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The Oregon Department of Transportation‘s bid to widen Interstate 5 through the Rose Quarter is encountering fierce opposition from some in Portland who say the project is unlikely to ease congestion and will instead set back the city’s long-term goals.

A public comment period for the environmental assessment ended Monday, and a meeting for interested contractors is scheduled for next week. ODOT is moving ahead with the planning process, and will now begin working on responses to public comments and incorporating any changes into a final environmental assessment.

Critics are pushing the state agency to undergo a full environmental impact study, a longer and more intensive process than the current environmental assessment.

The project is a reimagining of Interstate 5 along a 1.7-mile stretch between Interstate 84 at the south and Interstate 405 at the north, including the Rose Quarter and surrounding local streets. The heart of the project involves widening the interstate with an auxiliary lane and building new lids, or wide bridges, to connect surface streets.

The project is expected to cost $450 million to $500 million in today’s dollars, with construction lasting for four to five years, according to ODOT.

The project has come to reflect competing visions for Portland’s future. Advocates for racial equality point to 20th-century 鈥渦rban renewal鈥� clearances in the area that razed block after block of historically African-American neighborhoods. Bicyclists have raised concerns that the project takes Portland in the wrong direction, toward a more auto-centric urban design. Environmental groups question ODOT models that forecast lower congestion and reduced emissions after the project’s completion.

Some critics have compared the widening project to Portland residents’ successful fight against the Mt. Hood Freeway through East Portland during the 1970s. Funds for the freeway were eventually used for the other projects, including Portland’s first MAX light-rail line.

ODOT spokesman Don Hamilton said the I-5 Rose Quarter Improvement Project is not comparable to building a new highway.

鈥淭his is not an increase in through lanes,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t is simply auxiliary lanes and a safety shoulder in each direction.鈥�

Here’s a look at some of the most important issues surrounding the project:

Will it ease congestion?
The primary driver of the project is to speed traffic through the Rose Quarter, a longtime bottleneck caused in part by multiple onramps and off-ramps. ODOT officials pointed to I-5’s importance as a national freight route; the freeway is the main north-south route on the West Coast from Mexico to Canada.

鈥淭his is an important bottleneck to address to keep our state’s economy moving,鈥� said Megan Channell, a senior project manager at ODOT.

Auxiliary lanes and 12-foot shoulders would allow emergency vehicles to get through the chokepoint. As it is now, police and ambulances are often stuck in traffic like everyone else. Vehicles involved in accidents, without adequate space to pull over, frequently cause delays. ODOT calculated accidents cause 164 hours of delay a year for northbound drivers, and 279 hours a year for southbound drivers.

ODOT transportation modeling shows the project would save time for commuters in most scenarios compared to existing conditions, known as the 鈥渘o-build alternative.鈥�

Hamilton said it makes sense to increase capacity on I-5 to handle population in the Portland area. 鈥淟et’s remember that there has been a tremendous increase in traffic on this freeway since it opened in the ’60s,鈥� he said.

Some critics challenge the idea that more roads and wider freeways fix traffic congestion. They point to the idea of 鈥渋nduced demand,鈥� which holds that more road capacity encourages more drivers to fill up the highway. Think of traffic congestion on freeways in Los Angeles or Houston with a dozen lanes or more.

鈥淭ime and again, cities around the U.S. and around the world have widened freeways with the avowed purpose of reducing congestion,鈥� Portland economist Joe Cortright wrote in City Observatory. 鈥淎nd it’s never worked. 鈥�

ODOT’s traffic models also take into account projects that have not been built, including a successor to the Columbia River Crossing I-5 bridge. Although there is new momentum in Washington to fund the long-planned bridge, there’s no guarantee the bridge will be built.

Channell defended the use of the travel demand model, which includes all projects in Metro’s Regional Transportation Plan.

鈥淭he methodology is what’s used within the region for all projects,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t’s the best tool we have available to use for transportation projections in this region.鈥�

Hamilton said models show the project would reduce air pollution.

鈥淲hat we saw in there is that hydrocarbons will decrease slightly if we build the project, and air pollution will decrease slightly if we build the project,鈥� he said.

Widening at Eastbank Esplanade

A less-noticed aspect of the project could impact users on the popular Eastbank Esplanade, a riverfront public trail for cyclists, runners and pedestrians. The freeway viaduct is planned to be widened south of Northeast Lloyd Boulevard and adjacent to the Esplanade.

鈥淚t is difficult to see how widening a freeway viaduct directly adjacent to a park facility, or perhaps even over it, cannot be an adverse affect,鈥� Portland architect and blogger Iain Mackenzie wrote in public comments submitted to ODOT. 鈥淚t is also hard to understand how this can be mitigated to a less than significant level.鈥� Mackenzie called for ODOT to conduct a full EIS.

Channell disagreed that Esplanade users would be negatively impacted.

鈥淭he viaduct in that area is being widened with the auxiliary lane, but it would be the same feel as being next to the same transportation facility,鈥� she said.

Impact to middle school

Portland Public Schools has also requested ODOT undertake an EIS, saying how it will affect Harriet Tubman Middle School has not been fully studied. The school district pointed to concerns about air quality, soil stability, noise and traffic and construction impacts at the campus, which is among the district’s most diverse schools.

鈥淚t is PPS’ position that the depth, complexity and severity of potential significant short- and long-term negative impacts to PPS facilities, staff, students, families and stakeholders warrants a full (EIS),鈥� the district stated in a four-page letter.

Channell said ODOT would work to mitigate any impacts to the school. 鈥淲e will not do anything that compromises the safety of students or staff at Tubman Middle School,鈥� she said.

Highway covers and bike access

It’s unclear what development potential could occur atop the top highway lids proposed for the project.

鈥淭his project is much more than just a highway project,鈥� Channell said. 鈥淲e have significant improvements to our local streets in this area, including the highway covers which reduce the practical and visual barriers of I-5 and reconnect the neighborhood.鈥�

The Clackamas Bridge for bicyclists and pedestrians, just south of the Broadway-Weidler interchange, would connect to the Rose Quarter on the west side.
The city’s Bicycle Advisory Committee is not sold that the project will bring significant improvements. In a letter, the committee stated the project 鈥渨ould mostly propose rebuilding bicycle facilities on the same streets that already have them,鈥� with some exceptions.

鈥淲e’re not convinced that it represents a substantial improvement over what’s there,鈥� said Mackenzie, a committee member.

Contracting

ODOT is in the early stages of reaching out to contractors who may wish to bid on the project. From 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. on April 9, ODOT will host a networking event for prime contractors, subcontractors and agency project managers at the Oregon Convention Center.