The cost of the Interstate 5 bridge over the Columbia River, linking Oregon to Washington, has rocketed from $6 billion to $13.6 billion, according to an exposé by Oregon Journalism Project.
The fixed-span bridge is part of the Interstate Bridge Replacement project and will provide a crucial crossing between Portland and Vancouver, serving as a major artery for trade and travel between the two northwestern states.
The 16-Member Bi-State Panel Was Deceived
Staff involved in the bridge replacement project told a bi-state panel on December 5 that they did not have an update on cost estimates for the bridge, when project consultants had revealed a detailed and updated estimate nearly four months earlier, on August 15, 2025.
The lack of information upset the 16-member panel which had last been updated with cost estimates in December 2022.
The Spiraling Costs are Bad News For the Financially Embattled ODOT
The new estimate of $13.6 billion is bad news for the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT), which, together with the Washington Department of Transportation and the federal government, will share the cost of the Columbia Bridge project…