Construction timeline now up to 15 years

Rep. John Ley 
for Clark County Today

The Oregon Transportation Commission (OTC) met Thursday (May 8) and got updates on both the Interstate Bridge replacement project as well as the Rose Quarter project. Both projects have significant cost increases, causing funding challenges for both Oregon and Washington. Additionally, construction will occur simultaneously impacting the estimated 70,000 SW Washington citizens who work in Oregon plus regional freight haulers.

“Construction could take up to 15 years,” said Ray Mabey, assistant program administrator for the Interstate Bridge Replacement Program (IBR). 

This increase in construction time was attributed to the need to keep I-5 open during the construction. They expect to receive a Record of Decision (ROD) early next year, allowing for construction to begin shortly thereafter.

The most eye-opening revelation was that apparently only “one team” is interested in bidding to be the overall general contractor for the project. They admitted this is troubling – that it doesn’t bode well for costs. They hope to redesign their bid packages to see if they get more interest. There are 28 bid packages (at the moment) shown on the website.

The total project cost was shown to be between $6.3 billion and $7.04 billion. However later this fall the IBR team will update cost projections. Recently, the cost of the Hood River-White Salmon bridge has more than tripled with some estimates now around $1.6 billion. 

Travis Brower, assistant director for revenue, finance and compliance with the IBR, said tolling will start in the 2nd quarter of 2027. A Level 3 Tolling and Revenue analysis is currently being conducted for the project. A net toll revenue projection will be reported in January 2026.

An OTC Commissioner asked if they were looking at traffic diversion to I-205. The response was, not directly. They are only focused on how many vehicles will actually pay the tolls. In the previous Columbia River Crossing effort, it was estimated that 35,000 vehicles would divert to the free I-205. 

The cover letter to the OTC from ODOT Director Kris Strickler stated: “The IBR Program will also rely on toll funding to provide between $1.1 billion to $1.6 billion for capital construction costs.” There was no mention of Washington HB 1958 which approved $2.5 billion in toll bonds for the project.

Commissioners were shown a briefing slide from July 2024. Four toll rate scenarios showed the low end of tolls being $1.55 to $3.20; and the high end scenario was $2.00 to $4.70. Freight haulers would pay between 1.5 times and 4 times the toll rate shown. Toll rates would increase 2.15% annually in three of the four scenarios.

However these rates were based on borrowing $1.24 billion, according to the IBR. Now that the Washington legislature has authorized the borrowing of double that amount ($2.5 billion), there is no estimate on what tolls would have to be if the full amount were borrowed. But it’s not unreasonable to assume toll rates would double. 

Last month, Vancouver Mayor Anne McEnerny-Ogle told a Fairway Village community group that maximum tolls would only be $1.75 according to resident Jill Ross. The mayor apparently also said they were “not getting money because of Trump!” She said they had to postpone making decisions until July because of Trump, and in fact,we probably won’t get a bridge at all because of Trump, according to Ross.

The IBR Program will be nearing the final stages of the federal environmental review process later this year. They will request authorization to spend $1.9 billion of additional funds and phases in the Statewide Transportation Improvement Program (STIP) later this summer. The largest component is $433 million for preliminary engineering, of which $90 million reimburses WSDOT for current work. 

Included in that request is $233 million to begin acquisition of right of way for the project. Citizens in both Vancouver and Hayden Island have expressed significant concerns regarding the project taking their homes and property, potentially via eminent domain. 

According to the information provided, Oregon would contribute $55.6 million for right of way acquisition; Washington would contribute $28.2 million. Federal funds would cover the balance of the $233 million projected acquisition costs.

The OTC Commissioners were shown a graphic of “Conceptual Construction Packages”, highlighting 28 portions of the project contractors could bid on. Of interest are the following components, construction time, price estimate and manager.

• Columbia River Bridge | 5-6 years | $1-1.5 billion | Design Build or Progressive Design Build | WSDOT  
• Columbia River Bridge Removal | 2.5-3 years | $120-180 million | Design Bid Build | WSDOT/ODOT

Washington

• Bus Procurement | Less than a year | $30-45 million | Two-step Sealed Bid | C-TRAN
• Bus and BRT Infrastructure | 1-1.5 years | $3-5 million | Design Bid Build | C-TRAN
• Evergreen Boulevard Bridge | 2.5-3 years | $9-14 million | Design Bid Build | WSDOT 
• Evergreen Park and Ride | 1-1.5 years | $90-140 million | Design Build  | WSDOT
• Mill Plain | 3.5-4 years | $550-830 million | Design Build | WSDOT
• 65th Street C-TRAN Operations & Maintenance Bus Facility | 1-1.5 years | $8-12 million | Design Bid Build | C-TRAN
• SR 14 Package A | 2.5-3 years | $8-12 million | Design Bid Build | WSDOT
• Washington North | 4-4.5 years | $180-270 million | Design Build | WSDOT
• Waterfront Park and Ride | 1-1.5 years | $30-45 million | Design Build  | WSDOT
• Washington Station Finishes | 1-1.5 years | $1-2 million | Design Bid Build | WSDOT

Oregon

• Hayden Island Package A | 2-2.5 years | $55-85 million | CM/GC or Design Bid Build | ODOT/TriMet 
• Hayden Island Surface Streets | 2-2.5 years | $53-80 million | Design Bid Build | ODOT
• Light Rail Overnight Facility | 1.5-2 years | $9-14 million | CM/GC | TriMet
• Light Rail Track, System and Stations | 3 years | $190-290 million | CM/GC | TriMet
• Light Rail Vehicle Procurement | $190-290 million | Two-step Sealed Bid | TriMet
• Marine Drive Interchange | 3-3.5 years | $240-360 million | CM/GC or Design Build | ODOT
• Marine Drive Package A | 2-2.5 years | $38-58 million | CM/GC or Design Build | ODOT/TriMet
• North Expo Road | 2-2.5 years | $14-21 million | Design Bid Build | ODOT
• North Portland Harbor Bridge Removal | 2-2.5 years | $32-48 million | Design Bid Build | ODOT
• North Portland Harbor Transit Bridge | 2-2.5 years | $25-53 million | CM/GC | TriMet
• Oregon I-5 Northbound | 3-3.5 years | $700 million- $1 billion | CM/GC or Design Build | ODOT
• Oregon I-5 Southbound | 3-3.5 years | $640-960 million | CM/GC or Design Build | ODOT
• Oregon Station Finishes | 1-1.5 years | $1-2 million | Design Bid Build | TriMet
• Pre-completion Tolling Signage | less than one year- $5-$6M | Design Bid Build | WSDOT/ODOT
• Ruby Junction TriMet Facility | 2 years | $45-65 million | CM/GC | TriMet