The Interstate Bridge Replacement (IBR) program has reached an important benchmark. In our work toward designing a seismically resilient multimodal transportation system over the Columbia River, we presented recommendations for a Modified Locally Preferred Alternative (LPA).

Over the past several weeks, three main components of the recommended Modified LPA were introduced at virtual public meetings of our Executive Steering Group, Community Advisory Group, Equity Advisory Group, and the bistate legislative committee. The Modified LPA does not represent a decision on the final project that will eventually be built, but it does identify foundational elements to evaluate further as part of the Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement in compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) process. The program team believes this recommendation best balances the needs and priorities identified in over a year’s worth of work with partners, community engagement, and technical analysis and modeling.

So, what’s in the recommended Modified LPA?

Right now, three primary elements have been identified: the transit investment preference; the Marine Drive/Hayden Island freeway interchange; and the number of auxiliary lanes on the new river crossing.

The IBR transit investment recommendation is to connect the region’s existing transit systems by extending light rail north from Portland’s Expo Center across the river to a terminus near Evergreen Boulevard in downtown Vancouver, Washington. Unlike the previous planning effort, the current plan calls for light rail to run in alignment with Interstate 5 on the west side of the replacement bridge north to Evergreen Boulevard, which maximizes transfer opportunities, has fewer potential property impacts, and connects directly to jobs, services and amenities.

Together with our transit partners, C-TRAN and TriMet, we are confident that the transit recommendation offers the best opportunity to integrate the existing transit investments in the region and bolster their connectivity – including C-TRAN’s Vine bus rapid transit network and express bus service. Extensive community engagement has demonstrated strong community support across the region for extending light rail to Vancouver, including a majority throughout Clark County.

The next element in the recommended Modified LPA is the freeway interchange at Hayden Island and Marine Drive. The IBR program recommends a partial interchange at Hayden Island featuring a northbound on-ramp to the freeway from Hayden Island and a southbound off-ramp to access the island from the freeway. Meanwhile, an arterial bridge just east of the freeway will provide southbound freeway access and a local connection between Hayden Island and Marine Drive.

The interchange at Hayden Island is an important connection to I-5 for freight transport, travelers visiting local businesses, and residents traveling locally or between states. Hayden Island residents and community members have expressed a desire for a smaller, less impactful footprint from I-5 and a way for all modes of travel to access Portland without having to get onto I-5. Another change from previous planning efforts was the decision by the Port of Portland to halt plans for future development on the west end of Hayden Island, which provided more opportunity to explore the possibility of a partial interchange with a smaller I-5 footprint.

The third component of the recommended Modified LPA for further study is the inclusion of a single auxiliary (ramp-to-ramp) lane in each direction of travel on the replacement bridge, along with the three existing through lanes. These auxiliary lanes will help ease traffic congestion and improve program corridor safety as well as help reduce emissions caused by personal and commercial vehicles operating at suboptimal speeds in congested conditions.

There are currently seven interchanges in the program area, and none adheres to the recommended one mile spacing between interchanges; most are barely a half-mile apart. Lack of adequate spacing results in short merges, weaving and diverging traffic, plus rear-end crashes and sideswipes. This is compounded by conflicting travel needs between local, regional and through traffic, and freight requirements.

The IBR program area currently experiences crash rates three times higher than statewide averages for comparable facilities. From 2015 to 2019, there were over 1,800 crashes (including seven fatalities) in this five-mile stretch. Auxiliary lanes will help reduce the number of vehicle crashes in the program area.

Into July, the Modified LPA recommendation will be taken in front of our partner agencies’ boards and councils to get their input and endorsement. Then we will take it back to the Executive Steering Group and the bistate legislative committee to confirm support to move into the next phase of the program by the end of this summer.

The program will then prepare the documentation necessary, including a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement, to analyze benefits and impacts of the Modified LPA. Additional elements such as the river crossing configuration and details of the transit improvements will be identified as part of the Modified LPA.

This work will continue in a very public and iterative process. A Supplemental Draft Environmental Impact Statement will be published, and a public comment period will follow with various opportunities for public review and comment on the Modified LPA. These public comments will help identify any refinements needed to the Modified LPA. After updates are made to address public comments and additional design analysis, a combined Supplemental Final Environmental Impact Statement and Amended Record of Decision will be published, with the aim of finalizing federal and local funding opportunities and then starting construction sometime in late 2025.

The IBR program has a number of steps ahead of it. Getting alignment around a Modified LPA is a significant milestone to demonstrate that the community is serious about getting this bridge completed. We know this is not a final step, but it is an important step in saying, “Yes, we want to move this project forward; we want to see this get built.”

We are confident that continued collaboration with our partners will make the Interstate Bridge replacement a seismically resilient multimodal solution that crosses the Columbia River and prioritizes equitable, safe and efficient movement of people and goods in alignment with climate goals for our region. We want to improve the experience and travel reliability for all travelers including local community members, freight haulers and I-5 drivers from Mexico to Canada.

Greg Johnson is the program administrator for the Interstate Bridge Replacement Program. Contact him at 503-897-9218 (Oregon), 360-859-0494 (Washington) or info@interstatebridge.org.

The opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed in the preceding commentary are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints of the Daily Journal of Commerce or its editors. Neither the author nor the 91��Ƶ guarantees the accuracy or completeness of any information published herein.

