT specified standard parabolic asphalt tables on the segment without bus service and a sinusoidal-profile table at the bus stop location. Cojo installed all five tables across two working days, with a separate hardscape day for the crosswalk markings on the school-crossing table.
Project B -- Northwest Historic District
A residential street in the Northwest Portland Historic District required design review for any traffic-calming installation. Cojo and the neighborhood coordinated with the Portland Historic Landmarks Commission on a brick-inlay configuration that matched adjacent paver patterns at intersections. The 22-foot tables were installed with asphalt structural slabs and 16-foot brick inlay on the flat-top sections; ramps remained asphalt to allow standard maintenance practices.
Project C -- Westside Hospital Campus
A hospital campus on Portland's westside required traffic calming on internal access drives that doubled as service-vehicle and patient-transport corridors. Cojo installed three concrete cast-in-place speed tables sized for the hospital's heavy commercial fleet. Concrete was selected because internal hospital service roads see significant truck traffic that asphalt installs would not survive at the same lifecycle cost.
Service Area
Cojo's primary speed table service area in the Portland metro:
- City of Portland. All five quadrants, all Title 17 right-of-way work
- Beaverton, Hillsboro, Tualatin, Tigard. Westside Tier 2
- Lake Oswego, West Linn, Oregon City. Southwestern metro
- Gresham, Troutdale, Wood Village. Eastside metro
- Milwaukie, Happy Valley, Clackamas. Inner Clackamas County
For metro-wide installs see Speed Cushion & Speed Table installs across Oregon or pair the work with our asphalt paving services.
TriMet Coordination
Where a speed table is proposed on a TriMet bus route, PBOT coordinates with TriMet planning during design review. Two coordination items are typical:
- Table location relative to bus stops. Tables are placed at least 30 feet from any bus stop to avoid the bus deboarding with the rear axle on the ramp
- Profile selection. Sinusoidal profile is recommended on primary bus routes; standard parabolic is acceptable on minor service
For transit-corridor specifications see speed tables on bus routes.
Cost-Share Programs
PBOT funds qualifying speed table installations through the Neighborhood Greenways program. Cost-share commonly covers 50 to 100% of installation cost on Vision Zero priority corridors. Brick-inlay configurations typically receive partial cost-share with the historic-district premium funded by the property owner or HOA. Always verify current program funding and eligibility with PBOT.
For private campus drives (commercial, hospital, hotel, university), PBOT cost-share does not apply; the property owner funds the install directly.
Need a Speed Table Installed in Portland?
Cojo provides design coordination, traffic control, paving, brick-inlay (where applicable), and pavement marking across the Portland metro area. See speed table dimensions for spec detail, how do speed tables work for engineering background, and the speed tables guide for the broader product context. Get a custom quote.