Opposition
In May 2011, a critic estimated a range of probable cost of $3.1 to $10 billion for five miles of highway and transit work, to include a double-deck truss bridge with ten lanes for auto traffic on the top deck, with public transportation, bicycles and pedestrians below. Concerns about the tolling plan have been raised by state treasurers of both Oregon and Washington. A report by Oregon Treasurer Ted Wheeler found that "key assumptions in the traffic and toll revenue forecast used in the 2008 are now outdated", and says that tolling will result in up to $598 million less than predicted earlier. The report cited problems raised by two independent studies. While the CRC predicts ever increasing traffic, Robert Bain of London firm RB Consult Ltd. calls that into question, noting that "traffic volumes using the I-5 Bridge have flattened-off over the last 15-20 years; well before the current recessionary period. The clear inference is that the flattening-off is a long-term traffic trend; not simply a manifestation of recent circumstances". A second consulting firm said that "employment growth projections by IHS Global Insight and by Moody's Analytics are significantly lower than those utilized in the process". Traffic leveling off and employment growth less than half that predicted by the CRC combine to cause problems with the finance plan.
A 2012 survey found that 52% of Portland drivers and 77% of Clark County drivers would divert to I-205 to avoid paying a toll on I-5. The Sightline Institute says that tolling should begin immediately so that planners have real-world data on how many trips would divert to I-205 to avoid an I-5 toll.
Oregon Governor John Kitzhaber introduced a bill for the 2013 legislature (H.B. 2260) which gives the state authority to raise money for the project via tolling; in the bill the project is referred to as "The Interstate 5 Bridge Replacement Program" rather than the CRC, a rebranding noted by local and national journalists.
The CRC megaproject was subject to at least three lawsuits. Thompson Metal Fab in Vancouver sued over the limited bridge height which they say will hurt their company's competitiveness. Residents of Hayden Island filed suit, claiming failure to properly examine negative air quality impacts and impacts to low income residents (some living as close as 50 feet from the project). The Coalition for a Livable Future, Northeast Coalition of Neighborhoods, and Northwest Environmental Defense Center challenged the federal agencies responsible for the CRC megaproject, based on concerns that the megaproject failed to consider even a basic analysis of key environmental issues, and said that the CRC failed to include a reasonable range of alternatives, instead creating a false choice between two extremes.
If built, the construction on Hayden Island was expected to last over five years, and impacts would include the forcible acquisition and demolition of 35 floating homes, along with 39 businesses employing 600 people.
Read more about this topic: Columbia River Crossing
Famous quotes containing the word opposition:
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—Michael Lewis (late 20th century)
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—Jane Austen (1775–1817)
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—Jean Baker Miller (20th century)