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The heads of the Oregon and Washington transportation departments have recommended the composite-deck truss bridge option to their respective governors as a bridge type for the Columbia River Crossing project.

Of three types analyzed, a composite-deck truss bridge would be the least expensive, at about $340 million. It would also be the easiest to build, according to the draft recommendation, because it wouldn’t require discussions with the Federal Aviation Administration and it wouldn’t require much additional work relating to environmental assessments already done.

In the report, the two department heads said that the composite-deck truss bridge is “the only bridge type that meets the needs of both states.”

Govs. John Kitzhaber of Oregon and Chris Gregoire of Washington released on Feb. 3 calling for the leaders of the two departments to cease work on the open-web box girder bridge design proposed previously.

ODOT Director Matthew Garrett and WSDOT Secretary Paula Hammond noted that they chose the composite-deck truss bridge type because it meets the governors’ requirements: It is the most affordable, will allow the project to stay on schedule, adheres to environmental commitments, builds on resources already spent, has the least impact in the river and will provide the least risky path forward.

The final price tag for the bridge, which is only a small part of the overall Columbia River Crossing project, could change because designers will still have to evaluate costs associated with the bridge landings, the .

The other two bridge types, the tied-arch and cable-stayed, would cost $430 million and $390 million, respectively. Some members of the Project Sponsors Council and the public said they preferred those types because they are more aesthetically pleasing.

Garrett and Hammond decided not to recommend either of those bridge types because of they would cost more and face greater environmental and regulatory hurdles, the report said.

“The bridge panel chair has stressed that much of the aesthetic and design discussion can occur after the bridge type has been decided,” the report said, adding that more architectural features could be added later.

“The departments agree that aesthetics should be recognized as an important element and evaluated in the context of all of the competing needs. We also agree that a comprehensive public conversation about aesthetics should occur after the bridge type is selected,” the report said.

Public comments about the bridge type so far have been in three general areas: aesthetics, project schedule and bike path elevations and pedestrian access, the report said.

The panel also considered alignment. The tied-arch and cable-stayed types would require more work in order to touch down properly on each side of the Columbia River. The composite-deck truss type can curve slightly, which would help designers and builders align it with landings already planned, the report said.

The departments also determined that none of the bridge types would require a replacement of the North Portland Harbor Bridge, which was built in 1985.

The next part of the process will be to seek public comment on the draft recommendations at meetings scheduled for

One session will be from noon to 2 p.m. at the Portland Expo Center, Hall D, 2060 N. Marine Drive; and the other will be from 6-8 p.m. in Vancouver at the Washington State Department of Transportation Southwest Region Building, 11018 N.E. 51st Circle.

The meetings will be hosted by Henry Hewitt and Steve Horenstein, co-chairmen of the CRC Project Sponsors Council; Jason Tell, Region 1 manager of the Oregon Department of Transportation; and Don Wagner, Columbia River Crossing project director.

Final recommendations will be submitted to the governors this month.

If the composite-deck truss type were finalized, the next steps would include publication of the final environmental impact statement and receipt of the federal record of decision by the end of 2011.