Want to advise the Oregon Transportation Commission on transportation issues in rural western Washington County? Two positions — each for a two-year term — on a regional commission are opening in January for just that purpose.
The Northwest Oregon Area Commission on Transportation (NWACT) is a commission chartered to advise the Oregon Transportation Commission, providing input on regional transportation issues in Clatsop, Columbia, and Tillamook counties and the western part of Washington County, including the cities of Banks and portions of the North Plains area, and unincorporated communities such as Gales Creek, Timber, Buxton, and Manning.
The two positions opening January 1 are for residents living in the western portion of Washington County, within the Oregon Department of Transportation’s Region 2.
The Washington County Board of Commissioners will appoint two successful applicants to the commission.
The commission meets every other month virtually or in person.
A full listing of the details can be found online.
Apply online here, or contact Jessica Pelz, Policy Analyst, at 503-846-3960.
NWACT is one of 12 similar advisory groups chartered across the state, each dealing with local and regional transportation issues that involve the state transportation system, which includes any number of projects and infrastructure, including highways, bridges, cycling lanes and paths, and more.
Regionally, three major highways maintained by ODOT cut through the area. Highway 6, which forms Banks’ southern border and cuts through Gales Creek and the Tillamook Forest, Highway 26, which borders North Plains, goes through Manning and Buxton, and Highway 47, which also doubles as Banks’ Main Street, passes through more communities on its way to Vernonia.
Chas Hundley is the editor of the Banks Post and sister news publications the Gales Creek Journal and the Salmonberry Magazine. He grew up in Gales Creek and has a cat.
