How the I-5 bridge saga led to a $14B price tag
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The I-5 bridge over the Columbia River connects Portland to Vancouver, Washington. Photo: Meira Gebel/Axios
The soaring price tag for a new Interstate 5 bridge connecting Washington and Oregon is only the latest stumble in a decades-long effort to replace the aging crossing.
Why it matters: The total project cost has more than quadrupled since an earlier replacement plan fell apart in 2013, now topping $14 billion — all while the bridge continues to snarl traffic and could collapse in a major earthquake.
The big picture: In 2014, Bloomberg News called the abandoned I-5 bridge project over the Columbia River "one of the greatest engineering non-achievements of the 21st century."
- Twelve years later, state officials say they're determined to move forward. "We're building this damn bridge," Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson said last month.
- "We need a new bridge, and it's time to start building it," Oregon Governor Tina Kotek said in a written statement.
State of play: The current I-5 bridge, which connects Portland to Vancouver, Washington, consists of two spans — one built in 1958 and another dating to 1917.
- Both rise to accommodate boat traffic, causing regular backups at what officials say is the only stoplight on I-5 between Canada and Mexico.
Catch up quick: Efforts to address the traffic chokepoint gained steam in the late 1990s.
- By 2002, congestion in the area had become severe enough that a bistate task force called for a new crossing with light rail and more lanes.
- In 2005, Oregon and Washington launched the Columbia River Crossing project to plan a replacement bridge and light rail extension.
- Federal officials gave the project the green light in 2011, committing to a design that included light rail. Oregon approved $450 million toward construction in 2013.
Yes, but: Washington's Legislature didn't follow suit, largely because members of the conservative state Senate majority objected to the light rail component of the project.
- Oregon officials explored pursuing a new bridge on their own for about a year before ultimately shutting down the project in 2014.
- Oregon and Washington formally restarted planning efforts in 2019.
The latest: An updated estimate released last month pegged the total cost of replacing the bridge and upgrading the surrounding corridor at $14.4 billion, driven in part by inflation and projected risk.
- That's up from $3.4 billion, which was estimated for the former Columbia River Crossing project shelved in 2014.
- Project officials are now looking to delay some planned corridor improvements, including freeway interchanges and additional light rail stops, to focus on replacing the bridge itself and bringing light rail to the Vancouver waterfront.
What they're saying: "Transformational change rarely happens all at once," TriMet general manager Sam Desue said at a news conference last month.
- Ferguson said state and local officials will "continue to work toward the larger corridor down the road in phases as funding becomes available."
By the numbers: The scaled-back plan to remove the old spans, build a new bridge, connect it to I-5 and add light rail is currently projected to cost about $7.7 billion.
- Officials say they have about $5.5 billion in state and federal money available for the project and are pursuing additional federal funding to help bridge the gap.
The plan is to make a fixed-span bridge that no longer lifts and lowers for boats — a design the U.S. Coast Guard signed off on earlier this year.
- The fixed-height bridge will cost about $1.7 billion less than constructing a new movable span bridge, according to project officials.
What's next: Federal officials are expected to sign off on the project's environmental review later this year, setting up construction to begin in 2028.
- Should that go according to plan, the new bridge likely wouldn't open to traffic until the mid-2030s.