WSDOT Director: “If you were to direct us to add a lane in each direction to I-5 between the Oregon border and British Columbia, that would be $110 billion-ish to build and would probably take as long as it would take to build a high-speed rail system..." www.theurbanist.org/2024/12/19/w... - ThreadSky

qagggy.bsky.social • 62 days ago

WSDOT Director: “If you were to direct us to add a lane in each direction to I-5 between the Oregon border and British Columbia, that would be $110 billion-ish to build and would probably take as long as it would take to build a high-speed rail system..." https://www.theurbanist.org/2024/12/19/wsdot-wins-50-million-grant-for-cascadia-high-speed-rail

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pdxblake.bsky.social•62 days ago

Is this the same director trying to spend $10 billion+ to mega-size and overbuild the I-5 crossing of the Columbia + miles in either direction? Wouldn't increasing local service on the same tracks between Portland & VanWA also have the same induced demand problem?

freeformz.me•62 days ago

We do need to replace the I-5 bridge, but *any* replacement should include:
- bike lanes
- pedestrian lanes
- be able to carry high speed trains

pdxblake.bsky.social•62 days ago

Could be a tunnel if they gave up the dream of widening 11 miles of highway around the bridge which would also reduce the cost & conflict with USCG. Also, the current design puts walk & bike on the opposite side of the highway from light rail (huh?) and I doubt they have any vision for HSR on it.

qagggy.bsky.social•62 days ago

A bridge high enough for HSR might be too long and too high to be practical for bikes, and likely wouldn't align properly. I assume the HSR service will want to swing wide or dive into a bored tunnel north of Vancouver, WA so it doesn't obliterate downtown 'Couve and a wide swath of North Portland.

pdxblake.bsky.social•62 days ago

The bridge design they have now is way too high to be any better than current bridge for bikes & people walking (opposite side of the freeway from light rail - huh? - basically terrible for different and preventable reasons).

pdxblake.bsky.social•62 days ago

My point was if rail cld provide capacity needed at the same cost/timeline as highway widening, why wouldn't they apply that to the I-5 bridge by reducing the footprint to not add new lanes (which they could probably do easier with a tunnel) and use the cost savings for non-HSR b/w Portland & VanWa.

typewriteralley.bsky.social•62 days ago

That's mostly on the two state legislatures.

qagggy.bsky.social•62 days ago

“...and would probably be full of traffic by the time we got finished building it...With the investment in ultra high-speed rail, we’re talking about an hour to Vancouver or maybe an hour and a half down to Portland, and that would be a gamechanger.”

georgefakename.bsky.social•62 days ago

how many studies do they have to do? i remember responding to one like 6 years ago

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