The Oregon Transportation Commission on Wednesday passed a concept plan to close funding gaps for the I-205 Improvements Project (Abernethy Bridge) and the I-5 Rose Quarter Improvement Project .
In May, the commission heard a presentation on the Urban Mobility Strategy (UMS) funding gap and options to close it. Multiple factors require the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) to secure additional resources to advance UMS projects, including the I-205 Abernethy Bridge and the I-5 Rose Quarter projects.
Higher construction costs and the loss of expected tolling revenue have created an estimated $300 million funding gap for the I-205 Abernethy Bridge project.
ODOT in late May received the Oregon Legislature’s OK to seek a $750 million Infrastructure for Rebuilding America (INFRA) grant for the I-5 Rose Quarter project. The grant would include a $250 million state match. ODOT expects to hear from the U.S. Department of Transportation on a potential grant award in late August or early September, said Brendan Finn, the agency’s Urban Mobility Office director.
The commission last month provided direction for ODOT to come up with a hybrid option of deferring Statewide Transportation Improvement Program (STIP) projects and financing the gaps in the I-205 Abernethy Bridge and I-5 Rose Quarter projects, said Travis Brouwer, ODOT’s assistant director of revenue, finance and compliance. The plan includes using $250 million from the House Bill 2017 UMS set-aside for the I-5 Rose Quarter INFRA grant match (with the remainder available for the I-205 Abernethy Bridge project) and redirecting $100 million in STIP funding to the I-205 Abernethy Bridge project by deferring painting of the Fremont Bridge (Interstate 405) indefinitely.
ODOT also recommends the commission issue highway user tax revenue bonds for the remainder of the gap by using HB 2017 bridge/seismic funds for debt service over 25 years. Issuance of these bonds would require the legislature’s authorization. The bonds would range from $200 million to $500 million, with debt service of $15 million to $40 million per year. The bonds would likely be sold in 2025 or 2026, Brouwer said. In addition, ODOT would need some additional funding in the 2024-2027 STIP to cover that debt service, up to $100 million, which would require some project reductions.
Plans call for repainting the Fremont Bridge’s west ramps; the total value of the project is approximately $103.9 million, ODOT delivery and operations administrator Mac Lynde said. Postponement of the work would defer bridge preservation but not safety, he said. The project could be pushed to the 2027-2030 STIP or later.
ODOT has identified five 2024-2027 STIP projects for delay or cancellation. These include the Columbia Slough Bridge in Portland, the Clackamas River (McLoughlin) Bridge, U.S. 101 over the Port of Tillamook Bay Railroad, the Gold Beach Bridge over the Rogue River, and the Timber Bridge Program Funding Reserve. In August, ODOT will return before the commission for the annual STIP amendment, which will transfer funding from the Fremont Bridge painting project to the I-205 Abernethy Bridge project. Also at that time, ODOT will present scenarios for completing the needed funding for the I-5 Rose Quarter project, depending on the outcome of the INFRA grant. ODOT will return in December with a list of additional projects that should be deferred in the STIP.
The funding gap for the I-5 Rose Quarter project could be as much as $1.3 billion, depending on the outcome of the INFRA grant and the final total project cost, Finn said. ODOT will perform some cost evaluation work this summer for phase one of the project. Options for closing the gap would include additional funding from the 2025 Legislature, additional funding from the STIP, or phasing and scope adjustments.
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