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Contractors in Portland will be asked to do more to protect pedestrians and bicyclists near their jobsites.

The Portland City Council on Wednesday voted to support administrative rules intended to reduce construction’s negative impact on street users by restricting use of detours to cases of 鈥渓ast resort.鈥� The change was initiated by complaints by pedestrians and cyclists who’ve said road closures due to construction have left them with dangerous conditions to navigate, said Faith Winegarden, the city’s temporary street use permit manager.

鈥淭he solution is to provide walkways adjacent to jobsites wherever practicable,鈥� she told the council on Wednesday.

The council voted 5-0 in favor of a resolution formalizing the new rules. Neither contractors nor building community representatives testified at Wednesday’s council meeting. Winegarden said her office has been in contact with several contractors of various sizes. Most have been supportive of new rules, she said.

Another vote is required before the rules can become law.

Currently, a contractor who wants to use the public right of way adjacent to a jobsite to facilitate construction must draft a traffic control plan and apply for a temporary street use permit through the Portland Bureau of Transportation Permit Center.

Under the new rules, contractors should, under normal conditions, provide pedestrians and cyclists with a 鈥渞easonably safe, convenient and accessible route that replicates as practicable the most desirable characteristics of the existing route.鈥� The temporary routes should be clearly marked and ADA-compliant.

The rules likely would not apply to projects currently under way, Winegarden said.

The resolution coincides with the 鈥淰ision Zero鈥� initiative 鈥� supported by the council in June 2015 鈥� that seeks to eliminate loss of life on Portland streets. It’s also consistent with the latest version of the city’s Comprehensive Plan approved by the council recently.

Much of the discussion Wednesday centered around use of the word 鈥渟hould鈥� in the code, instead of the more prescriptive word 鈥渟hall.鈥�

鈥淚t makes it seem like a suggestion, not a requirement,鈥� said Reza Farhoodi, a member of the Bicycle Advisory Committee.

An amendment proposed by Commissioner Nick Fish would change the wording to 鈥渟hall,鈥� but add 鈥渢o the extent practicable.鈥