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The history of transportation infrastructure in the United States is fraught with a checkered past of forcing families to move from their homes to make way for new construction. The Interstate and Defense Highways Act of 1956 was envisioned by the Eisenhower administration as a system of 41,000 miles of new, limited-access highways across the country. On paper it was an ambitious leap into the future for a post-war America that demanded unprecedented mobility. In practice, however, construction of these new roadways often ran through thriving Black communities in cities across the country.

Portland was no exception. The Albina community in inner Northeast Portland was bisected by construction of the Memorial Coliseum and then Interstate 5 in the early 1960s. This occurred less than two decades after the 1948 Vanport flood, which destroyed hundreds of homes near the Columbia River and displaced what had been up to then the city’s largest Black community.

The widespread practice of eminent domain in Black neighborhoods also occurred in my home state of Michigan, where I experienced firsthand the resulting impact on families and communities across America. One of my earliest memories starting at the age of four was of moving three times in a year-and-a-half after the Michigan State Highway Department bought – then demolished – our family home to make way for a road-widening project. As a child, it seemed like an adventure. But it was hard on my father, who for years reminded me of this injustice as I charted my life’s work in transportation infrastructure.

The impacts on minority communities and their personal stories that are passed on from one generation to the next ring clear to me. I have reflected on my family’s personal experience to help guide my work in transportation leadership positions in both the public and private sectors, including in my role today as IBR program administrator. The commitment from both the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) and the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) to get it right this time and center equity to guide the IBR program was one of the key factors that interested me in accepting my position.

The advantage of history is that one can learn from the past and avoid repeating injustices. In our work toward replacing the aging Interstate Bridge over the Columbia River with a seismically resilient multimodal structure, the IBR program is centering equity in both process and outcomes. Through comprehensive and equitable community engagement, we are pursuing a solution that prioritizes safety, reflects community values, addresses community concerns, and fosters broad regional support.

Our community engagement program is spearheaded by a trio of advisory groups, including the Executive Steering Group, comprised of representatives from 10 partner agencies with a direct delivery or operational role in the multimodal transportation system around the Interstate Bridge; the Community Advisory Group, represented by balanced community membership from both Oregon and Washington; and the Equity Advisory Group, which provides the IBR program with guidance and input on the program’s processes, approaches and decisions that may affect historically underserved and underrepresented communities.

Community input informs every aspect of the IBR program. Along with the virtual public meetings of our advisory groups, the IBR program also regularly elevates community engagement efforts through online open houses, community briefings, listening sessions, community working groups, and meetings with community-based organizations, among other outreach tools. Over the past year, we have had more than 29,000 interactions with community members, and this number continues to grow. A comprehensive summary of our most recent community engagement initiative is available at .

In centering equity, the IBR program seeks to ensure opportunities for equity priority communities to realize the program’s economic and transportation benefits, and commits to not furthering harm to these communities. We are amplifying the voices of Black, Indigenous and people of color (BIPOC), young people, older adults, and persons with disabilities.

The program is currently exceeding the mandatory disadvantaged business enterprise (DBE) participation goal of 15 percent set for the existing consultant contract. As program work moves forward, additional DBE goals will be set for future contracts. As we reach construction, our ambitious DBE program will be critical as we work to maximize participation of these firms. There are many woman-owned and minority-owned businesses in the region with the expertise needed to build the replacement bridge, and we aim to support such businesses in achieving DBE certification to make way for them to work on the IBR program. We also aim to cultivate talent by drawing from apprenticeship and pre-apprenticeship programs.

This month marks the 105th anniversary of the opening of the first span of the Interstate Bridge – a different bridge for a different time. In our work to replace the Interstate Bridge with infrastructure that provides equitable transportation options for all travelers, including individuals who rely on public transit and active transportation (biking, walking and rolling), we will continue to foster all voices in the program area.

The IBR program is working to identify and gain consensus on a draft-modified locally preferred alternative (LPA) this spring and summer. The LPA will undergo additional analysis as part of the federal environmental review process. The goal is to begin construction in 2025; work is expected to take around seven years. When we cut the ribbons on the new Interstate Bridge, I want folks around the country to recognize the IBR program as a model for carrying out large transportation projects and centering equity and inclusivity from beginning to end.

To listen to firsthand experiences of transportation infrastructure displacement and learn more about how the IBR program is centering equity, I invite you to view our Black History Month virtual roundtable on Friday, Feb. 25, from 5:30 to 7 p.m. I will be joined Portland City Commissioner and IBR Executive Steering Group member Jo Ann Hardesty, Vancouver NAACP President and IBR Community Advisory Group member Jasmine Tolbert, IBR Executive Steering Group Co-Chair Ed Washington, IBR Principal Equity Officer Johnell Bell, IBR Equity Advisory Group facilitator Roberta Hunte, and IBR Executive Steering Group facilitator and roundtable facilitator Millicent Williams. To learn more, go to .

Greg Johnson is the program administrator for the Interstate Bridge Replacement Program. Contact him at 503-897-9218 (Oregon), 360-859-0494 (Washington) or info@interstatebridge.org.

The opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed in the preceding commentary are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints of the Daily Journal of Commerce or its editors. Neither the author nor the 91��Ƶ guarantees the accuracy or completeness of any information published herein.

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