I-5 Columbia River Crossing (OR/WA)

[Sub-Urbanite]

Is anyone else getting a little bit bored with Cable stayed bridges?

YES.

Gimme some good lookin' steel again...

[Bruce]

The U.S. side of the Northwest doesn't have many of them, despite Cable Bridge in the Tri-Cities being the first significant one built in the country. Tacoma's SR 509 Bridge and Tilikum Crossing in Portland are pretty much it until you get to the Vancouver area and see a half-dozen major cable-stayed or extradosed bridges.

[jakeroot]

I'd personally love to see a suspension bridge, though I doubt the crossing is long enough to justify it.

[vdeane]

Unfortunately, most policymakers aren't roadgeeks, so to them cable-stayed is still "a signature bridge" and not "the exact same design used everywhere else".  And suspension bridges, despite being very beautiful, are more expensive.

[triplemultiplex]

Cheapest way to span a long distance over a navigable waterway.  The days of the old school suspension bridge are pretty much over.

[Sub-Urbanite]

For this bridge, design isn't going to play much of a factor, I don't think.

It has to be high enough for boats and low enough for Pearson Field and PDX.

And, fingers crossed, there's a design that fits within that Venn diagram...

[kkt]

Oregon legislature approved $1 billion, Oregon's share of the bridge:

https://www.opb.org/article/2023/06/20/oregon-washington-interstate-5-i5-bridge-replacement-salem-politics-funding/

[plain]

$6.3 Billion?? Might as well go for the gusto and build a bridge-tunnel at this point.

[kalvado]

$6.3 Billion?? Might as well go for the gusto and build a bridge-tunnel at this point.

Tunnel for $6B? Where do you think Oregon is, in Sweden or China?

[The Ghostbuster]

With a $6.3 billion price tag, it may be a long time before the new CRC crossing is constructed. 2025 seems to be awfully optimistic with that kind of hefty price tag.

[pderocco]

Where are they going to get all that gold leaf?

[kkt]

$6.3 Billion?? Might as well go for the gusto and build a bridge-tunnel at this point.

Oh, by all means, let's spend another $100 million on a study.  /s

[Bruce]

Tolling on the existing Interstate Bridge is projected to begin in 2025 or 2026 and would be handled by Oregon DOT, according to KGW. Variable price of $1.50 to $3.55 with electronic collection, with an extra charge for photo-plate drivers. Nothing totally confirmed yet due to the uncertainty about the project.

https://www.kgw.com/article/news/local/the-story/interstate-bridge-tolling-timeline/283-6fbeff0f-5392-4b31-a723-8c7105b56670

[Sub-Urbanite]

Tolling on the existing Interstate Bridge is projected to begin in 2025 or 2026 and would be handled by Oregon DOT, according to KGW. Variable price of $1.50 to $3.55 with electronic collection, with an extra charge for photo-plate drivers. Nothing totally confirmed yet due to the uncertainty about the project.

https://www.kgw.com/article/news/local/the-story/interstate-bridge-tolling-timeline/283-6fbeff0f-5392-4b31-a723-8c7105b56670

Why would this be handled by ODOT? Just add this to the Good to Go system and call it... good to go?

[Revive 755]

178 feet is ridiculous. According to Wikipedia, the I-205 bridge only has 144 feet of clearance, and there's nothing between the two bridges but a bunch of marinas and houseboats.

Maybe the aerial photos are outdated but there appears to be some sort of commercial operation on the river about 1.5 miles east of I-5 bridge.

[Bruce]

KGW has a report on the 7 interchange redesigns that are part of this megaproject: https://www.kgw.com/article/news/local/the-story/freeway-upgrades-interstate-bridge-replacement/283-4e883222-3674-4c75-b34d-bdfb8b2dc366

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3cZZkxu_Faw

The two videos, direct from the IBR channel:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zBjREpn1VLw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S0ci8ebkH_8

[Plutonic Panda]

I'm glad they're keeping the LRT plan. This will be one hell of a project. I can't wait to see it break ground!

It would be nice though if they would build it with a future bullet train in mind. Not track work or anything just designed where it can be added in the future if one ever happens.

[pderocco]

The narrator on that first IBR video sounded like she was singing a song. Each description of a path through the interchange had the same melody as every other, just the rhythm varied a little depending on the number of syllables.

[jakeroot]

It would be nice though if they would build it with a future bullet train in mind. Not track work or anything just designed where it can be added in the future if one ever happens.

Has this been talked about in any capacity?

All my exploring in Japan, I'm not sure I've ever seen a Shinkansen share any right of way with an expressway. The two need completely different levels of engineering, it just doesn't make sense for them to come near each other except when physically necessary, which seems to be almost never.

[Bruce]

It would be nice though if they would build it with a future bullet train in mind. Not track work or anything just designed where it can be added in the future if one ever happens.

