Two highway projects in Oregon are going to have a higher price tag than what was originally planned.
On Thursday, the Oregon Transportation Commission authorized a $85.2 million increase for work on Interstate 205 and an approximately $15.4 million increase for work on Oregon Route 217.
Construction for I-205 jumped to $600 million, with the increase being paid for with resources identified in the Urban Mobility Strategy Finance Plan update.
The project includes widening and seismically retrofitting the Abernethy Bridge, creating safer options to enter and exit the corridor with an auxiliary lane from Oregon Route 43 to Oregon Route 213, and combining the O.R. 43 ramps.
According to the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT), the bridge will be the first seismically resilient one over the Willamette River in the Portland-metro region.
Construction of the O.R. 217: O.R. 10 – O.R. 99W project rose to approximately $147.1 million.
The increase will be paid for with approximately $3.5 million from state bridge program funding reserves, approximately $11.9 million from cancellation of the construction phase of the I-5: Capitol Highway – O.R. 217 project and $2 million in the project’s bottom line via cancellation of the utility relocation phase in a previous Oregon Transportation Commission action.
As construction costs rise, drivers will be expected to pay tolls on the new Interstate 5 bridge that crosses the Columbia River. Construction on the project is expected to begin in 2026.
Tolling in both directions on the existing bridge will be one of the first things the public experiences when the massive construction project gets underway. It is also a source of funding to help cover the cost of the project, which could range from $5 billion to $7.5 billion.
Federal dollars and contributions from Oregon and Washington will cover a large share. Tolls are counted on to raise $1.2 billion for construction plus provide an ongoing stream of revenue for bridge maintenance and operations.
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Source: DJC Oregon, Yahoo
