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Portland residents in recent years often asked how much money is being allocated for bike-related transportation projects.

As it turns out, city officials gave them inaccurate answers.

鈥淲e ended up providing information that is flawed actually and ultimately counterproductive to a conversation about what the right level of expense is for what we do,鈥� said Tom Miller, director of the Portland Bureau of Transportation.

For years, the bureau broke down its spending by transportation mode. So, percentages were given for budget amounts devoted to bicycles, motor vehicles, pedestrians or transit. Last year, for example, 5.53 percent of the bureau’s money was devoted to bikes, according to PBOT‘s 2011-2012 budget.

This methodology was flawed, according to Miller, because project expenditures, such as bike lanes, could end up benefiting multiple transportation modes. As a result, the bureau recently started using a different system that will track spending by outcome, rather than mode.

鈥淲hen we try to talk about expenditures by mode, the devil is in the details and the methodology is flabby,鈥� Miller said. 鈥�(The new system) is a more thoughtful and articulate way of portraying what we do and how we benefit the broad cross section of transportation interests in the city.鈥�

Bureau officials said the change came when Miller took over as director in early 2011. The change is reflected in the bureau’s latest budget, which was released in spring, and will be used for all funding reports, including capital improvement plans.

PBOT’s change matches philosophies held by most independent bike organizations in Portland, according to Gerik Kransky, advocacy director for the . He said that transportation expenditures should benefit all road users. A green biking box, for example, provides three benefits, he said: certainty for where motorists can look for bicyclists, an advanced stop bar for pedestrians and a safe space for cyclists.

鈥淚t’s impossible to determine for whom that treatment exists, because it’s for safety overall,鈥� he said. 鈥淲hen we look at where is all the money going and where all the money is being spent, it’s pretty safe to say that if we spend a dollar paving one of our streets that it’s going to benefit both cars and bikes.鈥�

Now, PBOT shares individual project costs along with a list of the modes they will benefit. So, for an intersection project, for example, the bureau states its price and whether the project benefits drivers, pedestrians and/or bicyclists. Additionally, the bureau ranks projects according to safety level and cost-effectiveness.

The new system provides city officials and residents with less hard data; however, it’s much more accurate, Miller said.

鈥淭he knee-jerk reaction is the bike box is intended to accommodate the bikers exclusively,鈥� he said. 鈥淲ell, let’s stop and think about that: Who really benefits? Even something that is seemingly clear as a bike box really accommodates multiple modes.鈥�

PBOT’s system change comes amid disagreement over the amount of money being devoted to bike-related projects. Some Portland residents believe more money should go to other capital improvement projects, such as pavement for dirt roads or improvements for battered streets.

Conversely, some residents believe too little money is being spent on upgrades to make roads safer for cyclists.

鈥淚t’s an issue that is thrown back and forth often,鈥� Kransky said. 鈥淚t’s safe for us to say that every dollar you spend encouraging someone to ride a bike, you’re actually saving money in the long term.鈥�

The issue came to a boiling point last year, when Mayor Sam Adams increased the amount of gas tax and parking revenue for bike projects by nearly 16 percent and decreased the amount for motor vehicles by 22 percent, according to PBOT data.

But the bureau no longer stands by those percentages, Miller said, adding that residents should focus on how expenditures are benefiting their transportation system as a whole.

鈥淚 appreciate why the question would arise in this community, but we’re trying to create a system of viable travel modes and conditions that support all those modes,鈥� he said. 鈥淧eople want choices. They want to feel like their system supports their ability to travel about in a variety of ways.鈥