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The policy group overseeing the process to determine the future of the Burnside Bridge has endorsed the long span option, moving Multnomah County a step closer toward a bridge replacement project.

The long span is the most seismically resilient option and the least expensive one (estimated at $825 million), county spokesman Mike Pullen said.

The long span option also was the overwhelming preference of a county task force, which issued its recommendation in June. The county’s Board of Commissioners on Oct. 29 will vote whether to pursue a long span option.

Cate Arnold, a policy group member, said she was pleased the group endorsed the long span option.

鈥淎 solution that the public wanted matched the least expensive,鈥� Arnold said in casting a yes vote at Friday’s meeting, which was held virtually.

The county is seeking to create a lifeline crossing able to carry motor vehicles across the Willamette River following a sizable earthquake. The existing Burnside Bridge, which opened in 1926, may collapse in a strong quake, according to county officials.

Officials plan to fully shut down the Burnside Bridge without erecting a temporary bridge. That will save two years of construction time and millions of dollars. A temporary bridge that was built as part of the Sellwood Bridge replacement project cost $17 million to $20 million, Pullen said.

Some traffic impacts can be expected from the project. Traffic will be rerouted onto other downtown bridges.

鈥淲e’re lucky that Portland has a lot of bridges downtown,鈥� Pullen said.

The county is working with the Portland Bureau of Transportation on signal timing changes and with TriMet on revamped bus routes during bridge construction, Pullen said.

One main downside with the long span, according to policy group members and county officials, is that it would be taller than the existing bridge and likely block some views.

鈥淭he concerns I and a lot of other people had with the long span had to do with aesthetics,鈥� said Susan Lindsay, co-chairwoman of the Buckman Community Association. She also voted to approve the long span option.

A draft environmental impact statement 鈥� a key federal study 鈥� will be published in January or February 2021. That will be followed by a public comment period before publication of a final EIS. Also, Federal Highway Administration approval would be required in order to secure millions of dollars in grants.

Construction is expected to require about five years.