Has this been talked about in any capacity?

All my exploring in Japan, I'm not sure I've ever seen a Shinkansen share any right of way with an expressway. The two need completely different levels of engineering, it just doesn't make sense for them to come near each other except when physically necessary, which seems to be almost never.

This bridge is the wrong location for HSR and there's definitely not enough available funding to cover plans to accommodate it. The focus would be on building a replacement for the downstream BNSF crossing or finding a different route into Portland given the constraints.

[kalvado]

It would be nice though if they would build it with a future bullet train in mind. Not track work or anything just designed where it can be added in the future if one ever happens.

Has this been talked about in any capacity?

All my exploring in Japan, I'm not sure I've ever seen a Shinkansen share any right of way with an expressway. The two need completely different levels of engineering, it just doesn't make sense for them to come near each other except when physically necessary, which seems to be almost never.

Keep in mind, getting new ROW seems impossible in US.

[Rothman]

It would be nice though if they would build it with a future bullet train in mind. Not track work or anything just designed where it can be added in the future if one ever happens.

Has this been talked about in any capacity?

All my exploring in Japan, I'm not sure I've ever seen a Shinkansen share any right of way with an expressway. The two need completely different levels of engineering, it just doesn't make sense for them to come near each other except when physically necessary, which seems to be almost never.

Keep in mind, getting new ROW seems impossible in US.

Too general a statement.  DOTs and even local entities acquire ROW all the time.

That said, whether an entity has either or both 1) access to eminent domain procedures and 2) the resources to purchase the ROW are the main factors, given the significant expense.

[kalvado]

It would be nice though if they would build it with a future bullet train in mind. Not track work or anything just designed where it can be added in the future if one ever happens.

Has this been talked about in any capacity?

All my exploring in Japan, I'm not sure I've ever seen a Shinkansen share any right of way with an expressway. The two need completely different levels of engineering, it just doesn't make sense for them to come near each other except when physically necessary, which seems to be almost never.

Keep in mind, getting new ROW seems impossible in US.

Too general a statement.  DOTs and even local entities acquire ROW all the time.

That said, whether an entity has either or both 1) access to eminent domain procedures and 2) the resources to purchase the ROW are the main factors, given the significant expense.

Genuine question - do you have a story of actually building a new road/rail on a new ROW corridor in NY?
(sorry for taking this too far out of northwest, mods - please  feel free to move/separate as you see fit)
I am not thinking about a new road in a new development or cutting someone's lawn by 2 feet for a smoother curve or a new ramp, but a really new corridor?
I assume Round lake bypass near me is a relatively recent, but pretty short one...

I've seen a proposed corridor map for high speed rail from Albany to Buffalo, but my impression it was presented with a tongue in a cheek.

[Plutonic Panda]

It would be nice though if they would build it with a future bullet train in mind. Not track work or anything just designed where it can be added in the future if one ever happens.

Has this been talked about in any capacity?

All my exploring in Japan, I'm not sure I've ever seen a Shinkansen share any right of way with an expressway. The two need completely different levels of engineering, it just doesn't make sense for them to come near each other except when physically necessary, which seems to be almost never.

This bridge is the wrong location for HSR and there's definitely not enough available funding to cover plans to accommodate it. The focus would be on building a replacement for the downstream BNSF crossing or finding a different route into Portland given the constraints.

Not sure about the routing of the HSR just thought about it because ODOT did that in Tulsa with the I-244 bridge. It allows for a pair of future HSR tracks to be built in the future. I'm not sure about Japan but we aren't built anything like they are so I wouldn't use them as a good comparison though I would like to have their trains here.

[Rothman]

It would be nice though if they would build it with a future bullet train in mind. Not track work or anything just designed where it can be added in the future if one ever happens.

Has this been talked about in any capacity?

All my exploring in Japan, I'm not sure I've ever seen a Shinkansen share any right of way with an expressway. The two need completely different levels of engineering, it just doesn't make sense for them to come near each other except when physically necessary, which seems to be almost never.

Keep in mind, getting new ROW seems impossible in US.

Too general a statement.  DOTs and even local entities acquire ROW all the time.

That said, whether an entity has either or both 1) access to eminent domain procedures and 2) the resources to purchase the ROW are the main factors, given the significant expense.

Genuine question - do you have a story of actually building a new road/rail on a new ROW corridor in NY?
(sorry for taking this too far out of northwest, mods - please  feel free to move/separate as you see fit)
I am not thinking about a new road in a new development or cutting someone's lawn by 2 feet for a smoother curve or a new ramp, but a really new corridor?
I assume Round lake bypass near me is a relatively recent, but pretty short one...

I've seen a proposed corridor map for high speed rail from Albany to Buffalo, but my impression it was presented with a tongue in a cheek.

Yep, Round Lake Bypass is the most recent upstate example.