Date: March 13, 2025 at 12:36:02 PM PDT
To: [email protected], [email protected]
Reply-To: FlashAlert [email protected]

OREGON AND WASHINGTON RESIDENTS DEMAND SMARTER ALTERNATIVE TO $9 BILLION INTERSTATE BRIDGE REPLACEMENT PROJECT (PHOTO)

News Release from Neighbors For A Better Crossing Inc
Posted on FlashAlert: March 13th, 2025 12:35 PM

Downloadable file: US Coast Guard rejects IBR plan
Downloadable file: Neighbors for a Better Crossing logo

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Date:        March 13, 2025
Contact:  Gary Clark, Chair, Neighbors for a Better Crossing, Inc.
Email: [email protected], or
[email protected]
Website: www.neighbors4a-bettercrossing.org

Oregon and Washington Residents Demand Smarter Alternative to $9 Billion Interstate Bridge Replacement Project

[Portland, OR & Vancouver, WA] – Neighbors for a Better Crossing, a coalition of concerned residents and businesses, is sounding the alarm on the Interstate Bridge Replacement (IBR) project, a proposed mega bridge that could balloon to over $9 billion due to undisclosed financial risks. The group, is sending the following letter to Oregon and Washington legislators, calling for a halt to the bridge plan and an independent review of a cost-effective, environmentally friendly alternative: an Immersed Tube Tunnel (ITT).

Dear Oregon and Washington Legislators,

Re: Urgent Financial & Environmental Concerns with the Interstate Bridge Replacement (IBR) Project

Neighbors for a Better Crossing is a coalition of concerned residents and businesses in Oregon and Washington who will be significantly affected by the IBR project. We write today to highlight a major financial risk that has been downplayed by project officials yet demands immediate attention—one that could dramatically increase the cost of the proposed mega bridge.

Drilling Cost Overruns: A Looming Financial Disaster

The IBR’s proposed 100+ drill shafts for bridge pilings present a severe cost risk. The Abernethy Bridge project on I-205, which required only 12 drill shafts, has already caused multi-year delays and cost overruns soaring from $248 million to nearly $1 billion. This was due to encountering difficult bedrock and large boulders—the same geological conditions identified in the Columbia River Crossing’s (CRC) 2013 test drilling under the Interstate Bridge.

Each drill shaft costs between $2.5 million and $3 million and takes approximately one month to complete, adding at least $300 million to the IBR’s estimated $6–$7.5 billion budget. With delays and additional challenges, total costs could exceed $9 billion. Oregon and Washington taxpayers will each bear at least $2 billion in bond debt—before inevitable cost increases drive tolls and debt even higher. Shockingly, this critical drill shaft issue was omitted from the Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) despite IBR officials being aware of it since May 2024.

Tolls Will Harm Businesses & Communities

Tolls on I-5, set to begin in early 2026, will cost the average commuter approximately $2,350 per year, placing an undue financial burden on residents, businesses, and commercial transportation. These costs will be passed down to consumers, increasing prices across both states. Furthermore, toll avoidance will push more drivers to I-205, worsening congestion and harming businesses along the I-5 corridor from Tualatin to Salmon Creek.

Community and business groups—including the Hayden Island Neighborhood Network, the Hayden Island Community Safety Initiative, the Just Crossing Alliance & Endorsing Partners, and our own Neighbors For A Better Crossing—have major concerns with a toll on I-5. Efforts to block or regulate tolling are already underway:

• Oregon: The Vote Before Tolls Initiative seeks to give Oregonians the right to vote on toll implementation before it takes
• Washington: Representative John Ley has introduced HB 1559: No Tolls on the Interstate Bridge to prohibit tolling on this vital transportation

Currently, there are no tolls on I-5 between Mexico and Canada. Implementing them here would create a financial hardship for residents and businesses, with no real congestion relief in return.

The Mega Bridge: High Cost, Minimal Benefit

For a potential $9 billion price tag, the proposed bridge provides only one additional lane per direction—offering little relief for congestion. Additionally, its steep bike and pedestrian ramps, transit stations 30 feet above Hayden Island and 100 feet above Vancouver, and reliance on elevators vulnerable to outages make it far from user-friendly. Worse, the new bridge’s vessel clearance will be reduced from 178 feet to 116 feet, restricting commercial river traffic that supports businesses upstream (see the attached 2023 U.S. Coast Guard rejection letter and their recommendation for a tunnel alternative). 

A Smarter Solution: The Immersed Tube Tunnel (ITT)

Instead of an overpriced mega bridge, Oregon and Washington should pursue an Immersed Tube Tunnel (ITT)—a proven alternative used worldwide, including the $3 billion Fraser River Tunnel project underway in Vancouver, BC.

An Immersed Tube Tunnel offers numerous advantages:

 ✔ More cost-effective – Avoids drill shaft cost overruns and saves billions.

✔ Potential for toll-free travel – Cost savings could eliminate the need for tolls.

✔ Earthquake-resilient – Far safer than a tall bridge in the event of a Cascadia Seduction Zone earthquake (37% probability of a 7.1+ magnitude quake within 50 years).

✔ Easily expandable – Unlike a bridge, additional tunnel tubes can be added to accommodate future traffic growth.

✔ Environmentally friendly – No in-river pilings, and hazardous waste from demolition, minimizing harm to fish habitats.

✔ Faster construction – ITTs are prefabricated off-site, floated into position, and installed quickly—cutting build time in half compared to a bridge.

✔ Preserves the Historic I-5 Bridge – The existing bridge, recognized on the National Register of Historic Places, has over 70 years of remaining service life. It can be repurposed as a pedestrian, bike, and transit corridor, generating revenue through public events and tourism rather than being demolished.

Call to Action: Demand an Independent Tunnel Review

The IBR project has remained biased in favor of a bridge, despite its own 2020 engineering study confirming an Immersed Tube Tunnel is a viable alternative. Given the immense financial, environmental, and transportation benefits, we urge you to convene an independent commission to evaluate the ITT alternative before locking taxpayers into a $9 billion+ financial disaster. Our organization is sponsoring public meetings to hear from tunnel experts. It’s time to get the facts and cost estimates for an immersed tube tunnel!

The destruction of our historic I-5 Bridge and the construction of an unsightly, over-budget mega bridge is not the legacy Oregon and Washington should leave behind. By preserving our existing bridge and embracing smarter solutions, we can create a landmark—not a landfill.

We urge you to act now before it’s too late!

Contact Info:

Contact: Gary Clark, Chair, Neighbors for a Better Crossing, Inc.

Email: [email protected], or [email protected]