The Interstate 5 bridge replacement project got a huge surge of federal funding this week, securing a $600 million grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation.
The grant is the largest infusion of federal funding so far for a project with ballooning costs. The bridge is now expected to cost as much as $7.5 billion, nearly $3 billion more than previous estimates.
Members of the bridge planning team, which include Oregon and Washington transportation officials, have said they plan to seek at least $2.5 billion in federal grants. The funding announced Friday is a major step toward meeting that goal.
Oregon and Washington are expected to contribute $1 billion each. Planners have been counting on tolling revenue to cover most of the remaining costs.
Washington’s Congressional delegation touted the funding as an economic win for the region, while also making clear their plans for the scope of the bridge.
“The I-5 bridge serves as a vital commerce link for the entire West Coast,” said Senator Maria Cantwell, D-Washington, in a statement. She noted that more than 130,000 vehicles move over the bridge daily, as well as goods grown and produced in both Oregon and Washington.
“By upgrading and adding lane capacity, we are enabling more regional economic growth and better day-to-day travel experiences for commuters,” Cantwell said.
Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek called the grant a “big moment for the Pacific Northwest.”
“This project will help advance our goal of reducing emissions through a modern, multimodal bridge and will provide an infusion of federal funds to our region that will support local jobs and broader workforce opportunities,” Kotek said in a written statement.
Bridge planners moved forward last year with designs that included a light rail connection into Vancouver, but also added two more lanes to the bridge.
Previous efforts to replace the bridge failed in 2014, largely due to Washington lawmakers’ reluctance to pay for it over opposition to light rail.
While acknowledging the need to replace the 100-year-old bridge with a new, seismically sound one, Oregon lawmakers have dragged their feet on making decisions about the project.
They ended this year’s legislative session without passing a policy bill to fund the bridge. The Legislature did ultimately pass a broad budget bill that contained language to borrow $1 billion over eight years to pay for the bridge. But that bill lacked the specific language of the previous one about the scope of the project.
Other details, such as the height of the bridge and how big it should be, have also hampered progress.
The U.S. Coast Guard, which must sign off on the bridge plan, has said it will not approve a bridge unless it has 178 feet of clearance — or a drawbridge — to accommodate vessels navigating the river and ferrying products manufactured by local companies. But building a bridge with a movable span would be more expensive.
Environmental activists are fervently opposed to the proposed designs. Some want a smaller design that doesn’t add new freeway lanes. They say cost savings could pay for other local transportation safety improvements.
Others have pushed for replacing the aging bridge with a tunnel, a longshot option public officials consider impractical.
—Jayati Ramakrishnan; jramakrishnan@oregonian.com