Portland mayor bans people from camping near busy roads

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler is prohibiting people from camping along freeways and corridors with high crash rates. Oregon Public Broadcasting reports Wheeler issued an emergency order Friday that tasks the city’s urban camping team with stopping people from setting up tents near busy roadways. The mayor said it’s first of several executive actions he plans to take to address the homelessness crisis. The order follows a report by the Portland Bureau of Transportation that found 70% of pedestrians killed by cars were homeless. Critics accuse Wheeler of using that information as political cover for a harmful camping crackdown.