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SALEM 鈥� The Center Street Bridge seismic retrofit, and the Oregon Department of Transportation鈥檚 recurring project cost overruns, came under scrutiny at the Joint Interim Committee on Transportation Oversight meeting last week.

The Oregon Transportation Commission narrowly approved funds to move the project forward in November 2025 after questioning the project cost increase of nearly eight times initial estimates and if it should be prioritized over others.

Months later, legislators raised some of those same concerns as they once again prepare to tackle a transportation funding package in the 2026 legislative session.

But the retrofit does have fans, or at least begrudging supporters, in local lawmakers who say completing it is necessary for the safety of their constituents.

The bridge is one of several mega projects, including the Interstate Bridge replacement and I-5 Rose Quarter Improvement Project, that could have funding redirected toward ODOT鈥檚 core operations.

The Center Street Bridge project and a seismic retrofit of the Abernethy Bridge would require a large chunk of ODOT鈥檚 dedicated bridge and seismic funds.

鈥淭he thing that concerns me in relationship to this also is the fact that when these costs go up, money that has been earmarked for other projects disappears,鈥� committee co-Vice Chair Sen. Suzanne Weber, R-Tillamook, said.

The two projects could lead to issuance of $700 million to $900 million in bonds, which would be paid off over 25 years.

鈥淏y spending a portion of our annual bridge funds on debt service, we鈥檙e gonna be spending less on other bridge projects,鈥� said Tova Peltz, ODOT鈥檚 interim chief engineer and division administrator for delivery and operations. 鈥淭his is the trade-off.鈥�

Repaying those bonds would take a third of ODOT鈥檚 money for bridges by 2028 and half by 2034 under its current funding structure, Peltz said. That鈥檚 due to statutory limits set by a 2017 transportation package.

That legislation also mandated projects and allocated funds. For some, like the Center Street Bridge, plans were in early development, contributing to soaring cost estimates.

鈥淚t鈥檚 striking to me the increased costs compared to when we first committed to the project,鈥� committee co-Chair Sen. Khanh Ph岷�m, D-Portland, said.

鈥淒ebt to me is a way of saying, 鈥榯his is a priority for the entire state, and we are so confident in that that we are willing to commit the next 20 to 25 years, a certain portion of funding, to prioritize this project against any other future potential uses that may come up for the next 20 to 25 years,鈥欌�� she said.

ODOT has 鈥渄ramatically improved鈥� its work on estimating costs and determining risks, Peltz said.

鈥淚 think that we as an agency need to be more firm in pushing back on how much confidence we have in the scope of the project at the time,鈥� she told lawmakers. 鈥淎nd I think in the case of Center Street, our confidence was low. We provided a number and we鈥檝e learned a lot since.鈥�

A successful referendum effort and Gov. Tina Kotek鈥檚 direction to repeal the transportation package passed in a special session in 2025 and redirect funding has thrown the future of ODOT and the state鈥檚 transportation systems more generally into flux.

Redirecting funding could mean upending the current revenue split, which ODOT has cited as a constraint on maintenance and key contributor to its budget woes.

ODOT said Jan. 14 its budget needs have grown from $242 million to $297 million with the addition of $55 million the Legislature says is needed to move from the 2025-2027 budget cycle to the next biennium.

The department also now says that funding gap would mean 470 layoffs and 570 vacant positions. For context, over the summer ODOT said its $350 million budget hole would lead to 483 layoffs, with the potential for 100 or 200 more later, and the elimination of 449 vacancies.

Hundreds of ODOT staffers and key executives have left the agency amid the uncertainty, leaving gaps.

鈥淚 worry that it鈥檚 going to be a doom loop of losing the experienced staff that have this institutional knowledge,鈥� Ph岷�m said.

That could lead to higher costs and workers with less experience, she said.

The cuts would be greater because the previous layoffs would have been earlier in the July 2025 to June 2027 budget cycle, ODOT says, making cuts of 1.6 positions in the spring equivalent to 1 earlier.

ODOT does not expect to lay off staff until after the 2026 session, which must conclude by March 8.

Peltz said that with ODOT鈥檚 current budget state, the agency will only be able to repave interstates, and no other ODOT-managed roads, beginning in 2027.

In addition to increased safety risks, waiting to repair roads makes the work more costly.

Lawmakers will be seeking nearly $300 million for ODOT at a time when the state is looking to cut spending and not add to it.

Mike Russell, public works director for Columbia County, said more than 70 percent of the county鈥檚 spending on roads goes toward operations and maintenance. ODOT is limited to using 6 percent of its State Highway Fund earnings (revenues from the gas tax, title fees and more) from the 2017 bill for such work.

Committee co-Chair Rep. Shelly Boshart Davis, R-Albany, and Ph岷�m agreed that ODOT should be able to spend more on operations and maintenance.

The legislators behind the 2017 package created challenges for the lawmakers and ODOT of today, Ph岷�m said.

鈥淚 just hope that we don鈥檛 do the same thing for the next generation of legislators, that we actually do have real cost estimates and we have real revenue and financing plans to pay for those projects so that we don鈥檛 place it onto future generations of Oregonians to figure out how to pay for it,鈥� she said.

Editor鈥檚 note: This article first appeared in The Statesman Journal and then was distributed on the USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect.